2025-05-29 12:58
BRASILIA, May 29 (Reuters) - Brazilian bank lending accelerated in April despite tight borrowing costs, central bank data showed on Thursday, highlighting the resilience of economic activity even after aggressive monetary tightening. Outstanding credit rose 0.7% from the previous month to 6.6 trillion reais ($1.16 trillion). Sign up here. On a 12-month basis, credit growth picked up to 11.5% from 11.1% in March, driven by a 12.4% increase in household loans. Corporate lending rose 10.2%, faster than the previous month. The expansion came despite a sharp interest rate hiking cycle led by the central bank to cool economic activity and tame inflation. Since September, policymakers have raised the benchmark Selic rate by 425 basis points to 14.75%, its highest level in nearly two decades. On Thursday, the central bank said following its financial stability committee meeting that it had observed mild signs of a slowdown in credit between January and March, both in the banking system and capital markets. Still, it noted that credit growth remains historically high, reflecting economic resilience despite tighter financial conditions. In April, the default rate on non-earmarked loans to businesses and consumers rose to 4.8% from 4.5% in March, while the average spread in the segment jumped to 31.3 percentage points from 29.4 points the month before. ($1 = 5.6870 reais) https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/brazils-bank-lending-picks-up-april-despite-tight-borrowing-costs-2025-05-29/
2025-05-29 12:34
May 29 (Reuters) - Syria has signed a memorandum of understanding with a consortium of international companies led by Qatar's UCC Holding to develop major power generation projects with a foreign investment valued at about $7 billion, UCC said in a statement on Thursday. The agreement involves building four combined-cycle gas turbine power plants with a total capacity of 4,000 megawatts, plus a 1,000 MW solar power plant in southern Syria. Sign up here. Construction is expected to begin after final agreements and financial close, and is targeted to finish within three years for the gas plants and less than two years for the solar plant. After 14 years of war, Syria’s electricity sector has been suffering from severe damage to its grid and power stations, aging infrastructure, and persistent fuel shortages, generating only 1.6 gigawatts of electricity today, down from 9.5 GW before 2011. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/syria-signs-7-billion-power-deal-with-qatars-ucc-holding-led-consortium-2025-05-29/
2025-05-29 12:11
May 29 - Hormel Foods (HRL.N) , opens new tab tightened its annual profit forecast towards the lower end on Thursday, as the Skippy peanut butter maker struggles with supply chain issues and weak demand that may counter the benefits of its price hikes. Like peer Tyson Foods (TSN.N) , opens new tab, Hormel took consecutive price hikes in the past to protect its margins from persistently high commodity prices, as well as supply chain disruptions caused by bird flu. Sign up here. However, the higher prices come at a time when consumers are reining in budgets as they brace for a possible economic recession triggered by U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff policies. Earlier this month, Tyson Foods saw weaker demand for its products including beef, despite beating profit estimates during its latest earnings. Meanwhile, Hormel has also been facing constraints at its retail and food-service segments due to reduced shipments of raw materials such as beef and nuts, and lower production by third-party manufacturers. The factors led to a 7% decline in second-quarter sales volumes in both retail and food service segments. Hormel, which sells snacking and packaged meat products, posted quarterly sales of $2.90 billion, compared with analysts' estimates of $2.91 billion, as per data compiled by LSEG. The company expects annual organic net sales to grow in the range of 2% to 3%, compared with prior forecast of 1% to 3% growth. But it narrowed its annual adjusted profit to a range of $1.58 to $1.68 per share, with the midpoint lower than that of its previous forecast of $1.58 to $1.72 per share. On an adjusted basis, it earned quarterly profit of 35 cents per share, compared with analysts' estimates of 34 cents per share. https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/hormel-foods-tightens-annual-profit-forecast-amid-weak-retail-demand-2025-05-29/
2025-05-29 11:46
LONDON, May 29 (Reuters) - Britain's Less Common Metals, one of the few firms outside China involved in a key step of rare earths processing, plans to build a plant in France, teaming up with a recycling firm there, LCM's majority owner and chairman said. The move would mark another step to diversify Western supplies of rare earths - critical for making magnets used in electric vehicles, wind turbines and electronic components. Sign up here. China accounts for about 90% of the world's processed rare earth production. LCM aims to launch production of rare earth metals and alloys in France by 2027, using raw materials from a plant being built by Carester, Grant Smith told Reuters. France, aiming to become a European hub for the rare earths sector, is also home to a rare earths plant owned by chemicals group Solvay (SOLB.BR) , opens new tab, which launched an expansion in April. A final decision is due soon on LCM's 110 million euro ($124 million) project that would be built in Lacq, southwestern France, adjacent to Carester's plant, which will take old permanent magnets and recycle them, Smith added. "To put the finishing touches on our project, we need two things: get the funding in place and finalise the offtake to make sure the project's going to be viable," Smith said in an interview. Carester has received 216 million euros in funding from Japanese sources and the French government for its processing unit Caremag, which is expected to produce 1,400 metric tons of rare earth oxides a year, mainly from recycled magnets. LCM aims to apply for funds from both the European Union and France and also plans to raise equity or debt funding, Smith said. LCM would take the rare earth oxides from Caremag and process them into rare earth metals and alloys, which would be sold to permanent magnet producers. Rare earths go through a lengthy and complex process to be transformed from mined ore to finished permanent magnets and only a handful of companies outside of China are involved in the metals and alloying segment. Since 1992, LCM has produced a range of rare earth metals and alloys at its plant at Ellesmere Port in northwest England and it will continue that production as it expands abroad, Smith said. In the longer term, LCM is also considering establishing operations in North America and Asia, he added. ($1 = 0.8862 euros) https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/uk-rare-earths-company-build-plant-france-2025-05-29/
2025-05-29 11:34
BEIJING, May 29 (Reuters) - China's Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing on Thursday urged authorities to learn from recent incidents and remain vigilant about production safety, the official Xinhua news agency reported. Special attention must be paid to key industries including firefighting, hazardous chemicals, gas, mining, transportation and construction, Zhang said. Sign up here. The vice premier made the remarks at a production safety event after a chemical plant explosion in China's eastern province of Shandong on Tuesday killed at least five people and six remain missing. https://www.reuters.com/world/china/chinas-vice-premier-stresses-production-safety-after-deadly-chemical-plant-blast-2025-05-29/
2025-05-29 11:26
DUBAI, May 29 (Reuters) - Dubai's real estate market prices are likely to face a double-double-digit fall in the second half of the year and in 2026, ratings agency Fitch said in a report on Thursday, marking a sharp turn after years of a post-pandemic boom. A spike in deliveries in 2025 and 2026 to a planned 210,000 units, doubling from the previous three years, is likely to cause a record increase in supply and push prices down by no more than 15%, the agency said. Sign up here. The possible drop would follow a rise of around 60% in residential units prices between 2022 and the first quarter of this year in Dubai, where massive infrastructure spending, generous income tax policies and relaxed social and visa rules lured thousands of foreigners after the COVID-19 pandemic, including Russians amid war in Ukraine. Real estate plays a vital role for the economy of the emirate, the Gulf's hub for business and tourism, with sector transactions worth 761 billion dirhams ($207.22 billion) last year, rising 36% in volume, according to Dubai government data. In the past, Dubai suffered painful corrections akin to the property crash in 2009 which required a $20 billion Abu Dhabi-led bailout. The government has since taken measures to deleverage and strengthen the sector, and consolidated major state-owned real estate developers. It has also pursued an economic reboot anchored in what it hopes is sustainable growth, including a 10-year plan known as D33, to double output and become one of the world's top four financial centres. Fitch said on Thursday that banks and homebuilders can tolerate a decrease in prices. It noted that while real estate remains the largest component in UAE banks' lending books, banking sector exposure to firms operating in real estate had dropped to 14% of total gross loans at end of last year from 20% three years earlier. The attractiveness of properties in prime locations, which include palm tree-shaped artificial island Palm Jumeirah, together with delays in project completion would also help mitigate pricing pressure. ($1 = 3.6724 UAE dirham) https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/dubai-real-estate-prices-likely-face-double-digit-fall-after-years-boom-fitch-2025-05-29/
