2025-08-13 10:24

MUMBAI, Aug 13 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee gained the most in more than a month on Wednesday as softer U.S. inflation data bolstered hopes of a Federal Reserve rate cut in September, weighing on the dollar. The local currency unit gained 0.31% - its highest intraday gain since July 3 - and closed at 87.4400, compared to Tuesday's close of 87.7125. Sign up here. U.S. inflation data released on Tuesday showed consumer prices rose modestly in the world's largest economy in July, with impact from recent tariffs staying limited. This provided a boost to emerging market currencies including the Indian rupee, as the odds for a September rate cut from the Fed climbed to 94%. Markets are now pricing in 60 basis points of cuts this year, lifting risk appetite among investors. Investor confidence in the dollar was further dented after the White House said President Donald Trump was weighing legal action against Fed Chair Jerome Powell over his handling of renovations at the central bank's headquarters. The dollar index was down 0.4% at 97.645 at 1544 IST. “For the USD/INR pair, the outlook is bearish for the next couple of days," said Jigar Trivedi, senior currency and commodity analyst at Reliance Securities. The uncertainty over U.S. tariffs remains the dominant drag on sentiment, Trivedi said, adding that the upcoming Trump-Putin summit in Alaska on Friday is a key risk event that could sway the currency’s direction. The stakes of the meeting, which aims to explore a resolution to the war in Ukraine, are high for the rupee. Market participants expect any resolution to the conflict to have a bearing on additional tariffs that President Trump has imposed on Indian goods in response to New Delhi’s continued purchases of Russian oil. Meanwhile, most Asian currencies advanced, with the Indonesian rupiah and the Malaysian ringgit up 0.6% and 0.5%, respectively, and the South Korean won rising 0.5%. https://www.reuters.com/world/india/indian-rupee-rises-most-month-broad-dollar-weakness-2025-08-13/

2025-08-13 07:59

Aug 13 (Reuters) - Swiss dental implant maker Straumann (STMN.S) , opens new tab on Wednesday reported first half earnings below market expectations, impacted by negative foreign exchange movements and a weaker performance in North America. The group, which specialises in tooth replacement and orthodontic solutions, reported core earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of 358 million francs in the first half, below consensus estimates of 365 million francs. Sign up here. "The Swiss franc keeps strengthening versus all the key currencies in which we are doing business," CEO Guillaume Daniellot told Reuters in an interview. The currency, seen as a safe haven amid economic turmoil, has appreciated around 12% against the U.S. dollar year-to-date. North America sales totalled 170.7 million francs in the first half of the year, down 0.9%, and slightly below estimates at 172.4 million. The North American market, Straumann's second biggest, generates around 28% of its sales. Straumann has shown resilience to changing U.S. tariff policies as 80% of the products it sells in the United States are manufactured domestically. However, the company's key challenger implants are produced in Brazil and in Europe. The group's total sales grew to 1.35 billion Swiss francs ($1.67 billion)in the period, broadly in line with analysts' expectations of 1.36 billion francs in a Vara consensus. Straumann confirmed its 2025 sales forecast, saying it aims to achieve organic revenue growth in the high single-digit percentage range. Shares in Straumann were down 4.2% as of 0758 GMT. ($1 = 0.8063 Swiss francs) https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/straumann-h1-earnings-miss-market-expectations-2025-08-13/

2025-08-13 07:56

NEW YORK, Aug 13 (Reuters) - Bullish, a cryptocurrency exchange operator that counts billionaire Peter Thiel amongst its backers, said its U.S. initial public offering was priced above its indicated range at $37 per share. The offering raised $1.11 billion for Bullish based on 30 million shares sold and valued the company at $5.41 billion. Sign up here. Bullish was earlier aiming to price its offering between $32 and $33 per share. The share sale comes as IPOs are bouncing back following a dry spell for U.S. equity capital markets that lasted for more than two years. Stablecoin issuer Circle Internet (CRCL.N) , opens new tab upsized its initial IPO in early June on strong investor demand and its shares have increased more than 400% since then. Shares of design software maker Figma (FIG.N) , opens new tab surged 250% in its market debut just over two weeks ago. With its listing, Bullish joins a burgeoning list of crypto players that have tapped public markets this year, buoyed mainly by crypto-friendly regulations under the Trump administration. In July, U.S. President Donald Trump signed a law to create a regulatory regime for dollar-pegged cryptocurrencies known as stablecoins, marking a huge win for crypto supporters who have long lobbied for such a regulatory framework in a bid to gain greater legitimacy for an industry that began in 2009 as a digital Wild West famed for its innovation and speculative chaos. Bullish, which is led by former New York Stock Exchange president Tom Farley, operates an exchange that offers spot crypto trading, futures and derivatives trading, and also owns media outlet CoinDesk. It is expected to start trading on NYSE under the ticker symbol "BLSH" on Wednesday. Institutional investors including BlackRock and Cathie Wood's Ark Investment Management have committed to buy upto $200 million worth of shares from Bullish's offering. JPMorgan, Jefferies, and Citigroup are the lead underwriters for the IPO. https://www.reuters.com/technology/coindesk-owner-bullish-prices-ipo-above-range-raise-over-11-billion-2025-08-13/

2025-08-13 07:53

First half 2025 saw 212 GW added, more than double H1 2024 Power reforms create uncertainty for solar project investors Solar installations to stabilize at 250 GW annually from 2026, BMI says BEIJING, Aug 13 (Reuters) - China's new solar power capacity will slow in the second half of 2025 as reforms removing guaranteed pricing create uncertainty for new projects, though full-year additions will still likely reach a record high because of frontloading, analysts say. Slowing growth in the world's largest solar fleet is a fresh blow for solar manufacturers already struggling with massive overcapacity and a vicious price war. Sign up here. Global solar manufacturers, the majority of which are in China, have the capacity to make more than twice the number of panels the world will buy this year, according to an estimate from Morningstar. Through June, China has added 212 gigawatts of new solar capacity, according to data from the National Energy Administration, more than double the first-half 2024 additions. But based on that figure, the latest annual forecasts from analysts show that capacity additions are likely to roughly halve in the second half compared to last year. Analysts at Natixis expect 300 GW of new solar for 2025 in its mid-point scenario. That likely means only 88 GW will be added for the rest of the year, based on calculations deducting the first half NEA data. Fitch Solutions' BMI forecasts an annual gain of 310 GW, which would mean an expected gain of only 98 GW for the rest of the year. NEA data showed 175 GW of solar were added in the second half of 2024, part of a record annual surge of 277 GW. Power reforms introduced earlier this year removed a guaranteed rate of return for renewable energy projects, forcing projects built from June to sell power at market prices. The change creates uncertainty around the rate of return for investors accustomed to fixed pricing. Adding to the confusion, the exact market mechanisms can differ between provinces. Because of this, companies surged their new capacity into the first half of the year, with 93 GW of new additions in May, which dropped to 14 GW in June, the NEA data showed. "All of the projects were rushing to be commissioned ahead of the last window where they have basically guaranteed revenue," said Linda Zeng, senior power and renewables analyst for BMI. She believes annual additions will still be higher "because of the sheer scale of the first half. But we expect for the rest of the months that additions could be at a similar rate as June, which is not super high." From 2026, solar installations are forecast to level out around 250 GW per year, said Zeng. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/chinas-solar-power-capacity-growth-slow-h2-after-pricing-reforms-2025-08-13/

2025-08-13 07:47

MOSCOW, Aug 13 (Reuters) - Russia's seaborne oil product exports in July were down 6.6% from June at 8.67 million metric tons amid planned domestic refinery maintenance and strong domestic demand, data from industry sources and Reuters calculations showed. According to Reuters calculations based on data from industry sources, Russia's offline primary oil refining capacity for July rose to a maximum year-to-date level of 4.13 million metric tons, up 26% from 3.28 million tons in June. Sign up here. Rising idle capacity points to decreasing fuel production and exports. Total oil product exports in July via the Baltic ports of Primorsk, Vysotsk, St Petersburg and Ust-Luga fell by 5.4% month-on-month to 4.74 million tons, data from market sources showed. Fuel exports via Russia's Black Sea and Azov Sea ports last month decreased 10.5% on a monthly basis to 3.27 million tons. Oil product exports from Russia's Arctic ports of Murmansk and Arkhangelsk last month fell 41.8% from June to 39,700 tons from 65,900 tons. Fuel export loadings at Russia's Far East ports rose 15.3% month-on-month in July to 611,000 tons as local refineries completed seasonal maintenance, data from sources and Reuters calculations showed. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/russias-july-seaborne-oil-product-exports-down-66-mm-reuters-calculations-show-2025-08-13/

2025-08-13 07:23

Aug 12 (Reuters) - Nomura expects the U.S. Federal Reserve to cut interest rates by 25 basis points in September, bringing forward its easing forecast, amid signs of milder U.S. inflation in July and early cracks in the labor market. The Consumer Price Index rose 0.2% last month, easing from a 0.3% gain in June and broadly in line with economists' expectations, while annual inflation came in slightly below forecasts, according to data released on Tuesday. Sign up here. The brokerage expects two more 25-bp reductions, in December 2025 and March next year, but said a 50-bp cut next month is unlikely as "The labor market is slowing, but there are few signs of stress, and broader financial conditions remain easy." The brokerage also lowered its core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) estimate to 0.243% for July, from 0.325%, citing softness in segments such as prescription drugs and software. Traders, on average, are pricing in 60.4 bps of Fed rate cuts by the end of the year, with a 94.2% probability of a 25-bp reduction in September, according to data from LSEG and the CME Group's FedWatch tool. Other top brokerages, including J.P.Morgan, Citigroup and Wells Fargo retained their stance, for a September rate cut. https://www.reuters.com/business/nomura-sees-fed-rate-cut-september-inflation-cools-2025-08-13/