2025-10-21 22:51
LG Chem shares climb 12% Palliser argues investors overlooking LG Chem's battery business South Korea President seeking governance reform from listed companies NEW YORK/SEOUL, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Palliser Capital believes LG Chem (051910.KS) , opens new tab is severely undervalued and could double its stock price by refreshing its board and buying back shares - an opinion that sent the company's shares surging 12%. The South Korean company trades at a 74% discount to its net asset value as investors see it more as a struggling petrochemicals company, while dismissing its strong battery business, according to Palliser's founder and Chief Investment Officer James Smith. Sign up here. LG Chem shares have lost 20% in the last 12 months and have lagged their peers. "This thing is crazy, crazy, crazy cheap," he said at the 13D Monitor Active Passive Investment Summit in New York. Palliser has a long-term stake of over 1% in LG Chem. LG Chem owns 82% of LG Energy Solution (373220.KS) , opens new tab, a major supplier of batteries for automakers including Toyota (7203.T) , opens new tab and Tesla (TSLA.O) , opens new tab. Smith blamed a lack of trust in LG Chem's corporate governance, a lack of alignment with shareholders as well as poor capital allocation for a steep gap in valuation that Palliser believes should be at $65 billion. "LG Chem has a tremendous opportunity to unlock value by closing its deep valuation discount," Smith said. "We ask the board to formally evaluate the LG Chem Value Enhancement Plan and lead by example in advancing President Lee's KOSPI 5,000 vision." LG Chem declined to comment on Palliser's remarks. Under its November 2024 plan to enhance corporate value, the company said it would consider raising its payout ratio once returns from new investments in batteries and other new businesses generate profits. President Lee Jae Myung, who took office in June, has stepped up pressure on listed companies to reform, saying the KOSPI (.KS11) , opens new tab could hit 5,000 within five years. The benchmark has risen 42% since he came to power, currently trading at around 3,800. This is not the first time Palliser targeted a South Korean family-owned conglomerate. Last year, it proposed and gained changes from chipmaker SK Hynix's (000660.KS) , opens new tab holding company, and Smith's former company Elliott, has also previously targeted Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) , opens new tab and Hyundai Motor (005380.KS) , opens new tab in high-profile battles. While Smith praised recent steps by LG Chem, including the sale of its polarizer business two years ago and the sale of a non-core water filter business this year, he said they are not enough. The board needs to be refreshed with experts in advanced materials, electric vehicles and life sciences as its directors are academics who lack business management expertise and capital allocation experience, he said. Smith also urged the company to buy back shares and maintain appropriate levels of net debt. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/palliser-urges-lg-chem-refresh-board-says-could-help-shares-2025-10-21/
2025-10-21 22:19
Nutrien shuts plant due to port access restrictions Trinidad seeks 200% increase in port charges, retroactive to 2020 Gas shortages lead to shutdowns in Trinidad's petrochemical sector PORT OF SPAIN, Oct 21 (Reuters) - A standoff involving port charges paid by producers of methanol and ammonia to Trinidad and Tobago's National Gas Company is threatening sales of the products from one of the world's biggest producers, three people familiar with the issue said. Nutrien (NTR.TO) , opens new tab on Tuesday said it was temporarily shutting its plant on the Caribbean island over "port access restrictions" imposed by Trinidad's National Energy Company, a NGC subsidiary. Sign up here. "NEC has now confirmed its intent to restrict Nutrien's access to the port," Nutrien told employees in an internal note seen by Reuters. "This action leaves us with no choice but to begin a controlled temporary shutdown of operations effective October 23," it added. More plant shutdowns could follow in the coming weeks as Trinidad authorities have warned they will not allow companies to export ammonia and methanol unless they pay higher port fees, the sources said. Trinidad's Energy Minister confirmed the shutdown of the Nutrien plant was related to port access and said the government and its state-owned companies were in discussions with Nutrien and other port users to try and resolve the issue. PORT CHARGES COULD INCREASE BY 200% Trinidad's National Energy Company wants to increase port charges by as much as 200% and apply the increases retroactively to 2020, two of the three people said. Two of the world's largest methanol producers - Methanex (MX.TO) , opens new tab and Proman - are also facing higher port charges and could be cut off from the port if they don't pay, as well as Koch's majority-owned Point Lisas Nitrogen and Yara (YAR.OL) , opens new tab. Methanex, Proman, NGC and Yara did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Trinidad is the second largest exporter of ammonia to the U.S., with 37% of all imports coming from the Caribbean island in 2024. The country is also the world's second largest exporter of methanol and the largest exporter of urea to the U.S., according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Trinidad's petrochemical sector has been facing significant gas curtailment, with three out of Proman's five methanol plants shut down due to gas shortages, as well as one of Methanex's two plants. With several long-term supply contracts about to expire, NGC has not offered new prices to the companies, according to three people with knowledge of the situation. After the administration of President Donald Trump imposed a 10% tariff on products from Trinidad, Proman has in recent months diverted most of the methanol it previously directed toward the U.S. market to Europe, data from the country's Ministry of Trade show. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/fight-over-port-charges-trinidad-jeopardizes-ammonia-methanol-exports-2025-10-21/
2025-10-21 21:56
WASHINGTON, Oct 21 (Reuters) - The United States has offered energy companies access to nuclear waste that they can convert into fuel for advanced reactors, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday. The newspaper, citing a U.S. Department of Energy document, reported that the U.S. had published an application that nuclear energy group can use to seek up to 19 megatons of the government's weapons-grade plutonium from cold war-era warheads. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/us-offers-nuclear-energy-companies-access-plutonium-ft-reports-2025-10-21/
2025-10-21 21:50
Oct 21 (Reuters) - U.S.-based energy company EQT Corp (EQT.N) , opens new tab beat Wall Street estimates for third-quarter profit on Tuesday, benefiting from higher natural gas prices and sales volumes. Shares of the company rose 1.9% in extended trading following the results. Sign up here. The demand for and output of U.S. natural gas are expected to hit record highs in 2025, according to the Energy Information Administration's Short-Term Energy Outlook. The energy sector has been benefiting from a rise in demand for natural gas, supported by LNG exports and increasing power consumption due to hotter temperatures as well as data center operations. EQT also narrowed its full-year sales volume forecast to between 2,325 and 2,375 billion cubic feet equivalent (Bcfe) from its prior view of 2,300 to 2,400 Bcfe. The company raised its annual liquid sales and ethane sales forecast to the range of 16,400 to 16,700 thousand barrels (Mbbl) and 7,150 to 7,300 Mbbl, respectively. EQT's average realized price for natural gas was $2.76 per thousand cubic feet equivalent (Mcfe) during the third quarter, compared with $2.38 Mcfe from a year ago. Total sales volume for the quarter was 634,395 million cubic feet equivalent (MMcfe), compared with 581,414 MMcfe a year earlier. It expects total sales volume to be between 550 and 600 Bcfe in the October-December quarter. EQT is predominantly engaged in the exploration and production of natural gas, with a primary emphasis on the Appalachian Basin spanning Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. During the third quarter, the company signed LNG offtake agreements for 4.5 million tonnes per annum in aggregate with Sempra, NextDecade and Commonwealth LNG beginning in 2030-2031. The company reported adjusted profit of 52 cents per share for the quarter ended September 30, above analysts' average estimate of 43 cents per share, according to data compiled by LSEG. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/eqt-corp-beats-quarterly-profit-estimates-higher-natural-gas-prices-2025-10-21/
2025-10-21 21:49
WASHINGTON, Oct 21 (Reuters) - The administration of President Donald Trump is planning to distribute billions in aid for farmers and reopen some activities of the U.S. Department of Agriculture amid the ongoing federal shutdown, the agency said on Tuesday. The administration was expected in early October to announce an aid package to bail out farmers hurt by trade disputes and big harvests, but Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins later said it would be delayed until after the end of the shutdown. Sign up here. "Thursday, USDA will resume Farm Service Agency core operations, including critical services for farm loan processing, ARC/PLC (commodity) payments, and other programs," said Rollins in a post on X. The administration plans to open all FSA offices, which will enable farmers to get and cash payment checks, Rollins said in an interview on Fox Business. Rollins said on X that the aid would total more than $3 billion. The Wall Street Journal previously reported the aid would be released and the amount. The money for the aid will come from the Commodity Credit Corporation, a financing mechanism at the USDA that the first Trump administration used to give farmers more than $23 billion in trade aid, according to the Wall Street Journal report. The USDA did not respond to a request for information on which types of farmers would receive aid. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-administration-plans-distribute-farmer-aid-amid-shutdown-2025-10-21/
2025-10-21 21:32
Credit outlook strong despite fraud concerns Scharf downplays systemic risk in private lending Wells Fargo backs shift to semi-annual reports CEO sees Fed cuts as risk management NEW YORK, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Credit among consumers and businesses remains strong, despite recent concerns about loan losses that have weighed on bank stocks, Wells Fargo (WFC.N) , opens new tab CEO Charlie Scharf said on Tuesday. "We don't see cracks ... in the banking system," Scharf told the Economic Club of New York, calling credit "exceptionally good" and saying he did not expect things to get worse. Sign up here. Some regional U.S. banks flagged bad loan and fraud issues in recent weeks, worrying investors and prompting them to scrutinize lenders' earnings reports for signs of wider strains across the sector. JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon's recent comment about the potential for more fraud has amplified investor worries. "When you see one cockroach, there are probably more, and so everyone should be forewarned of this one," Dimon said last week. By contrast, Scharf expressed confidence in private credit markets, which have also been the subject of investor concerns. "I don't think it's a major systemic issue," he said when asked about the lending surge in private credit markets outside of traditional banks. The Wells Fargo CEO, who has steered a major turnaround since he took over six years ago, said he would favor replacing quarterly earnings reports with semiannual results, echoing a view expressed by Dimon, Scharf's one-time mentor. "I would probably be in favor of it," Scharf said. "Even if the requirements were to go to semiannual, it doesn't mean that companies will stop reporting some information on a quarterly basis." Separately, Scharf predicted the Federal Reserve would continue to reduce interest rates to get ahead of risks to the U.S. economy, including lower growth and higher inflation. "The idea of some more rate cuts is risk management," the CEO said. The nation's fourth largest lender beat Wall Street estimates for third-quarter profit last week and raised its closely watched profitability target. Regulators removed an asset cap on the bank earlier this year, paving the way for it to pursue growth. U.S. regulators are pulling back on some bank exams and the use of confidential disciplinary notices, Reuters reported last month. Meanwhile, big lenders expect their capital requirements to fall, in a stunning industry victory as the Trump administration revamps bank rules. "I've never been in a meeting (with this administration) where I hear the word deregulation," Scharf said. "The conversations that we have are, 'What things need to change to put you in a position to help the economy grow faster?'" The bank supports regulators' efforts to sharpen their focus on financial measures of safety and soundness, while reducing overlap among supervisory agencies. https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/wells-fargo-ceo-says-credit-is-strong-does-not-see-cracks-banking-system-2025-10-21/
