2025-10-09 12:18

NAIROBI, Oct 9 (Reuters) - The Kenyan, Nigerian and Zambian currencies are expected to be broadly unchanged against the dollar in the next week to Thursday, while Ghana's may gain, traders said. KENYA Kenya's shilling is seen stable as dollar appetite from the energy sector matches inflows from remittances and tea exports. Sign up here. Commercial banks quoted the shilling at 129.00/129.40 to the dollar, unmoved from last Thursday's close. NIGERIA Nigeria's naira is also expected to trade around current levels. The naira was quoted at 1,472 to the dollar on the official market on Thursday and was changing hands at 1,490 to the dollar in street trading . "We have seen the currency trade at around 1,465/1,470 levels this week. With this, we are getting signals that the central bank is comfortable ... where the market is right now," one trader said. ZAMBIA Zambia's kwacha is likely to be steady as companies sell hard currency to pay taxes. On Thursday the kwacha was quoted at 23.18 per dollar from 23.99 a week ago. "Withholding tax is due next week and this should support the local currency," a financial analyst said. GHANA Ghana's cedi is seen strengthening due to dollar inflows and central bank auctions. LSEG data showed the cedi trading at 12.30 to the dollar on Thursday, compared to 12.45 at last Thursday's close. "The cedi is likely to post some gains against the dollar on the back of improved interbank liquidity, following the central bank's announcement of plans to sell up to $1.15 billion in market interventions in October," said Andrews Akoto, head of trading at Absa Bank Ghana. "We expect firm (dollar) demand from the energy, services and manufacturing sectors to be offset by offshore FX inflows and a liquid local interbank market," he added. https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/africa-fx-most-currencies-seen-stable-2025-10-09/

2025-10-09 12:12

Elettrica EV to launch next year Shares tumble after new financial targets announced Ferrari shifts to less ambitious electrification strategy Plans four new models per year, new lifestyle stores MARANELLO, Italy, Oct 9 (Reuters) - Shares in luxury carmaker Ferrari (RACE.MI) , opens new tab tumbled as much as 16% on Thursday on disappointment over new long-term financial targets, taking the shine off the company's unveiling of the technology behind its first electric car. The share price drop erased more than 12 billion euros ($13.9 billion) from Ferrari's market capitalisation. Sign up here. Company executives gathered at Ferrari's headquarters in Maranello in northern Italy with the focus on providing details of the new EV, called the Elettrica, as well as its business plans for the rest of the decade. The Elettrica is due to go on sale next year, though the company stressed that petrol and hybrid vehicles will remain at the heart of its lineup until 2030. But Ferrari's leadership faced questions over financial targets for the period until 2030. DISAPPOINTING TARGETS, SCALING BACK ELECTRIC AMBITIONS "Ferrari's new 2030 guidance falls below Citi and consensus expectations," analysts at Citi said in a note. The automaker set a revenue target of 9 billion euros for 2030, an increase on its 7.1 billion euro forecast for this year, but a less ambitious figure than the market had been hoping for. "We want to make sure that we keep delivering on our promises," CEO Benedetto Vigna told analysts, referring to the targets. In the event in Maranello, Ferrari revealed the Elettrica's production-ready chassis - a car base, with battery pack and electric motors - but has not yet determined its price. Ferrari also shifted to a less ambitious approach to electrification. It now aims for a 2030 lineup made up of 40% internal combustion engine (ICE) models, 40% hybrids and 20% fully-electric. This marks a change from its 2022 plan, which had targeted 40% EVs, 40% hybrids and 20% ICE models in 2030. The unveiling of the inner workings of Ferrari's maiden electric car marks a milestone for the company in an auto industry that has been grappling with the transition from the internal combustion engine to the electric battery for a number of years. Ferrari said it would launch an average of four new models per year between 2026 and 2030, maintaining the steady rhythm that has helped it stimulate the interest of its wealthy clients and grow its customer base. The 1,000 horsepower, four-plus seat, four-door Elettrica complements Ferrari's traditional petrol and newer hybrid models. NEW LIFESTYLE STORES SET TO OPEN All strategic EV components, including high-voltage battery packs, e-axles and inverters, are developed and produced in-house at Ferrari's new "e-building" facility in Maranello. Sources told Reuters earlier this year that Ferrari does not plan to launch a second EV before 2028, citing weak demand for high-performance electric luxury cars. Ferrari's active client base has grown by around 20% since 2022, reaching 90,000. To deepen engagement, it plans to open new "Tailor Made" centres in Tokyo and Los Angeles in 2027 to help customers to add personal touches to their vehicles. It reaffirmed its lifestyle strategy expansion, with flagship stores planned in London and New York in 2026, and a broader range of luxury goods and experiences for both owners and fans of the brand. ($1 = 0.8610 euros) https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/elettrica-ev-launch-marks-ferraris-push-20-electric-lineup-by-2030-2025-10-09/

2025-10-09 12:04

By Promit Mukherjee and David Ljunggren OTTAWA, Oct 9 (Reuters) - The Bank of Canada on Thursday warned against imposing more regulations on the financial sector, instead urging measures to encourage competition and innovation that it said could help offset U.S. tariffs. Sign up here. "As the world heads into a period of greater economic nationalism and more industrial policy, we need to resist the urge to add protections," senior deputy governor Carolyn Rogers said in Toronto. Greater contestability, more new entrants and more innovation in the financial sector would lead to competition that was good for consumers, for productivity and for our economy, she said, adding: "We should lean into it." Rogers has consistently stressed the need to improve Canada's sluggish productivity, arguing this would help insulate the economy against the threat of inflation. Canada's banking sector is highly concentrated, with just six banks collectively holding 93% of all banking assets. Many argue that this level of concentration has clear negative impacts on productivity, innovation, capital allocation, cost and consumer choice, Rogers added. The financial sector is an area where productivity gains could propagate throughout the economy, Rogers said, highlighting the need for boosting innovation and competition. "It's a sector where policy-makers should regularly ask themselves if we've got the level of competition right," she said, noting what she called "reasonable calls for reflection" as to whether regulations were too tight. Rogers said the need for productivity had become even more important after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed a series of tariffs that shook the Canadian economy. Canada's labor productivity has been negative for six out of the last eight quarters with wholesale trade, utilities and manufacturing posting significant declines in the second quarter, primarily due to the impact of Trump's tariffs. "Higher productivity won't make Canada immune to U.S. trade policy, but it would help buffer the effects," Rogers said. Her speech last year sparked discussions amongst company executives, economists, analysts and others about Canada's poor productivity, which they said was hurting its competitiveness against other G7 allies. Rogers said recent initiatives such as real-time payments and open banking were steps in the right direction. "They are both close to implementation, but each needs a final push to get across the finish line," she said. ((Reuters Ottawa bureau)) Keywords: CANADA CENBANK/ https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/bank-canada-warns-against-over-regulation-financial-sector-2025-10-09/

2025-10-09 12:02

Global Fintech Fest draws over 100,000 attendees Organizers advise speakers to avoid remarks on crypto India's regulatory ambivalence on crypto a dampener for crypto ventures MUMBAI, Oct 9 (Reuters) - At the world's largest gathering for the financial technology sector in Mumbai this week, more than 800 speakers tip-toed around two topics that have captured attention globally: cryptocurrencies and stablecoins. About 100,000 participants converged for the three-day conference starting October 7 in India's financial capital, headlined by the prime ministers of India and the United Kingdom, and drawing regulators, investors and industry executives from more than 100 countries. Sign up here. The annual conference kicked off just as bitcoin catapulted to an all-time high above $125,000 but that milestone found no mention at the conference on the back of India's regulatory caution around the sector. India is leaning towards not creating legislation to regulate the sector, Reuters reported last month. "AVOID CRYPTO REMARKS" "Please avoid political, crypto, religious, or personal remarks on stage or at the venue," read a document containing guidelines for speakers, a copy of which was shared with Reuters by a participant. Organisers for the event, the Payments Council of India, National Payments Corporation of India and the Fintech Convergence Council did not immediately respond to a request seeking comment. The warning highlights a contrast with other Asian economies and regions such as Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore, which have made efforts to establish themselves as regional hubs for cryptocurrency and stablecoins. Instead, regulators spotlighted India's central bank digital currency, called the e-rupee, with the Reserve Bank of India launching pilots for deposit tokenisation and a sandbox for fintechs. All told, more than 50 products debuted at the event, including PayPal's global wallet platform, biometric authentication for payments via India’s Unified Payments Interface, and the India launch of U.K.-based Revolut’s payment platform. "The policy ambivalence has a chilling effect on the development of commercial use cases for stablecoins in India," said Mandar Kagade, founder of Delhi-based Black Dot Public Policy Advisors. LITTLE APPETITE FOR CRYPTO VENTURES At least six industry executives on the sidelines of the event said that while entering into the crypto sector could offer fresh business lines and help attract investment, there is little appetite in the absence of regulatory blessing. "There is cause for fair degree of caution (on stablecoins)," said Sahil Kini, the CEO of Reserve Bank of India Innovation Hub, while addressing a session on Tuesday. "I don’t think this kind of stance changes overnight." India's fintech sector raised a total of $3.5 billion last year, the lowest since 2020 and well off the peak of $9.2 billion in 2021, per data from Tracxn. "Regulators need to have an iterative approach instead of the complete aversion they have towards stablecoins currently," said Joseph Sebastian, vice president for investments at Mumbai-based venture capital firm Blume Ventures. The first step can be allowing inward remittances via U.S. dollar stablecoins as the regulatory grey-zone also complicates the picture for startups and investors, he noted. Globally, U.S. dollar stablecoins have amassed a market capitalisation of over $300 billion, while the overall market cap of crypto tokens has climbed to more than $4 trillion, according to industry data provider CoinGecko. "It’s becoming real whether we like it or not, so it's imperative to figure out how to engage with it," said Vivekdeep Gupta, an independent consultant focused on digital assets who advises half a dozen startups. There is a "huge amount of energy but lack of regulatory clarity is also causing brain-drain," Gupta said, pointing to a preference for companies in the sector to incorporate overseas. https://www.reuters.com/world/india/india-leaves-crypto-stablecoins-door-fintech-jamboree-2025-10-09/

2025-10-09 12:01

Oct 9 (Reuters) - A South African court has ordered China's CRRC E-Loco to release locomotive spares it withheld from Transnet in a long-running contract dispute, Transnet's CEO said on Thursday, boosting the freight rail operator's plans to improve performance. The two parties have engaged in legal battles after Transnet halted the supply of 1,064 locomotives from four original equipment suppliers, including CRRC E-Loco, saying that 2014 contracts worth 54.4 billion rand ($3.18 billion) had been unlawfully awarded by the previous company leadership. Sign up here. In 2023, Transnet said 161 locomotives supplied by CRRC E-Loco were not running due to the Chinese company withholding spares and maintenance support, impacting Transnet's freight rail operations. Transnet, which insists it already paid for the parts under the disputed contract before it was terminated, won a separate court order last July stopping CRRC E-Loco from selling or relocating parts already in South Africa. Transnet CEO Michelle Phillips, speaking at a mining conference in Johannesburg, said Transnet had recently won another court order related to handover of the spares, which were held in warehouses in the country. "I was not going to pay for my own parts again. We went back to court, and we then got an order giving the CRRC five days to deliver those parts to Transnet," Phillips said. "So these last few days, we've been accessing those (parts). We are busy doing full inventory of all of those parts," she added. CRRC E-Loco was not immediately available to comment. Transnet's dispute with CRRC E-Loco, which also includes outstanding locomotives that were not supplied under the terminated contract, has worsened the state-owned logistics firm's equipment shortages. The company's performance has also been impacted by cable theft and vandalism of its infrastructure. Its freight volumes have fallen from a peak of 226 million metric tons in 2017/18 to 160 million metric tons in the 2024/25 financial year. ($1 = 17.1057 rand) https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/safrican-court-grants-transnet-control-disputed-chinese-spares-2025-10-09/

2025-10-09 11:58

BENGALURU, India, Oct 9 (Reuters) - Chevron (CVX.N) , opens new tab India on Thursday opened a 312,000-square-foot facility for its Engineering and Innovation Excellence Center (ENGINE) in Bengaluru, a year after launching the unit to consolidate technical work and deepen its digital and artificial intelligence capabilities. The expansion underscores India's growing role in the energy transition as technology becomes central to cost reduction and competitiveness. Sign up here. It also comes as the U.S. oil major targets up to $3 billion in cost cuts by 2026 and streamlines global operations. "We were a very decentralized organization until recently," Akshay Sahni, country head for Chevron in India, told Reuters, adding the center aims at efficiency. "We use AI to improve the performance of our machines. We use AI to improve the way we drill for oil and gas … It's not so much about headcount reduction." But the timing and focus of the project, coming months after Chevron announced plans to cut 15% to 20% of its global workforce, highlight a growing reliance on India's engineering and digital talent base as U.S. energy firms centralize and shift high‑skill work to lower‑cost hubs. Sahni said India's depth of STEM and IT talent was a key factor in the decision. "There are not too many places around the world where you can hire across disciplines...mechanical, civil, petroleum, geology, electrical," he said. The center has hired more than 1,000 professionals since 2024 and plans to invest about $1 billion over several years in people, technology and infrastructure. It includes high-performance computing for real-time geological modeling and digital twins of Chevron's processing plants. For now, the Houston, Texas-based company is not planning additional ENGINE hubs outside India. "For now our focus is primarily to grow our Bengaluru center... upskilling our people as technology evolves and getting more of the workflows that are meaningful," Sahni said. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/chevron-expands-india-hub-boost-digital-ai-capabilities-2025-10-09/