2025-08-28 22:00

South Korean leader and President Trump held summit this week South Korea not currently allowed to reprocess nuclear fuel Reprocessed fuel can be used for nuclear weapons Minister says Seoul wants to reprocess for industrial and environmental purposes SEOUL/WASHINGTON, Aug 28 (Reuters) - South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said on Thursday the U.S. and South Korea have agreed to discuss nuclear fuel reprocessing following a summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung this week. "We operate 26 nuclear power plants, buying and bringing in fuel for them every time ... We have been feeling the necessity of being able to reprocess it and to make our own fuel through concentrates," Cho said in a live televised interview. Sign up here. "In order to do this, cooperation with the U.S. is most important. We need to change the nuclear agreement, or use another method under the agreement (between the countries). So it is very meaningful that we decided to begin discussions in that direction." South Korea is not allowed to reprocess spent nuclear fuel - which can be used to make nuclear weapons - without U.S. consent under an agreement , opens new tab between the countries. Changing that agreement would mark a major policy change for the United States, which has long sought to limit the number of countries with this capability as part of non-proliferation efforts. Cho has said previously that Seoul's intention is for industrial and environmental purposes, not for nuclear armament. He reiterated on Thursday that "any talk about wanting our own nuclear arms or having potential nuclear capabilities through revision (of the agreement) would be something that the U.S. could never accept in terms of overall nuclear non-proliferation." The U.S. State Department did not give specific responses when asked if the U.S. was open to changing the agreement and what sort of discussions it had agreed to, but a spokesperson said: "America has a longstanding policy to limit the spread of enrichment and reprocessing capabilities around the world and to seek the highest nonproliferation standards achievable in all 123 agreements." Section 123 of the U.S. Atomic Energy Act allows cooperation with other countries developing civil nuclear capabilities, but specifies nonproliferation criteria, including limiting uranium enrichment. South Korea has no nuclear arms, but borders North Korea, which does. It is currently protected under the U.S. nuclear umbrella, but amid growing concerns about the reliability of U.S. security guarantees, polling shows that up to 75% of the South Korean public is in favor of the country building its own nuclear arsenal. Daryl Kimball, executive director of the U.S.-based Arms Control Association, told Reuters last week there was no practical industrial or environmental need for South Korea to start reprocessing, or for a domestic uranium enrichment capability for its energy programme. In July, Kimball and other non-proliferation advocates wrote to U.S. lawmakers expressing concern about executive orders Trump signed in May mandating a government study to evaluate potential civilian use of plutonium fuel, saying that premature implementation could foster the spread of sensitive nuclear weapons-related technology and increase risks of proliferation. The letter said that the U.S. could not effectively discourage countries from recycling weapons-usable plutonium from civilian fuel if it did so itself. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/south-korea-us-agree-discuss-nuclear-reprocessing-minister-says-2025-08-28/

2025-08-28 21:40

Dollar lower as focus turns to Fed policy easing Nvidia revenue forecast higher than expectations but not a blowout US economic data positive for market NEW YORK, Aug 28 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average registered record closing highs on Thursday, even as Nvidia shares slipped amid uncertainty over its China business, while the dollar weakened against the euro and yen as traders anticipated U.S. interest rate cuts soon. Leading artificial intelligence chip designer Nvidia's shares (NVDA.O) , opens new tab ended 0.8% lower as questions around the Sino-U.S. trade war clouded a better-than-expected revenue forecast from the company, released after Wednesday's market close. Still, investors viewed Nvidia's report, including a 56% surge in quarterly revenue, as confirmation that demand related to AI technology remains strong. Sign up here. Other AI heavyweights gained, with Alphabet (GOOGL.O) , opens new tab up 2% and Broadcom (AVGO.O) , opens new tab up 2.8%. The Nasdaq climbed as well, while the S&P 500 posted a record high close for a second straight day. While there is some confusion over what will happen with China, Nvidia "didn't say anything that pointed to a significant slowdown in anything, so that took away a major risk or overhang this morning," said Peter Tuz, president of Chase Investment Counsel in Charlottesville, Virginia. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang also dismissed concerns about an end to a spending boom on AI chips and said opportunities will expand over the next five years. Another plus for stocks was economic data, Tuz said. The day's data showed the U.S. economy grew faster than initially thought in the second quarter, in part driven by business investment in intellectual property such as AI. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) , opens new tab rose 71.67 points, or 0.16%, to 45,636.90, the S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab rose 20.46 points, or 0.32%, to 6,501.86 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) , opens new tab rose 115.02 points, or 0.53%, to 21,705.16. MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe (.MIWD00000PUS) , opens new tab rose 3.30 points, or 0.35%, to 956.34. The pan-European STOXX 600 (.STOXX) , opens new tab index fell 0.2%. Concerns over France's fiscal path are likely to stay in focus for European markets following Prime Minister Francois Bayrou's gamble to win backing for his deeply unpopular debt-reduction plan via a confidence vote next month. The euro was up 0.35% at $1.1678. Against the Japanese yen , the dollar weakened 0.28% to 146.97. Investors are keen to find out more about prospects for interest rate cuts ahead of the Federal Reserve's September 16-17 policy meeting. On Wednesday, New York Fed President John Williams said it is likely interest rates can fall at some point, but policymakers will need to see what upcoming data indicate about the economy to decide if it's appropriate to make a cut at the September meeting. Traders currently are pricing in roughly 84% odds of a rate cut in September, according to CME's FedWatch tool. In total, they see 138 basis points of cuts by the end of 2026. Also key this week will be a report on Friday on U.S. personal consumption expenditures - the Fed's preferred inflation measure. Investors were still digesting news on Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook. Cook filed a lawsuit on Thursday claiming U.S. President Donald Trump has no power to remove her from office, setting up a legal battle that could reset long-established norms for the U.S. central bank's independence. U.S. Treasury yields were mixed, with some investors taking profits from a recent rally in two-year notes. The yield on the interest rate-sensitive two-year note was last up 1.6 basis points at 3.639% after falling to 3.611% on Wednesday, the lowest since May 1. The benchmark 10-year note fell 2.7 basis points to 4.211% and reached 4.203%, the lowest since August 5. “The big driver is the Fed story. Bond markets love rate cuts,” said Padhraic Garvey, regional head of research, Americas, at ING. Oil prices rose, and gold prices hit a five-week peak. Spot gold rose 0.6% to $3,416.14 per ounce, hitting its highest level since July 23. Brent crude futures gained 57 cents, or 0.8%, to settle at $68.62 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 45 cents, or 0.7%, to settle at $64.60 a barrel. https://www.reuters.com/world/china/global-markets-wrapup-7-graphic-2025-08-28/

2025-08-28 21:37

WASHINGTON, Aug 28 (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration plans to cancel leases on its satellite offices in the Washington area as it consolidates operations and moves headquarters staff into a building that houses the U.S. Transportation Department. FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said in a previously unreported email to staff seen by Reuters that the move would improve collaboration. Sign up here. "We will work more effectively when we're together, rather than spread across six different office locations," Bedford wrote. "This will significantly reduce operating costs and enhance collaboration." Bedford said the timing of the moves of each office will soon be finalized. On Tuesday, USDOT said it planned to relocate thousands of FAA employees at its headquarters to the department's main office in Washington and consolidate agency IT and other systems. The FAA is one of several agencies in USDOT. The department plans to move several thousand employees that work at the Orville and Wilbur Wright headquarters buildings to its department headquarters in southeast Washington. One open question is how many FAA functions -- potentially purchasing, IT, human resources and others -- will be folded into USDOT and if the consolidation will result in workforce cuts. The FAA, by far the largest part of USDOT, has around 44,200 of the department's nearly 53,000 total employees. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy told employees this week the department will begin sunsetting legacy systems and embracing advanced technologies as it works to "streamline our processes, consolidate administrative functions, and modernize our infrastructure." Duffy said the FAA building is in serious disrepair, with employees unable to even drink the water there. "I think it's important for cooperation and collaboration to be under one roof," Duffy told reporters. He said some FAA employees might not want to move "and be an entity unto ourselves that's not responsive to anybody in government." President Donald Trump's administration has been moving to consolidate office space and shrink the federal workforce. https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/us-faa-plans-close-satellite-offices-washington-it-consolidates-operations-2025-08-28/

2025-08-28 21:35

FCA probes biomass sourcing statements from Jan 2022-March 2024 Drax previously probed by Ofgem over misreported biomass data Shares drop over 12% Aug 28 (Reuters) - Britain's financial watchdog is investigating Drax Group's (DRX.L) , opens new tab biomass sourcing disclosures following last year's investigation by the country's energy regulator, sending its shares down more than 12% on Thursday. Drax, which supplies about 5% of Britain's electricity via biomass-converted coal plants and has received billions of pounds in green energy subsidies from the UK government, was fined 25 million pounds ($33.77 million) by Ofgem for misreporting data on wood sourced from forests in Canada. Sign up here. Drax has faced criticism from environmental groups about sourcing wood from Canadian forests but has said it only uses wood residuals or byproducts from trees primarily used for lumber and that demand for wood from sustainable managed forests can help to increase forest growth. The FCA's investigation includes Drax's 2021–2023 annual reports and their compliance with financial disclosure rules. The power producer said it is cooperating with the FCA, but provided no further details. Ofgem's investigation found no evidence of a breach of sustainability obligations by Drax or that it had incorrectly issued renewable obligation certificates. The FCA's investigation covers statements made between January 2022 and March 2024. The new probe puts Drax "back in the spotlight", Jefferies analysts said in a note, and increases political scrutiny of the government's post-2027 biomass support plan, which will halve subsidies for the company during 2027–2031. Drax shares fell as much as 12.4% to 617 pence, but pared losses to 9.2% by 0748 GMT. Environmental groups have questioned the sustainability of biomass power plants, which generate electricity by burning wood pellets. Drax aims to reach net zero carbon emissions across its entire value chain by the end of 2024. Britain plans to largely decarbonise its electricity sector by 2030 which will require many new renewable power projects and infrastructure, including pylons to connect them to the grid. ($1 = 0.7402 pounds) https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/uks-fca-investigates-energy-company-drax-over-biomass-sourcing-disclosures-2025-08-28/

2025-08-28 21:28

DUBAI, Aug 28 (Reuters) - Abu Dhabi's ADNOC raised $317 million in an institutional placement of a 3% stake in its logistics and services unit through a bookbuild offering, it said on Thursday. The United Arab Emirates state oil company said that it completed the pricing of a placement to institutional investors of approximately 222 million shares in ADNOC L&S (ADNOCLS.AD) , opens new tab at 5.25 dirhams ($1.43) per share, a discount of 3.3% compared to Thursday’s closing price of 5.43 dirhams. Sign up here. The company added the offering drew “exceptional demand” from Gulf and international institutional investors, with around 7x oversubscription in a four-hour accelerated bookbuild, one of the region’s highest for a secondary sell-down. The deal is expected to increase ADNOC L&S's free float to 22% and improve liquidity for the unit's shares, the company said. Created in 2016, ADNOC L&S exports crude oil, refined products, dry bulk and liquefied natural gas from Abu Dhabi to more than 100 customers in over 50 countries. ADNOC raised $769 million in 2023 with an initial public offering for the unit and now holds an 81% stake. Other recent secondary offerings for ADNOC units include its gas business (ADNOCLS.AD) , opens new tab, which raised $2.84 billion in February in one the biggest share sales in the Middle East in recent years. First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB.AD) , opens new tab, JPMorgan (JPM.N) , opens new tab and China International Capital Corporation (601995.SS) , opens new tab were among banks appointed as joint global coordinators and joint bookrunners for the offering. ($1 = 3.6726 UAE dirham) https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/adnoc-raises-317-million-via-secondary-share-sale-its-logistics-services-unit-2025-08-28/

2025-08-28 21:09

De minimis exemption for global package shipments to US ends on Friday US customs agency to collect full duties on all packages starting on Friday Change is permanent, Trump administration official says US has collected $492 million in duties on China, Hong Kong small packages since May WASHINGTON, Aug 28 (Reuters) - The U.S. tariff exemption for package shipments valued under $800 ends permanently on Friday, with a six-month transition period under which postal service shippers can opt to pay a flat duty of $80 to $200 per package depending on the country of origin, Trump administration officials said. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency will begin collecting normal duty rates on all global parcel imports, regardless of value after 12:01 a.m. EDT (0401 GMT) on Friday. The move broadens the Trump administration's cancellation of the de minimis exemption for shipments from China and Hong Kong earlier this year. Sign up here. "President Trump's ending of the deadly de minimis loophole will save thousands of American lives by restricting the flow of narcotics and other dangerous prohibited items, and add up to $10 billion a year in tariff revenues to our Treasury," White House trade adviser Peter Navarro told reporters. "This is a permanent change," said a senior administration official, adding that any push to restore the exemptions for trusted trading partner countries was "dead on arrival." The de minimis exemption has been in place since 1938 and was raised from $200 to $800 in 2015 as a means to foster small business growth on e-commerce marketplaces. But direct shipments from China exploded after President Donald Trump raised tariffs on Chinese goods during his first term, creating a new direct-to-consumer business model for e-commerce firms Shein and Temu (PDD.O) , opens new tab. Many of these packages entered without screening, and the Trump administration has also blamed the exemption for allowing fentanyl and its precursors to flow into the U.S. CBP has estimated that the number of packages claiming the de minimis exemption jumped nearly 10-fold , opens new tab from 139 million in fiscal 2015 to 1.36 billion in fiscal 2024. A second senior Trump administration official said that CBP has collected more than $492 million in additional duties on packages shipped from China and Hong Kong since their exemptions were eliminated on May 2. The official said that full tariff rates will apply to all packages shipped by express carriers such as FedEx (FDX.N) , opens new tab, United Parcel Service (UPS.N) , opens new tab and DHL, with the firms collecting the duties and processing the paperwork. Foreign postal agencies can opt to collect and process the duties based on the value of the package contents, or opt for the flat rate method by collecting a flat tax based on Trump's "reciprocal" tariff rates currently in place on goods from the country of origin. Based on CBP guidance , opens new tab issued on Thursday, parcels would be charged $80 from countries with Trump-imposed duty rates below 16%, such as Britain and the European Union, $160 from countries between 16% and 25%, such as Indonesia and Vietnam, and $200 from countries above 25%, including China, Brazil, India and Canada. But postal services must shift to full "ad valorem" duty collection based on the value of the shipments by February 28, 2026, the second official said. This official acknowledged that some foreign postal services have suspended mail to the U.S. but said the administration was working with foreign partners and the U.S. Postal Service to minimize disruptions. The official said that Britain, Canada and Ukraine have confirmed that their shipments are continuing. https://www.reuters.com/business/end-us-low-value-package-tariff-exemption-is-permanent-trump-officials-say-2025-08-28/