2025-11-05 11:11

CHALASTRA, Greece, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Faced with droughts and sharper competition, Greek rice farmers are tapping into a new revenue stream: selling their cheap, broken rice to wedding goers instead of discarding it or using it for animal feed. The tradition of tossing rice over newlyweds has become a wasteful problem in the Mediterranean country, say farmers, who estimate that nearly 200 metric tons of edible, full-grain rice are lost this way each year. Sign up here. Under a new initiative, a cooperative in northern Greece's Chalastra, a major rice-growing region, has since May sold over three tons of broken rice rebranded and sold in white sacks labelled "wedding rice". "When there is malnutrition... it is unfair to throw it away," said Christos Gatzaras, a 52-year-old farmer and head of the cooperative's rice producers. Greece is the EU's third-largest rice producer, exporting most of its 250,000-ton annual production. But the sector is struggling with fierce competition from low-cost imports from South Asia and recent droughts in Greece's agricultural areas. "We face many difficulties, the costs have spiked, we are under a lot of pressure," said farmer Vasilis Matziounis, 34, who backs the initiative. Tens of thousands of religious and civil weddings are held in Greece each year, and many foreign couples choose the scenic islands of Santorini or Mykonos as a marital backdrop. Broken rice - damaged during harvesting or processing - accounts for roughly 9% of Greece's rice exports and channelling it into weddings could help boost the sector. "Some people will keep tossing edible rice," said Giannis Gogos, head of sales at Chalastra's primary cooperative. "But (this way) we can reduce the waste." https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/new-revenue-stream-greeces-struggling-rice-farmers-wedding-confetti-2025-11-05/

2025-11-05 10:56

WARSAW, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Poland's government is in talks with banks about possible loans to help save troubled miner JSW (JSW.WA) , opens new tab, State Assets Minister Wojciech Balczun said on Wednesday. JSW, Europe's largest producer of coking coal used in the steel industry, is facing liquidity issues due to falling prices for the feedstock as well as high wage costs and requires restructuring. Sign up here. "We're talking to the banks. The company needs to go through a restructuring process. It needs to clear itself of unnecessary assets that could be a source of funding," he told journalists. "I am a moderate optimist. We want to save JSW. It is a key company." https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/polands-government-talks-with-banks-over-loans-miner-jsw-minister-says-2025-11-05/

2025-11-05 10:47

EU ministers back goal to cut emissions by 90% by 2040 Deal lets countries buy more foreign CO2 credits to meet target Agreement also includes delay to EU's new carbon market EU rushing to finish before COP30 climate summit on Thursday BRUSSELS, Nov 5 (Reuters) - EU climate ministers agreed a 2040 climate change target in the early hours of Wednesday after watering down the goal in last-minute negotiations, as they raced to clinch the deal before the U.N. COP30 summit in Brazil. After negotiating late into Tuesday night, climate ministers from European Union countries approved in a public vote a compromise to cut emissions 90% by 2040, from 1990 levels, but with flexibilities to weaken this aim. Sign up here. The weakened target would let countries buy foreign carbon credits to cover up to 5% of the 90% emissions-cutting goal. That would effectively weaken to 85% the emissions cuts required from European industries, and pay foreign countries to cut emissions on Europe's behalf to make up the rest. The EU also agreed to consider the option, in future, to use international carbon credits to meet a further 5% of the 2040 emissions reductions - potentially shaving another 5% off the domestic target. Additionally, countries agreed a 2035 target to cut emissions in a range of 66.25-72.5%. The U.N. asked all governments worldwide to submit 2035 climate plans before the COP30 climate summit opens on Thursday. BACKLASH AGAINST AMBITIOUS GOALS "Setting a climate target is not just picking a number, it is a political decision with far-reaching consequences for the continent," said Danish climate minister Lars Aagaard. "Therefore, we have also worked to provide comfort that it can be reached in a way that preserves competitiveness, social balance and security." Reuters previously reported the details of the final deal. In a further effort to win over sceptical countries, the EU also agreed to weaken other politically sensitive climate policies - including by delaying the launch of an upcoming EU carbon market by one year, to 2028. Still, a handful of countries including Poland, Slovakia and Hungary opposed the 2040 climate target on the grounds it would hit industries' competitiveness. Their opposition was not enough to block the agreement, which needed backing from at least 15 of 27 member states. The deal meant the EU will not go empty-handed to COP30, where European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will meet other world leaders on November 6. The COP30 talks will test the will of major economies to keep fighting climate change in the face of opposition from U.S. President Donald Trump. The EU has prided itself on leading international efforts to curb climate change at past COPs. But the dilution of the target reflects a backlash against Europe's ambitious climate agenda, from industries and some governments sceptical that it can afford the measures alongside defence and industrial priorities. DEMANDS FOR FLEXIBILITY The European Commission had originally proposed a 90% emissions-cutting target, with a maximum 3% share of carbon credits. The target was designed to keep the EU on track between its legally-binding goals to cut net emissions by 55% by 2030, and reach net zero emissions by 2050. The EU's independent climate science advisers said a 90% domestic goal would have been in line with science. But they had advised against buying foreign CO2 credits, which they said would divert much-needed investments away from European industries. Countries including France and Portugal had demanded the 5% carbon credits flexibility, while others including Poland and Italy sought 10%. Spain and the Netherlands were among those opposed to softening the target further, EU diplomats told Reuters. "We don't want to destroy the economy. We don't want to destroy the climate. We want to save both at the same time," Polish Deputy Climate Minister Krzysztof Bolesta said on Tuesday. Poland, Italy, the Czech Republic and others opposed the original 90% target as too restrictive for domestic industries struggling with high energy costs, cheaper Chinese imports and U.S. tariffs. Others, including the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden, cited worsening extreme weather and the need to catch up with China in manufacturing green technologies as reasons for ambitious goals. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/cop/eu-eyes-weaker-climate-goal-scramble-deal-by-cop30-sources-say-2025-11-05/

2025-11-05 09:48

LONDON, Nov 5 (Reuters) - The pound stabilised on Wednesday as traders looked to fine-tune positioning ahead of Thursday's important Bank of England meeting, but remained at close to a seven-month low against the dollar and its weakest in well over two years against the euro. A day ahead of the BoE meeting, markets are still pricing around a one-in-three chance of a 25-basis-point rate cut, leaving scope for a knee-jerk reaction in the pound in either direction depending on the outcome. Sign up here. Sterling was last up 0.2% on the dollar at $1.3049 , though it hit $1.3011 in early Asia trade, its lowest since mid-April . Similarly, the euro was down 0.1% at 88.07 pence after hitting 88.3 pence in Asia trade, its highest since May 2023. A raft of data released last month, most notably cooler-than-expected inflation figure, caused markets to raise bets on BoE easing, and weighed on the pound. It has continued to weaken this week, and Chris Turner global head of markets at ING said in a note this might "probably have more to do with the global equity correction," given BoE expectations have been fairly steady most recently. Stocks around the world, particularly highly valued tech names, have come under pressure this week. All else being equal, the pound typically performs well when investors are positive about global growth and the stock market, and comes under pressure when they are not. Also in the mix for sterling investors is Britain's budget, due later this month. Finance Minister Rachel Reeves, in a speech on Tuesday, paved the way for broad tax rises. If that weighs on growth, it could cause the BoE to ease rates more quickly, in turn dragging on sterling. There was little British economic data on Wednesday, but a survey showed pay settlementsawarded by British employers held steady in the three months to September, holding at the joint lowest level since December 2021. https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/sterling-steadies-day-ahead-boe-meeting-2025-11-05/

2025-11-05 09:25

Nov 5 (Reuters) - Super Micro Computer's (SMCI.O) , opens new tab shares slipped more than 9% in premarket trading on Wednesday after the artificial intelligence (AI)-focused server maker missed quarterly profit and revenue estimates, citing delayed deliveries tied to design changes. The company said "design win upgrades" pushed about $1.5 billion in expected first-quarter revenue into the current period, after a high-volume customer requested configuration changes to the graphics processing unit (GPU) racks. Sign up here. CEO Charles Liang said the delays were "largely caused by the complexity of these new graphics processing unit racks, which require intricate integration, testing, and validation." "The profit opportunities have been dramatically different than the revenue opportunities in AI compute, with AI server leaders continuously sacrificing margins to participate in large deals, leaving limited profit upsides for investors to cheer about," J.P.Morgan analysts said. Super Micro has become a key player in the AI server boom, supplying high-performance systems to data centers racing to scale. Its rapid growth and close ties with Nvidia (NVDA.O) , opens new tab have attracted investors, though analysts have flagged that the sector's pace has exposed execution risks and margin volatility. The company's close partnership with Nvidia allows it to be the first to market with fully integrated systems built around new GPU architectures, including Nvidia's Blackwell Ultra series - a key driver of Super Micro's $13 billion GB300 order book, and position itself as a critical supplier in the AI infrastructure race. "Super Micro's pursuit of lower-margin business and deep ASP discounts to secure GB300 orders were not adequately reflected in the current valuation," analysts at Susquehanna said. The company raised its full-year revenue forecast to at least $36 billion, up from $33 billion, and projected second-quarter revenue of $10 billion-$11 billion, well above Wall Street's $7.83 billion estimate. Super Micro has gained nearly 56% so far this year and is trading at a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.94, compared with 9.75 for Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE.N) , opens new tab and 14.11 for Dell Technologies (DELL.N) , opens new tab. https://www.reuters.com/business/super-micro-shares-slip-delivery-delays-stall-ai-momentum-2025-11-05/

2025-11-05 08:05

Nov 5 (Reuters) - U.S.-based investor Stonepeak said on Wednesday it plans to launch a redeemable, infrastructure-backed debt security on the Australian Securities Exchange after securing over A$300 million ($194.94 million) in cornerstone commitments. The note will offer monthly interest payments linked to the one-month Bank Bill Swap benchmark rate (BBSW) plus a 3.25% annual margin and is expected to begin trading on December 10. Sign up here. "The Stonepeak-Plus INFRA1 Note will provide Australian investors access to regular monthly income generated through a curated portfolio of high-quality infrastructure debt assets," the firm said in a statement. E&P Capital, Westpac, and Morgans among others are serving as joint lead managers for Stonepeak. In September, Reuters reported that Stonepeak, which began investing in Asia in 2019 and manages $79.9 billion , opens new tab in assets globally, is seeking to raise as much as $4 billion for its second Asia-focused infrastructure fund. (This story has been corrected to say assets under management is at $79.9 billion, not $76.3 billion, in paragraph 5) https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/stonepeak-debut-195-million-debt-security-australia-2025-11-05/