2025-04-01 11:51
KYIV, April 1 (Reuters) - Ukraine, whose power system has been under constant Russian missile and drone attacks, increased electricity imports by 11% to 272 Gigawatt hours in March from February, Ukrainian ExPro consultancy said on Tuesday. ExPro said in a report that 42% of the volume was imported from Hungary, 19% from Slovakia, 18% from Poland and 16% from Romania. Sign up here. Ukrainian officials have said the Russian attacks deprived Ukraine of half of its generating capacity, some of which Kyiv has managed to restore. Last month the United States reached separate deals with Ukraine and Russia to pause their attacks at sea and against energy targets, but both sides have since accused each other of violating the agreements. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/ukraine-power-imports-rise-11-march-consultancy-says-2025-04-01/
2025-04-01 11:18
MOSCOW, April 1 (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Tuesday that Russia was continuing its dialogue with the United States amid threats by President Donald Trump to levy secondary sanctions on Russian oil if Moscow does not work to end the war in Ukraine. Trump, who said this week he was "pissed off" with Russian President Vladimir Putin, told reporters on Monday he wanted to see the Kremlin leader make a deal to stop the full-scale conflict, now in its fourth year. Sign up here. "I want to see him make a deal so that we stop Russian soldiers and Ukrainian soldiers and other people from being killed," Trump said in the Oval Office. "I want to make sure that he follows through, and I think he will." A day earlier, Trump had told NBC News he was very angry after Putin last week criticised the credibility of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's leadership and would consider putting secondary sanctions on Russian oil if he felt Moscow was blocking a peace deal with Ukraine. Asked about Trump's latest remarks about wanting Putin to do a deal on Ukraine, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Tuesday: "We are continuing our contacts with the American side. The subject is very complex. The substance that we are discussing, related to the Ukrainian settlement, is very complex. This requires a lot of extra effort." Before the weekend, Trump had adopted a more conciliatory stance towards Russia that had left Western allies wary as he tried to broker an end to the conflict in Ukraine. Publicly, Russia has so far responded cautiously to Trump's overtures, agreeing to pause its attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure if Kyiv does the same. Both sides accuse each other of violating the moratorium. Citing a number of conditions it feels need to be met first, Moscow has so far refused to sign up to a wider ceasefire of the kind that Trump wants. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/trump-threatens-secondary-sanctions-russia-kremlin-says-it-is-continuing-talk-us-2025-04-01/
2025-04-01 11:17
MOSCOW, April 1 (Reuters) - Kazakhstan's oil and condensate output reached a record high in March, with higher output from the giant Tengiz oilfield and stable exports via the Caspian pipeline, further exceeding OPEC+ production quotas, two industry sources said and Reuters calculations showed on Tuesday. The country has repeatedly exceeded its OPEC+ quotas in recent months and has promised to reduce output under pressure from OPEC+ leaders Saudi Arabia and Russia. Sign up here. Oil and gas condensate production in Kazakhstan reached 8.95 million metric tons in March, or 2.17 million barrels per day (bpd), the sources said. That compared with 2.15 million bpd on average in February, according to the state's Energy Ministry. Kazakhstan's OPEC+ quota does not limit condensate production, but crude oil output is meant to be set at 1.468 million bpd. Excluding gas condensate, a type of light oil, crude oil production increased last month to 1.88 million bpd from 1.83 million bpd in February, according to the source familiar with the official statistics, and Reuters calculations, which take into account Kazakhstan's tons per barrel ratio of 7.5. Kazakhstan's March oil exports remained high, with flows via its Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) export route continuing unabated last month, despite expectations after drone attacks on its infrastructure in February and March. Exports via the CPC pipeline have been initially set at 1.7 million bpd for both March and April. However the CPC operator, which exports around 1% of global oil supply via the Russian terminal, said late on Monday that the two single mooring points (SPM) were halted following snap inspections by Russia's transport watchdog. That means April CPC Blend oil loadings might decline. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/kazakhstans-oil-condensate-production-hits-record-march-sources-say-2025-04-01/
2025-04-01 11:15
TSX ends up 0.5% at 25,033.28 points Tech claws back some recent declines First Quantum Minerals jumps 4.9% Rogers Communications hits near 13-year low April 1 (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index rose on Tuesday, helped by gains for energy and technology shares, but the move was limited ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump's planned unveiling of sweeping new trade tariffs. Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index (.GSPTSE) , opens new tab ended up 115.78 points, or 0.5%, at 25,033.28 points, adding to Monday's advance. Sign up here. The White House confirmed that Trump will impose on Wednesday reciprocal tariffs on countries that impose duties on U.S. goods. It provided no details about the size and scope of trade barriers that have businesses, consumers and investors fretting about an intensifying global trade war. "People are just sitting on the fence at the moment," said Sadiq Adatia, chief investment officer at BMO Asset Management. "Most of that damage leading into tomorrow has occurred over the last couple of weeks." Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney spoke with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum about Canada's plan to "fight unjustified trade actions" by the United States. The ruling Liberal Party and the opposition Conservative Party, led by Pierre Poilievre, are participating in a closely fought general election campaign. "Whether it's Poilievre or Carney, they are both trying to make sure they are going to spur Canada's economy no matter what happens," Adatia said. The technology sector rose 0.8%, clawing back some of its recent declines. Energy was up 0.7%, while utilities added 0.8% as long-term borrowing costs fell. Bond yields declined after data showed that Canadian manufacturing activity contracted at a steeper rate in March. Shares of First Quantum Minerals Ltd (FM.TO) , opens new tab ended 4.9% higher after the company said it had discontinued arbitration proceedings against the Panama government. Rogers Communications Inc (RCIb.TO) , opens new tab shares dropped 5.9% to the lowest level since June 2012 after UBS and Scotiabank cut their target prices on the stock. https://www.reuters.com/markets/tsx-futures-flat-investors-assess-risks-ahead-us-tariffs-2025-04-01/
2025-04-01 11:10
Gunvor's net profit falls 42% y/y in 2024 Gunvor's revenue and traded volumes both rose y/y in 2024 The results are Gunvor's 4th strongest despite y/y drop Results reflect a normalisation of energy markets April 1 (Reuters) - Global commodity trading house Gunvor said on Tuesday its earnings fell in 2024 as energy markets normalised from the extreme conditions that enabled trading houses to make record earnings in previous years. Gunvor's net profits after tax reached $729 million in 2024, down from $1.25 billion the previous year. Sign up here. That marks the second year of decreases in a row, and is just above the $726 million net profit the company made in 2021. "The result reflects a return to more normalized energy markets compared with the previous two years, which featured significant volatility related to the global pandemic, the energy crisis, and international conflicts that had roiled energy markets," Gunvor said. Profit fell despite a rise in revenue and traded volumes. Gunvor's traded volumes leapt to 232 million metric tons in 2024, up from 177 million last year. And the firm's revenue rose by around 7% on the year to $136 billion. Despite two years of lower net profit, Gunvor's 2024 result is its forth highest and above pre-pandemic levels. The world's major commodity trading houses, including Gunvor and its peers Trafigura and Vitol saw weaker 2024 results after bumper earnings in 2022-2023, when they took advantage of market dislocations across commodity markets created by the COVID pandemic, Russia's war in Ukraine and Europe's energy crisis. "We are experts in tackling disruptive things. It's no coincidence that when things are really disruptive, we do well," Chief Executive Torbjorn Tornqvist said at an industry event in Switzerland last week. Gunvor said its energy transition and shipping businesses had helped to balance the performance of its sectors operating in the "stabilized" crude oil and refined products markets." It added that its profit was impaired last year by the mothballing of its Rotterdam refinery, which it announced in December. Gunvor's equity value following its 2024 results stood at $6.5 billion, it said. Tornqvist owned a 84.79% share by year end, with the remainder allocated to the firm's employee shareplan. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/commodity-trader-gunvor-reports-2024-revenue-136-billion-2025-04-01/
2025-04-01 11:09
TOKYO, April 1 (Reuters) - Japan's Maruzen Petrochemical, a unit of Cosmo Energy Holdings (5021.T) , opens new tab, will shut its ethylene unit in Chiba in the 2026/27 financial year and consolidate production at Keiyo Ethylene, its joint venture with Sumitomo Chemical (4005.T) , opens new tab, the companies said on Tuesday. The move aims to enhance the utilization rate and competitiveness of Keiyo Ethylene, which is 55% owned by Maruzen Petrochemical and 45% by Sumitomo Chemical, the three companies said in a statement. Sign up here. Japanese ethylene plants have been struggling with low operating rates due to global oversupply driven by large-scale capacity expansions in China, as well as declining domestic demand. The industry also faces increasing pressure to achieve net-zero carbon emissions through energy transportation. Against this backdrop, Maruzen Petrochemical and Sumitomo Chemical decided to optimize their ethylene production in the Chiba area, near Tokyo, to cut costs and maintain competitiveness, they said. Maruzen's Chiba ethylene unit, which started operations in 1969, has an annual production capacity of 525,000 metric tons. Keiyo Ethylene, launched in 1994, has a capacity of 768,000 tons per year. Japanese oil refiner Idemitsu Kosan and Mitsui Chemicals plan to consolidate their ethylene complexes in Chiba, they said last year. Ethylene is a petrochemical that is used to produce plastics such as polyethylene for items such as plastic bags and containers. https://www.reuters.com/markets/asia/japans-maruzen-petrochemical-shut-ethylene-unit-chiba-2025-04-01/
