2025-11-27 12:39
NAIROBI, Nov 27 (Reuters) - African currencies are expected to show mixed performance against the U.S. dollar in the coming week, with Kenya's shilling forecast to weaken, while Uganda's shilling and Zambia's kwacha are likely to strengthen. Nigeria's naira and Ghana's cedi are projected to remain relatively stable, even as they face demand pressures. Sign up here. KENYA Kenya's shilling is expected to ease slightly due on increased demand for dollars from the manufacturing sector. The shilling traded at 129.60/90 per dollar, compared with last Thursday's close of 129.55/95. NIGERIA Nigeria's naira is expected to hold steady next week despite a slight dip seen following a central bank decision to keep its main rate unchanged. The naira was quoted at 1,447 per dollar on the official market on Thursday, compared with 1,450 a week earlier. On the parallel market , the unit traded at around 1,475 per dollar. "We expect the naira to be stable, though this week's rate decision could trigger brief capital outflows and mild pressure on the currency as yields adjust lower. Overall, we see the unit holding firm in the near term," one trader said. GHANA Ghana's cedi is forecast to remain range-bound, supported by ongoing central bank activity and balanced flows, barring any emergence of fresh demand pressures. London Stock Exchange Group data showed the cedi trading at 11.20 to the dollar on Thursday. "The cedi has remained relatively stable, though it continues to show a mild depreciation bias as market demand outpace supply," said Ronald Mensah, trader Stanbic Bank Ghana. "The Central Bank's FX spot auctions remain heavily oversubscribed, but consistent intermediation and its commitment to meeting demand have helped anchor the currency at current levels," he added. Another trader said the cedi could lose grounds against the dollar in the week ahead on persistent demand. "Central bank auctions and mining sector inflows are expected to meet only a portion of the backlog of demand from portfolio investors and the real sectors," the trader added. UGANDA The Ugandan shilling is seen firming, buoyed by remittance flows from diaspora workers and end-month inflows from charities and commodity exporters. At 0945 GMT commercial banks quoted the shilling at 3,620/3,630, compared to last Thursday's close of 3,635/3,645. A Kampala-based independent foreign exchange trader said the market was receiving healthy seasonal inflows from Ugandan workers abroad sending cash for relatives for December festivities and additional flows from charities and exporters of commodities like coffee. "The local unit will get support from these flows," said the trader, who expects the unit to strengthen further to around 3,600 per dollar in the near term. ZAMBIA Zambia's kwacha is likely to maintain its strength next week, supported by rising copper prices, the country's primary source of foreign earnings. On Thursday, commercial banks quoted the currency of Africa's second-largest copper producer at 23.12 per dollar from 23.14 a week ago. "Multiple supportive factors are converging to lift copper prices, providing crucial tailwind for Zambia's currency given copper's dominance in the nation's export earnings," Access Bank (ACCESS.GH) , opens new tab said in a note. https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/africa-fx-kenyan-shilling-slip-african-currencies-diverge-next-week-2025-11-27/
2025-11-27 12:37
Urals discount to Brent up to 23% in November - cen bank Russia's oil output rises by October to 9.38 million bpd MOSCOW, Nov 27 (Reuters) - The discount on the price of Russia's Urals oil blend to global benchmark Brent widened by six percentage points this month to 23%, the Russian central bank said on Thursday in its review. The discount, though less severe than those seen after the initial wave of Western sanctions in 2022, reflect mounting pressure on Russian oil revenues - a critical lifeline for Moscow's budget. Sign up here. The United States last month imposed tough restrictions on Russian oil giants Lukoil (LKOH.MM) , opens new tab and Rosneft (ROSN.MM) , opens new tab. The central bank said the discount stood at close to 15% in the second and third quarters, reaching 17% in October. "We assume that the widening discount on Russian oil prices is a temporary phenomenon, as it was in 2023," Alexei Zabotkin, the central bank's deputy governor, said on Wednesday during a university lecture. He added that Russian oil exporters were able to diversify their supply routes and adjust to the "new reality" in 2023, when the discount narrowed by the middle of that year. Russia's oil and gas revenue may fall in November by 35%, according to Reuters calculations, due to a lower oil price and stronger rouble. The central bank also said that Russian oil output averaged 8.995 million barrels per day in the second quarter, rising to 9.38 million bpd by October after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, known as OPEC+, embarked on unwinding previous voluntary production cuts. Despite the sanctions, Russia's oil exports from western ports remain near peak levels, supported by OPEC+ output allowances and domestic refinery outages caused by Ukrainian drone strikes. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/russias-urals-oil-price-discount-widens-23-november-central-bank-says-2025-11-27/
2025-11-27 12:17
NEW DELHI, Nov 27 (Reuters) - A Western-sanctioned vessel with Russian oil destined for Indian Oil Corp (IOC.NS) , opens new tab has had discharge of the cargo delayed at a port in eastern India due to a hold-up in online verification of insurance cover provided by a Russian insurer, three industry sources with direct knowledge of the matter said. India earlier this year tightened insurance rules for ships calling at its ports, focusing on old and so-called shadow fleet vessels often used to carry Russian oil. Sign up here. Aframax vessel Tiger 6, which is under European Union and UK sanctions, was scheduled to discharge the cargo of ESPO grade on November 23 but was floating near Paradip port in the Bengal Bay on Thursday afternoon, LSEG data showed. Two of the sources said the ship was in the process of berthing at Paradip. The delayed offloading suggests India has stepped up security at the ports. Since April, India has required online verification of insurance for ships covered by companies that are not members of the International Group (IG) to ensure that forged documents are not provided to Indian port authorities for berthing. Many shadow fleet ships are covered by non-IG insurers. Russia's Soglasie Insurance Co Ltd has provided cover to the vessel carrying oil for state-run Indian Oil Corp, the sources said, adding that the cargo was supplied by a non-sanctioned entity. The company denied it. "The tanker Tiger 6 is not insured with Soglasie under the P&I (Protection and Indemnity) program," it said in emailed comments on Thursday. Indian Oil did not reply to requests for comment. India recognises P&I cover provided by 19 non-IG insurers, including eight from Russia, helping the South Asian nation continue buying discounted Russian oil. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/russian-oil-cargo-discharge-indian-port-delayed-due-insurance-scrutiny-sources-2025-11-26/
2025-11-27 11:47
FRANKFURT, Nov 27 (Reuters) - It is too early for the European Central Bank to discuss another interest rate cut as inflation in the euro zone might still turn out higher than expected, ECB policymaker Martins Kazaks said on Thursday. The ECB halved its policy rate in the year to June as it watched price growth fall to its 2% target, but the rate has since been on hold despite projections for slightly lower inflation and moderate economic growth. Sign up here. With the next ECB meeting on December 18, Kazaks said this was not the right time to cut borrowing costs as underlying inflation remained well above 2% and there were risks in both directions. "Given the data we have received up to now, I don’t think the time is ripe for discussing a rate cut," the Latvian governor said in an interview. ECB rate setters will receive inflation forecasts for the next three years at their next meeting and Kazaks emphasised the 2026 and 2027 numbers as more important than the ECB's initial number for 2028. "Of course, we have to see the new projections first and I would put the stress on 2026 and 2027 because monetary policy plays out over one or two years, and a projection three years out has a wide margin of error, particularly with this level of uncertainty," he said. The ECB's latest projections, published in September, put inflation at 1.7% in 2026 and 1.9% in 2027. Kazaks acknowledged that the likely postponement of the European Union's ETS2 emissions trading system would "flatten" inflation but he and colleagues should also "continue to look at core inflation, which has been well above 2%". He said downside risks to inflation such as ETS2, the dumping of Chinese goods on the European market and a possible appreciation of the euro were "much better known" but upside risks like trade fragmentation should not be discounted. https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/ecbs-kazaks-says-time-is-not-ripe-rate-cut-2025-11-27/
2025-11-27 11:44
Nov 27 (Reuters) - German chemical company Wacker Chemie (WCHG.DE) , opens new tab plans to cut around 9% of its workforce, mostly in Germany, by the end of 2027, it said on Thursday, blaming high energy prices and excessive bureaucracy in Europe's biggest economy. Wacker, which had announced a cost savings programme last month but gave no details, said it aims for annual savings of more than 300 million euros ($347 million) and will implement the scheme from the first quarter of 2026 up to the end of 2027. Sign up here. More than 1,500 job cuts globally, mostly in Germany, are expected to contribute about half of the planned savings per year, it said. "Particularly in Germany, the excessively high energy prices and bureaucratic obstacles continue to act as a major brake on the successful development of the chemical industry," said CEO Christian Hartel. Wacker Chemie has been facing weak demand and heightened competition from Chinese producers. Last month it lowered its full-year sales and core profit outlook, citing soft demand and competitive pressure from China. The German chemicals sector, the country's third-largest, has been struggling with subdued demand, high energy costs, supply chain issues and an economic slowdown, with U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs adding to the pressure. This has weighed on industry sentiment, with Germany's VCI chemicals lobby not expecting a recovery before 2026 despite indications that the downturn in the chemical-pharmaceuticals sector may have bottomed out. Wacker had 16,637 employees in 2024. Shares jumped by around 1.6% after the announcement but have since pared their gains. ($1 = 0.8637 euros) https://www.reuters.com/business/wacker-chemie-cut-over-1500-jobs-by-2027-2025-11-27/
2025-11-27 11:30
People lack antibodies against bird flu, respiratory infections professor says Bird flu could affect healthy individuals, including children, unlike COVID-19 Preventative measures exist, including vaccine candidates and antiviral stocks Risk of human pandemic remains low, World Organisation for Animal Health expert says PARIS, Nov 27 (Reuters) - The bird flu virus that has been spreading among wild birds, poultry and mammals could lead to a pandemic worse than COVID-19 if it mutates to transmit between humans, the head of France's Institut Pasteur respiratory infections centre said. The highly pathogenic avian influenza, commonly called bird flu, has led to the culling of hundreds of millions of birds in the past few years, disrupting food supplies and driving up prices, though human infections remain rare. Sign up here. "What we fear is the virus adapting to mammals, and particularly to humans, becoming capable of human-to-human transmission, and that virus would be a pandemic virus," Marie-Anne Rameix-Welti, medical director at the Institut Pasteur's respiratory infections centre, told Reuters. The Institut Pasteur was among the first European labs to develop and share COVID-19 detection tests, making protocols available to the World Health Organization and labs worldwide. NO ANTIBODIES AGAINST H5 BIRD FLU People have antibodies against common H1 and H3 seasonal flu, but none against the H5 bird flu affecting birds and mammals, like they had none against COVID-19, she said. And unlike COVID-19, which mainly affects vulnerable people, flu viruses can also kill healthy individuals, including children, Rameix-Welti said. "A bird flu pandemic would probably be quite severe, potentially even more severe than the pandemic we experienced," she said in her Paris laboratory. There have been many cases of people infected by H5 bird flu viruses in the past, including the H5N1 currently circulating among poultry and dairy cows in the U.S., but these were often in close contact with infected animals. A first ever human case of H5N5 appeared in the U.S. state of Washington this month. The man, who had underlying conditions, died last week. In its latest report on bird flu, the WHO said there had been nearly 1,000 outbreaks in humans between 2003 and 2025 - mainly in Egypt, Indonesia and Vietnam, of which 48% had died. HUMAN PANDEMIC RISK STILL LOW However, the risk of a human pandemic developing remains low, Gregorio Torres, head of the Science Department at the World Organisation for Animal Health, told Reuters. "We need to be prepared to respond early enough. But for the time being, you can happily walk in the forest, eat chicken and eggs and enjoy your life. The pandemic risk is a possibility. But in terms of probability, it's still very low," he said. Rameix-Welti also said that if bird flu was to mutate to be able to be transmitted between humans, the world was better prepared than it was before the COVID-19 pandemic. "The positive point with flu, compared to COVID, is we have specific preventative measures in place. We have vaccine candidates ready and know how to manufacture a vaccine quickly," she said. "We also have stocks of specific antivirals, that, in principle, would be effective against this avian influenza virus," she added. https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/bird-flu-poses-risk-pandemic-worse-than-covid-frances-institut-pasteur-says-2025-11-27/
