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Holiday schedule for US economic and other data
The release of major economic, energy, and commodity reports from Washington will be affected by the Juneteenth federal holiday, which falls on Thursday, 19th June. The schedule is below. The times are in EDT/GMT. Some Treasury announcements may be subject to change. Monday, June 16 The U.S. Department of Agriculture releases weekly U.S. Export Inspections for Grains, Oilseeds and 1100/1500 Treasury Department's Weekly Sale of 3- and 6-Month Bills, 1130/1530 National Oilseed Processors Association releases monthly U.S. Soybean Crush, 1200/1600 Treasury Department offers 20-year Bonds, 1300/1700 USDA releases weekly Crop Progress 1600/2000 Tuesday, June 17 Commerce Department releases Retail Sales for the month of May, 830/1230 Labor Department releases Import and export prices for May, 830/1230 Redbook releases weekly retail sales index 0855/1255 Federal Open Market Committee starts two-day meeting to discuss interest rate policy. Start time TBA Federal Reserve releases Industrial Production for May 0915/1315 Commerce Department releases Business Inventories April 1000/1400 Treasury Department announces weekly sale of 4-, 8, and 17-week Bills, 1100/1500 Treasury Department sells 6-week bills every week, 1130/1530 Treasury Department sells 5-year Treasury Inflation Protected Securities, 1300/1700 American Petroleum Institute releases weekly national petroleum reports, 1630/2030 Wednesday, June 18, Mortgage Bankers Association releases weekly Mortgage Application Survey, 0700/1100 Commerce Department Issues Housing Starts For May, 830/1230 Labor Department releases weekly jobless claims, 0830/1230. Note: Issued one day before due to holiday Energy Information Administration (EIA), Weekly Petroleum Stocks and Output Data, 1030/1430 Treasury Department announces weekly 3-, 6-, and 6-week bills; sales of 2-year floating-rate notes; 2- and 5-year notes; and 2-, 7-, and 10-year notes. Note: Due to the holiday, Treasury Department announces 3- and 6-month bills and 6-week bill sales one day before. Treasury Department will hold weekly sales for 4- and 8 week bills, 17-week bill, 1130/1530. Note: Due to the holiday, 4- and 8 week bills are sold one day before. Freddie Mac issues weekly U.S. mortgage rates, 1200/1600. Note: Rates are published one day before the holiday. EIA releases weekly U.S. Underground Natural Gas Stocks, 1200/1600. Note: Issued one day ahead due to time change. Federal Open Market Committee Issues Statement on Interest Rate Policy, 1400/1800 Treasury Department Issues Treasury International Capital for April 1600/2000 Thursday, June 19 Juneteenth holiday. Closed federal government offices, Federal Reserve and International Monetary Fund. Stock and bond markets. Friday, June 20 USDA releases weekly export sales, 0830/1230. Due to the holiday, this week's export sales are delayed. Conference Board releases Leading Indicators for the month of May, 1000/1400 USDA Cattle on Feed Monthly, 1500/1900 Federal Reserve releases Weekly Balance Sheet, 1630/2030. Note: this is a delayed release from Thursday because of the holiday.
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Diplomats claim that the UN's nuclear watchdog board will meet to discuss Israel's Iran strike.
Diplomats confirmed that the Board of Governors of the U.N. Nuclear Watchdog will hold an extraordinary meeting on Monday in order to discuss Israel's attacks on Iran. At least one country requested it at the regular quarterly session of this body held on Friday. A meeting can be called by any country that is a member of the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) board. Diplomats reported that Iran, a member of the board but not a member, had requested a meeting. It was backed by Russia, China, and Venezuela. Diplomats differed on which board member made the initial request. Before any announcement was made about the emergency meeting, diplomats held a closed-door discussion on Friday. The IAEA Israel had targeted Iran's Natanz nucleus site earlier in the day, including an underground uranium-enrichment plant as well as a smaller pilot plant above ground. The IAEA's highest policy-making body said that there was no indication of any effort to push for a decision or other action by the 35 nation board on Monday. (Reporting and editing by Joe Bavier, Gareth Jones and Francois Murphy)
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Investors reduce risk following Israel's attack on Iran, causing copper and other metals to fall.
The price of copper, and other industrial metals, fell on Friday. This was due to a stronger dollar. Investors sold their risky assets following the attack by Israel on Iran. The benchmark three-month copper price on the London Metal Exchange fell 0.5% by 1600 GMT to $9,653 per metric ton after hitting $9,532, its lowest since June 3. After Israel launched an extensive military strike against Iran, the dollar index rose and stock markets around the world fell. The dollar is stronger, making commodities priced in U.S. dollars more expensive to buyers of other currencies. Alastair Mudro, senior base-metals strategist at Marex, said that the market has de-risked copper and aluminum. The current events make it unlikely that we will run away from the topside. "Those who are looking for dips will be pleased by the declines." LME copper was up by a fifth since April 7, when the price reached its lowest level since November 2023. This rebound continued until this week. U.S. Comex Copper Futures fell 0.3% to $4.82 a pound. This brings the premium of Comex copper over LME copper up to $976 a tonne. Munro stated that most of the selling came from Commodity Trade Advisor investment funds which are driven largely by computer programs. Chinese participants also emerged to buy at lows. The most traded aluminium contract at the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE), which is the largest metal exchange in China, gained 0.4% to 20,425 yuan/metric ton for the third consecutive day. This outperformed other SHFE Metals. Analysts from a Hangzhou futures company stated that "aluminium has performed rather well compared to other metals recently, as the demand from the local market has been robust. SHFE stocks, however, have been falling." Aluminium stocks In SHFE warehouses, the number of tons dropped to 110,001 in the week ending June 13 - the lowest level since February 2024 - and the largest drop since late March, when it fell by 54%. Other metals include LME aluminium, which fell by 0.5% to 2,505 per ton. Lead also dropped 0.3% to 1,990, and zinc, which fell 0.6% to 2,627, after falling to its lowest level since May 1. Nickel increased 0.3%, to $15.185. Tin rose 0.3%, to $32,755. Click here to see the latest news in metals.
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Newspaper reports that Nippon Steel's exec said the firm needed freedom to manage U.S. Steel.
The shares of U.S. Steel dropped after a Nippon Steel executive said to the Japanese Nikkei that the planned takeover required "a certain degree of management flexibility" in order to proceed, even though sources claimed a deal had been reached with the U.S. Government to approve the tie-up. The executive told the newspaper that without a certain degree of management autonomy, it might not be possible for the U.S. Government to come to an agreement. This sent shares of the iconic U.S. Steelmaker down by 4%. The comments seemed to be a response to remarks made on Thursday by President Donald Trump who claimed that he controlled U.S. Steel through a "golden shares" which gave the American public a 51% share in the company. Two of the three said that the deal could be completed as early as Friday. Nippon Steel U.S. Steel, and the White House have not responded to immediate requests for comments. Nippon Steel's $14.9 billion offer, announced in December 2023 by Nippon Steel, was met with opposition right from the beginning. Former President Joe Biden, along with Donald Trump, both asserted that U.S. Steel must remain American-owned in order to woo Pennsylvania voters before the 2016 presidential election. Biden blocked this deal in January, citing national security concerns. This led to lawsuits from the companies who claimed that the review of their national security was biased. The Biden White House denied the claim. Steel companies saw an opportunity with the Trump administration. The Trump administration began on January 20, and in April, opened a 45-day review of national security for the proposed merger. Trump's public remarks, which ranged from welcoming the Japanese company to "invest" in U.S. Steel, to floating a minority stake of Nippon Steel sparked confusion. Trump said at a rally on May 30 in Pennsylvania that Nippon Steel was a "great" partner for U.S. Steel. He later told reporters that the deal was still subject to his approval and he had not yet decided whether Nippon Steel would be allowed to acquire ownership. Nippon Steel, the Trump Administration and a U.S. court of appeals requested on June 5, an extension of eight days to a pause to litigation. This was to give the parties more time to negotiate a settlement for the Japanese company. The pause ends Friday but can be extended. The current contract between Nippon Steel & U.S. Steel expires on June 18, but the companies could agree to delay that date. Reporting by Alexandra Alper, David Gaffen, in New York and Nathan Gomes, in Bengaluru. Editing by Anil d'Silva.
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Gold prices rise as Israel-Iran tensions escalate, fueling safe-haven bids
The gold price soared Friday, as investors sought safe-haven assets after Israeli airstrikes against Iran. This re-ignited fears of a wider conflict in the Middle East. Gold spot rose by 1.2% to $3,424.99 per ounce at 1143 EDT (1543 GMT) and is now within striking distance of the record high set in April of $3,500.05. Prices have risen by about 3.4% this week. U.S. Gold Futures increased by 1.3% to $3445.50. "Israel's destruction of Iranian targets has caused a bit of geopolitical fear in the market." Prices will remain elevated as traders anticipate the next phase, namely the retaliation from Iran. Israel launched a barrage on Iran Friday, claiming it had destroyed nuclear facilities and missile factories as well as killed military commanders. This could be the beginning of a long-term operation to stop Tehran from developing an atomic bomb. Donald Trump, the president of the United States, suggested that Iran was responsible for its own attack by refusing to comply with an ultimatum issued by Washington in negotiations to limit its nuclear program. Gold prices rose this week as a result of softer U.S. inflation figures. This boosted expectations for interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve. Bullion is a popular asset that many people consider safe, particularly during economic turmoil or geopolitical instability. Bullion tends to flourish in an environment with low interest rates. Goldman Sachs reaffirmed its forecast that central bank purchases will drive the price of gold to $3,700/toz at end-2025 and $4,000 in mid-2026. BofA believes that gold will reach $4,000/oz in the next year. In terms of the physical market, the demand for goods in the major Asian hubs has weakened as rates have risen. Prices in India have soared past the psychologically significant 100,000 rupee mark. Spot silver fell 0.4% to $36.23 an ounce. It gained 0.8% in the past week. Platinum dropped 5.9% to $1.219.03, and rose over 4% in the past week. Palladium fell 1.3% to $1 041.51 this week and has dropped 0.4%. Ashitha Shivprasad in Bengaluru and Sarah Qureshi, editing by Nick Zieminski & Shrey Biswas.
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Source: Thyssenkrupp CEO Lopez will get contract extension.
A person with knowledge of the matter has said that the contract of Thyssenkrupp's CEO Miguel Lopez who was appointed two years ago will be extended by the supervisory board next week. Lopez, who assumed the role of CEO on June 1, 2023 has overseen two significant steps in the transformation of the company: the listing of Thyssenkrupp’s hydrogen unit and the sale of 20% of its steel business by Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky. Thyssenkrupp, under his leadership also accelerated its efforts to spin-off its defence division TKMS. The company unveiled plans for a holding model that would allow all of its divisions to be opened to outside investors. The person stated that at a supervisory committee meeting on June 20, Lopez’s contract which expires May 31, 2026 is expected to be extended. Members of the committee will also likely approve the planned spinoff of TKMS. Lopez's aggressive approach towards Thyssenkrupp’s revamp has attracted the ire powerful labour leaders. These hold half of the seats in Thyssenkrupp’s supervisory board, but they cannot block an extension as Chairman Siegfried Russwurm is able to cast a decision if there's a deadlock. Thyssenkrupp issued a statement in which it said: "We confirm that the Supervisory board will address this issue in due time." The German weekly Welt am Sonntag was the first to report on the contract extension. (Reporting and writing by Friederike Hine, editing by Miranda Murray; Friederike Steitz)
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Oil prices jump over 7% following Israel's attack on Iran
The oil prices rose over 7% to multi-month highs on Friday after Israel launched airstrikes against Iran. This triggered Iranian retaliation, and raised concerns about disruptions in Middle East supply. Brent crude futures rose $4.94 or 7.12% to $74.30 per barrel at 1442 GMT after reaching an intraday peak of $78.50 - the highest level since January 27. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude was up $6.94% or $4.72 at $72.75. It reached its highest level since January 21, at $77.62, earlier in the session. The gains on Friday were the biggest intraday movements for both contracts in 2022 after Russia's invasion caused a spike of energy prices. Israel announced that it had launched a long-term operation on Friday to stop Tehran from building atomic weapons. It said the first targets were Iran's ballistic missile factories, nuclear facilities and military commanders. Iran has promised to respond harshly. U.S. president Donald Trump called on Iran to reach a deal with regard to its nuclear program, in order to stop the "next attack already planned." The National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company stated that oil refineries and storage facilities were not damaged and continue to be operational. Nikos Tzabouras is a senior market analyst with Tradu.com. He said that the main concern was whether or not the recent developments would have an impact on the Strait of Hormuz. Tzabouras wrote in a Friday morning note that "sustained upside" would require disruptions of physical flows, such as damage to Iran’s oil infrastructure or blockade of Strait of Hormuz – a major global chokepoint. Around a fifth (or 18-19 million barrels of oil per day) or fuel, condensate, and oil are transported through the Strait. Ole Hansen, analyst at Saxo Bank, said that no change has yet been observed in oil flow. Hansen stated that the risk of an energy supply disruption is low, and will likely reduce over time, unless Iran decides it wants to draw other nations into the conflict. Analysts said that Iran and its neighbors could be forced to pay a high price if the Strait of Hormuz is blocked, as it relies on this waterway to transport oil to Asian markets. Iran's oil exports are all sea-based, so its economy is heavily dependent on free movement of goods and ships through the seaway. Analysts at JP Morgan said that cutting off the Strait of Hormuz could be detrimental to Iran's sole oil client, China. On other markets, stocks plunged and investors rushed to secure assets such as the U.S. Dollar and Swiss Franc. Reporting by Erwin Seba and Georgina McCartney; Editing by Stephen Coates. Rachna uppal, Kim Coghill. Chizu Nomiyama, David Gregorio.
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Overview of Iran's Energy Industry and Infrastructure
Israel launched strikes against Iran on Friday. It targeted its nuclear facilities, missile factories, and military commanders as part of a long-term operation, which it has warned will be prolonged, to stop Tehran from building atomic weapons. According to the National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company, oil storage and refining plants were not damaged by the attack. Here are some interesting facts about the energy industry of the country, its exports, and the impact that previous Western sanctions had on it. SANCTIONS & OPEC According to OPEC, Iran's oil output peaked in the 1970s. In 1974 it reached a record 6 million barrels per day. This was over 10% of the world's output. The United States first imposed sanctions against Tehran in 1979. Since then, several waves of U.S. sanctions and European Union sanctions have been aimed at the country. In 2018, the United States tightened its sanctions after Trump pulled out of a nuclear agreement during his first term as president. Iran's oil sales fell to near zero in some months. Analysts say sanctions were not enforced as strictly under the administration of Trump's successor, President Joe Biden. Iran was able to evade them. Iran is exempted from OPEC+ production restrictions. Who is the main buyer of Iranian oil? Iran's crude oil exports rose to a multiyear high of 1.8m bpd, the highest level since 2018, due to strong Chinese demand. China claims that it does not recognize sanctions against its trading partners. China's private refiners are the main buyers of Iranian crude oil. Some of these companies have been recently placed on U.S. Treasury's sanctions list. However, there is little evidence that the sanctions have had a significant impact on Iranian oil flows to China. Iran has been evading sanctions for years by hiding satellite positions and transferring ships from one vessel to another. PRODUCTION & INFRASTRUCTURE Iran is the third-largest producer of crude oil in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. It extracts 3.3 million barrels of crude oil each day, plus another 1.3 millions bpd of liquids and condensate, which totals to about 4.5% of the global supply. According to Kpler it exported 1.8 million barrels per day of crude oil and condensate, which is close to the peak of 2018. The remainder of production was processed in domestic refineries, with a capacity of 2.6 millions bpd. Kpler reports that in May, the country exported LPG and oil products worth 750,000 bpd. According to FGE the country produces 34 billion cubic foot of gas every day. This is 7% of world production. The gas is used exclusively in the domestic market. Iran's hydrocarbon facilities are concentrated primarily in the southwest. For oil, they are located in the Khuzestan Province and for gas and condensate produced from the South Pars Field in Bushehr. Kharg Island is the main port of export for 90% of the crude oil. Analysts believe Saudi Arabia and the other OPEC countries could compensate for a drop in Iranian oil supply by pumping more. Although a number producers are currently raising their output targets, the spare capacity of the group is being strained.
PD Ports Outlines Plans to Develop UK Offshore Wind Hub
U.K.-based PD Ports has outlined its plans to develop one of the U.K.’s largest offshore wind manufacturing and installation hubs - the Teesport Offshore Gateway.
The proposed project could unlock 180 acres of development potential for a range of offshore manufacturers, assembly, marshalling and supply chain support services.
Representing a multi-million-dollar investment in the River Tees, the Teesport Offshore Gateway would include an up to 1 km long deep-water riverside quay, permitting unrestricted access to the North Sea and suitable for both floating and fixed bottom offshore wind development.
Set within the heart of PD Ports’ Teesport industrial port complex, the U.K.’s sixth largest port, the site offers a strategically located position for development, supported by quality infrastructure, strong road and rail links and a skilled workforce.
While the plans are at an early stage and subject to a variation of existing deep water berth development consents, it is anticipated that development of Teesport Offshore Gateway could cost in the region of $267 million and would secure critical port facilities in support of the Government’s offshore wind development ambitions.
PD Ports is looking to engage with the offshore renewables sector to explore the potential of the proposals, working with original equipment manufacturers (OEM), developers, the UK Government and industry experts to shape the strategic direction of the site and identify opportunities for collaboration and funding.
It is hoped that by announcing the initiative at an early stage, insight from the offshore sector will aid the design of more detailed plans to meet future industry requirements.
The site has already secured both planning consent and marine consent, subject to amendments, to extend an existing riverside berth to develop the 15.5m deep-water mooring, which would be large enough to accommodate all current and planned offshore installation vessels available globally.
The creation of a new deep-water berth for Teesport will also future-proof the port, opening up wider opportunities for additional bulk and container facilities, in support of PD Ports’ existing Teesport Container Terminal and the Tees Bulks Quay.
“As the U.K. and the wider world turns its attention to large-scale renewable energy sources, here at PD Ports we see the opportunity – and the responsibility – to play our part by offering an offshore wind development site that is perfectly positioned to unlock the capability of our region, not only as a hub for trade and industry, but also to deliver the clean energy revolution.
“Teesport and the River Tees has everything required to successfully operate what we believe will be one of the largest offshore wind manufacturing and assembly hubs on the east coast of the UK, offering unrivalled access to the North Sea.
“Although these proposals are at an early stage, we are confident that this development will support the UK Government’s ambitions for future offshore wind power generation,” said Frans Calje, chief executive officer of PD Ports.