2025-10-04 06:43

JAKARTA, Oct 4 (Reuters) - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced new import certification , opens new tab requirements for shrimp and spices from Indonesia after cases of radioactive contamination were detected earlier. In a posting on its website on Saturday, Indonesian time, the agency said that it will implement the import certification requirements from certain regions of Indonesia starting on October 31, 2025. Sign up here. The certification requires firms on the red list with evidence of Caesium 137 contamination to have an accredited third party to verify the control of the radioactive element. Once the firms are taken off the red list, they will still be subject to restrictions and will need to provide information indicated under the yellow list for each shipment. Firms on the yellow list covering certain foods with Caesium 137 contamination risks are required to have shipment certification from an entity designated by the FDA, which must be an agency or representative of the Indonesian government. FDA's website says Caesium 137 is a radionuclide present in the environment mainly as the result of nuclear testing or accidents such as Chernobyl and Fukushima. Indonesia does not possess nuclear weapons or nuclear power plants. The FDA in August issued an advisory to consumers, distributors and sellers in the U.S. not to eat, sell or serve frozen shrimp processed by local seafood company PT Bahari Makmur Sejati, after their products were contaminated with Caesium 137. The shrimp was processed at an industrial estate near Jakarta that was later found to be contaminated with the radioactive element and Indonesia's nuclear agency is seeking to pinpoint the size of the area affected. Bara Hasibuan, a spokesperson for the investigation into the incident, told Reuters: "We just received the report few hours ago. Need time to figure what steps need to be taken." https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/us-fda-slaps-new-requirements-indonesias-shrimp-spices-after-radioactive-2025-10-04/

2025-10-04 04:14

Typhoon Matmo expected to make landfall around noon Sunday Hainan, Guangdong, Yunnan provinces potentially affected Disruption comes during busy period for holiday travel HONG KONG, Oct 4 (Reuters) - Chinese authorities will cancel flights and ferries in Hainan on Saturday night before Typhoon Matmo hits the southern province, likely disrupting a peak holiday travel period for the resort island. All flights to and from the provincial capital Haikou's international airport are expected to be cancelled from 11 p.m. (1500 GMT), the official Xinhua news agency reported, as Matmo could bring strong winds and heavy rain to southern China, including Guangdong and Yunnan provinces. Sign up here. The Maritime Safety Bureau in Sanya, Hainan's resort city, also said all tourist ships and ferries would be prohibited in its jurisdiction from 6 p.m. (1000 GMT). EXPECTED TO MAKE LANDFALL SUNDAY Matmo, which caused flooding in the Philippines this week, is expected to make landfall around noon on Sunday after approaching east of Hainan with an expected maximum wind force of 42-48 meters per second. Haikou planned to halt all schools, work and transport from Saturday afternoon to Sunday, Xinhua said, while Guangdong's port city Zhanjiang would do the same starting on Saturday. During the eight-day holiday that starts with China's National Day on October 1, people are expected to make around 2.36 billion trips, with the daily average forecast to be up 3.2% from the same period last year, Xinhua said on Wednesday. Haikou had planned nearly 150 cultural events and more than 10 sports competitions during the holiday period, while Sanya had planned 170 art and tourism activities, according to Hainan's official social media. State media CCTV, citing meteorological experts, asked the public to stay vigilant as Matmo will have a serious impact on tourism and transportation during a busy period for travel. The Hong Kong Observatory raised its tropical cyclone warning signal to Strong Wind Signal No. 3 at noon and said it would assess the need for higher signals later on Saturday. The financial hub has issued 12 tropical cyclone warning signals this year, the most since 1946, the observatory said on Friday. https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/china-cancel-some-flights-typhoon-matmo-nears-hainan-during-peak-holiday-travel-2025-10-04/

2025-10-03 23:42

Applied Materials flags $600 mln revenue hit in 2026 USA Rare Earth rises after report of talks with White House U.S. government shutdown goes on for 3rd day Indexes: Dow up 0.5%, S&P 500 up 0.01%, Nasdaq down 0.3% NEW YORK, Oct 3 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 eked out a record closing high in a volatile session Friday, with interest rate-cut expectations holding up as the U.S. government shutdown went on for a third day. The Dow also posted a record closing high, but the Nasdaq ended lower. Sign up here. The S&P 500 technology sector (.SPLRCT) , opens new tab eased, with shares of Applied Materials (AMAT.O) , opens new tab declining 2.7% after the chip-equipment maker late Thursday forecast a $600 million hit to fiscal 2026 revenue. Shares of Tesla (TSLA.O) , opens new tab were 1.4% lower, while utilities (.SPLRCU) , opens new tab rose 1.2% and led gains among S&P 500 sectors. The U.S. nonfarm payrolls report for September was due for release on Friday, but was not published due to the government closure. Investors were still able to digest a survey by the Institute for Supply Management, which showed the services employment index contracted for the fourth consecutive month. The news underscored the case for more interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve. "It certainly feels like momentum is on the side of investors over the last few days," said Mona Mahajan, head of investment strategy at Edward Jones. It seems like "the market probability of a Fed rate cut has actually gone up since the shutdown began," she said. "Maybe that's because there's the potential impact on the economy or some weaker jobs data this week or this morning's ISM data... the expectation is we're still in this environment where the Fed is going to cut rates." The Fed cut rates in September for the first time since December amid recent labor market weakness. On Wednesday, a report showed a decline in private payrolls of 32,000 and a downwardly revised 3,000 decline in August. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) , opens new tab rose 238.56 points, or 0.51%, to 46,758.28, the S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab gained 0.44 points, or 0.01%, to 6,715.79 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) , opens new tab lost 63.54 points, or 0.28%, to 22,780.51. For the week, the Dow gained 1.1%, the S&P 500 also climbed 1.1% and the Nasdaq rose 1.3%. The market has historically shrugged off government shutdowns, but some strategists said that a longer shutdown could create more uncertainty for investors and for Fed policymakers. "The market generally looks past government shutdowns because they don't usually last long and they don't have a longer-term negative impact on the economy," said Anthony Saglimbene, chief market strategist at Ameriprise Financial in Troy, Michigan. "But the longer it goes... it means the data collection for really important reports could get delayed, or it could cloud some of the data that we will eventually get because the data collection wasn't happening over an extended period." Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee said he was hesitant to commit to a series of rate cuts with inflation still running above the target. According to the CME Group’s FedWatch Tool, traders see a 25-basis-point cut at the Fed's October meeting as almost certain and are pricing in an 84% probability of an additional cut in December. Shares of USA Rare Earth (USAR.O) , opens new tab rose 14.3% after CEO Barbara Humpton told CNBC the company was "in close communication" with the White House. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.72-to-1 ratio on the NYSE. There were 686 new highs and 55 new lows on the NYSE. On the Nasdaq, 2,813 stocks rose and 1,880 fell as advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.5-to-1 ratio. Volume on U.S. exchanges was 20.47 billion shares, compared with the 19.01 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days. https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/wall-street-futures-climb-final-session-volatile-week-2025-10-03/

2025-10-03 23:33

Trump administration officials discuss equity interest in Greenland rare earths project Washington has taken stakes in other minerals companies Administration official says hundreds of companies seek administration investment in critical minerals Oct 3 (Reuters) - Trump administration officials have discussed taking a stake in Critical Metals Corp (CRML.O) , opens new tab, four people familiar with the discussions told Reuters, which would give Washington a direct interest in the largest rare earths project in Greenland, the Arctic territory that President Donald Trump once suggested buying. If finalized, the deal would mark the latest political twist for the Tanbreez rare earths deposit, which former President Joe Biden successfully lobbied to have sold to New York-based Critical Metals for far less than a Chinese firm was offering. Sign up here. Washington has recently taken stakes , opens new tab in Lithium Americas (LAC.TO) , opens new tab and MP Materials (MP.N) , opens new tab, underscoring Trump's desire for the U.S. to benefit from growing production of minerals used across the global economy. Details of the discussions about Washington's interest in an equity stake in Critical Metals have not previously been reported. The four sources declined to be named, citing the sensitivity of the negotiations. "Hundreds of companies are approaching us trying to get the administration to invest in their critical minerals projects," a senior Trump administration official told Reuters in response to a request for comment. "There is absolutely nothing close with this company at this time." Critical Metals did not respond to repeated requests for comment via email and phone. Greenland is a semi-autonomous part of Denmark and the Danish Embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Rare earths offer strong magnetic properties critical to high-tech industries ranging from electric vehicles to missile systems. Their importance is spurring an intense push for fresh supplies by Western countries looking to lessen their dependence on China's near total control of their extraction and processing. Critical Metals, which agreed to buy Greenland's Tanbreez deposit last year for $5 million in cash and $211 million in stock, applied in June for a $50 million grant through the Defense Production Act, a Cold War-era piece of legislation aimed at boosting production of goods for national security purposes. In the last six weeks, though, the administration has begun discussions with the company about converting the grant into an equity stake, three of the sources said. If the deal goes through, a $50 million conversion would mean a roughly 8% stake in the company, although negotiations are not final and the final size of the stake could be higher or the deal itself could collapse, the same three sources said. Administration officials have considered reallocating $2 billion from the CHIPS Act to fund critical minerals projects, Reuters reported in August. The law, formally known as the CHIPS and Science Act, was signed into law by then-President Joe Biden in 2022 and aims to lure chip production away from Asia. The Critical Metals investment discussions were delayed by the administration's negotiations in recent days for a 5% stake in Lithium Americas , opens new tab(LAC.TO) , opens new tab, two of the sources said. The U.S. government shutdown is not expected to affect the negotiations, given that high-level staff involved in the discussions are considered essential government workers, two of the sources said. Part of the discussion centers on how warrants would be issued to give Washington the stake, one of the sources said. Warrants give their holders the right to buy stock at a set price. The equity stake would be separate from a $120 million loan the U.S. Export-Import Bank (EXIM) is considering to help the company develop Tanbreez, according to two of the sources. An EXIM spokesperson was not immediately available to comment. GREENLAND'S APPEAL Even before Trump expressed an interest in acquiring Greenland, Washington had long-running economic interests in the Danish territory. Biden officials were visiting Greenland's capital Nuuk , opens new tab as recently as last November trying to woo additional private investment in the island's mining sector. Trump also sent Vice President JD Vance to the island in March. One of the largest U.S. Air Force bases is in northern Greenland. The Tanbreez project is expected to cost $290 million to bring into commercial production, the company has previously said. The EXIM loan would be used to fund technical work and get the mine to initial production by 2026. Once fully operational, the mine is expected to produce 85,000 metric tons per year of rare earths concentrate. The site also contains gallium, which China subjected to export restrictions last year, and tantalum. Greenland's mining sector has developed slowly in recent years, hindered by limited investor interest, bureaucratic challenges and environmental concerns. Currently, only two small mines are in operation. The remote, cold location of Tanbreez is seen posing challenges to its development, although the deposit is located near a major waterway. https://www.reuters.com/business/trump-administration-eyes-stake-company-developing-greenland-rare-earths-mine-2025-10-03/

2025-10-03 22:26

Oct 3 (Reuters) - The head of the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog urged Ukraine and Russia on Friday to show the "political will" required to keep the area around the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant safe to allow the external power line to be reconnected to the facility. The plant, Europe's largest with six reactors, was seized by Russian forces in the early weeks of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. The facility has been cut off from external power since September 23 -- the 10th time the line has come down. Sign up here. The plant produces no electricity, but fuel in its reactors is being cooled by emergency diesel generators. Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said the external line had to be restored. "Both sides say they stand ready to conduct the necessary repairs on their respective sides of the frontline. But for this to happen, the security situation on the ground must improve so that the technicians can carry out their vital work without endangering their lives," Grossi said in a statement. "I'm calling on both sides to do what is necessary to prevent a further deterioration. It is a question of political will, not whether it is technically possible, which it is." Each side accuses the other of compromising nuclear safety. Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday warned Ukraine that it was playing a dangerous game by launching strikes near the plant. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha accused Moscow of deliberately cutting the link in order to connect the station to its own grid. In his statement, Grossi also said that an external power cutoff this week at the decommissioned Chornobyl nuclear power plant -- site of the world's worst civil nuclear accident in 1986 -- had lasted 16 hours. He said the containment vessel erected in 2016 to prevent contamination had experienced a partial blackout and had no reserve power for three hours when a power line to the nearby town of Slavutych came down. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Russia deliberately staged the attack that cut power to the station. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/un-nuclear-chief-seeks-restore-power-ukraines-zaporizhzhia-plant-2025-10-03/

2025-10-03 21:24

Bridgewater's Pure Alpha fund surges 26% on year-to-date basis Marshall Wace's Eureka Fund sees 8.04% year-to-date return Systematic stock trading funds up more than 13% in 2025, Goldman Sachs reports LONDON/NEW YORK, October 8 - Hedge funds returned 1.3% in September, with managers in Europe, Asia and the Middle East outperforming their North American rivals, according to a JPMorgan client note on Thursday that was seen by Reuters on Friday. Global equities in September climbed 3.4% (.MIWD00000PUS) , opens new tab. An index of developed market sovereign bonds rose around 0.7% last month. Sign up here. The JPMorgan note, which tracks hedge fund trading, said positioning in U.S. stocks was only "somewhat bullish," indicating an expectation for equities to rise. Crowding in the biggest "Magnificent Seven" tech stocks, which include Apple, Amazon.com and Nvidia, remained near historical highs, the note said. In Europe, stock-pickers tended to bet that equities would rise. But multi-strategy funds - those that trade many strategies - and quantitative funds, which use algorithms, tended to wager that stock prices would decline. In Asia, where stocks rose, hedge funds had more bets on a decline than a rise, the note said. Bridgewater , opens new tab, with $92.1 billion in assets under management, notched a 6% monthly gain in its Pure Alpha fund to September 29. From the beginning of the year until September 29, Bridgewater's Pure Alpha, Asia Total Return, All Weather, and China Total Return funds posted returns of 26.2%, 32.5%, 15.3%, and 28.4%, respectively. British hedge fund Marshall Wace posted returns in September of 1.32%, up 8.04% for the year so far in its Eureka Fund, a source said. The $79 billion hedge fund's Market Neutral Tops fund returned 0.45% in September and was up 13.66% for the year, the source added. Systematic stock-trading hedge funds, such as Marshall Wace, are up more than 13% for 2025 so far, Goldman Sachs said in a note to clients. Multi-strategy funds remained largely flat on the month, apart from the $28 billion Balyasny Asset Management, which added 1.3% in September to its annual return so far this year of 10%, another source with knowledge of the matter said. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/how-hedge-funds-performed-september-2025-10-03/