2025-09-26 06:19

Death toll steady at 14, but 11 still missing in eastern Taiwan Barrier lake burst in mountains, flooding town during typhoon Disaster hit largely rural part of Taiwan HUALIEN, Taiwan, Sept 26 (Reuters) - Rescue workers in Taiwan battled through thick mud on Friday, looking for 11 people still missing after Super Typhoon Ragasa this week sent a wall of water into a small town on the east coast. The flooding's death toll held steady at 14. Sign up here. The heavy rains in Hualien county caused a so-called barrier lake in the mountains to overflow on Tuesday and release a thick sludge of water and mud on the town of Guangfu. While the flood waters have receded, the dark grey mud continues to blanket large parts of the area, creating problems for residents and rescuers alike. Rescue workers, sometimes wading in mud up to their waists, have been cutting holes in the roofs of buildings to check for missing people. A man who gave his family name as Hwang said he was still looking for his elder sister's body. "She died in the house because it was completely filled with mud and there was no way to get her out," he said. Many of the deaths occurred on the first floors of houses after people, often elderly, were unable to follow government orders to move upstairs and out of the way. Huang Ju-hsing, 88, has been trapped inside his second-floor home after the flooding blocked access to his family-run grocery store downstairs. "There was no time to escape. We told him to hurry up and go upstairs," said his wife Chang Hsueh-mei, who has been able to scramble over the wreckage downstairs and get outside. "When you're faced with an emergency, you suddenly find the courage to do anything," said Chang, 78, after climbing through aisles of fallen objects to reach her husband. Mountainous, sparsely populated and largely rural, Hualien is one of Taiwan's top tourist destinations due to its wild beauty. What to do about the barrier lake, formed by earlier typhoons and which has now shrunk in size to only 12% of what it was before the disaster, remains an unresolved issue. Barrier lakes are formed when rocks, landslides or other natural blockages make a dam across a river, normally in a valley, blocking and holding back water, hindering or even stopping natural drainage. The government has ruled out using explosives to break through the bank holding up the water, fearing it could bring more landslides and worsen the situation. The disaster has not impacted Taiwan's crucial semiconductor industry, located on the island's west coast. https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/taiwan-rescuers-battle-thick-mud-look-missing-super-typhoon-ragasa-2025-09-26/

2025-09-26 06:18

ROME, Sept 26 (Reuters) - Italy's antitrust regulator has fined energy group Eni (ENI.MI) , opens new tab and five other oil companies operating in the country for practices restricting fair competition in the sale of fuel for trucks, the watchdog said on Friday. The regulator said that fines totalling more than 936 million euros ($1.09 billion) had been levied against Eni and ExxonMobil-owned (XOM.N) , opens new tab Esso, plus Ip, Q8, Saras and Tamoil. Sign up here. The companies were found to have operated as a cartel between January 2020 and June 2023 to set the price of the biofuel component contributing to the overall cost of fuel, the watchdog said in a statement. The value of this important price component rose from about 20 euros per cubic metre in 2019 to about 60 euros in 2023, it said. The body added that what it described as a "complex investigation" was launched after receiving a tip-off from a whistleblower. The authority imposed fines of 336 million euros on Eni, 173 million euros on Q8, 164 million euros on Ip, 129 million euros on Esso, 91 million euros on Tamoil and 44 million euros on Saras. Eni and IP did not respond immediately to requests for comment and Reuters was unable to contact the other companies immediately. ($1 = 0.8562 euros) https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/italys-antitrust-fines-eni-other-oil-firms-unfair-competition-2025-09-26/

2025-09-26 06:03

Thailand eyeing deeper China ties in semiconductors, batteries Aims to attract 2 million Chinese tourists in next 4 months New government to deliver policy statement next week Stimulus measures, including co-payment scheme, on agenda BANGKOK, Sept 26 (Reuters) - Thailand will deepen cooperation with China, including in areas like semiconductors and battery production, Thai prime minister Anutin Charnvirakul said on Friday, as his new government lined up measures to fire up a sluggish economy. Southeast Asia's second-largest economy has been struggling with high household debt, weak consumption, the impact of U.S. tariffs and, in recent weeks, a soaring baht , with the currency reaching a four-year high against the dollar. Sign up here. Ratings agency Fitch on Wednesday revised Thailand's economic outlook to "negative" from "stable", citing increasing risks to its public finances amid ongoing political uncertainty. "We will move forward in reducing barriers and regulations so businesses of both countries can grow together," Anutin said in a speech at the Thailand China Cooperation Expo in Bangkok. "Thailand will prove that we are more than a strategic economic partner, but a gateway to regional cooperation," he said. Thailand has emerged as a major transshipment hub in recent years, while also drawing large Chinese investments in sectors like electric vehicles. China is the largest import market for Thailand, which shipped in Chinese goods worth $80 billion last year, amounting to 26.3% of the total. Thailand's tourism ministry also said on Friday that it would aim to attract as many as 2 million tourists from China over the next four months. Anutin's administration will deliver its policy statement to parliament on September 29 and 30, marking the start of the new administration, but the contours of its broad plans have already been made public. The government will accelerate economic stimulus measures to boost liquidity, reduce debt, and address energy supply issues. It will also launch a 47 billion baht ($1.46 billion) co-payment scheme, ministers said on Friday, in which the government will subsidise up to 60% of the costs of certain food and consumer goods purchased by qualified Thai citizens. "The government has a four-month timeline and is striving to bring light to the end of the tunnel for the economy by accelerating economic stimulus measures," Deputy Finance Minister Vorapak Tanyawong said. The strong baht is impacting the country's exporters, and economic agencies are looking to address the issue, Commerce Minister Suphajee Suthumpun said. After lagging regional peers with growth of 2.5% in 2024, the economy is projected to expand by 1.8% to 2.3% this year, according to the state planning agency, with a slowdown expected in the second half of 2025 because of U.S. tariffs. ($1 = 32.21 baht) https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/thailands-credit-rating-not-concern-no-vat-hike-plan-official-says-2025-09-26/

2025-09-26 06:01

OPEC+ has failed to hit its increased targets Some members struggle to raise output Some face curbs because of previous overproduction OPEC+ may deliver only half of next output hikes LONDON, Sept 26 (Reuters) - OPEC+ has delivered about three quarters of the extra oil output it targeted since the group started production hikes in April, and the level may fall closer to half later in the year as producers hit capacity limits, sources and analysts said and data showed. OPEC+, which produces 50% of global oil and brings together the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies such as Russia, has been pumping almost 500,000 barrels per day below its targets. The shortfall, equal to 0.5% of global demand, has defied market expectations of a supply glut and supported oil prices. Sign up here. Eight members of OPEC+ that introduced voluntary oil output cuts in April 2023 to support the market began raising output this April. OPEC+ total reductions - voluntary and for the whole group - amounted at their peak to 5.85 million bpd in three different layers. The eight plan to fully unwind their most recent round of cuts - 2.2 million bpd - by the end of September and start removing a second layer of 1.65 million bpd in October. OPEC+ gave the United Arab Emirates approval to boost production by 0.3 million bpd between April and September. ALMOST 500,000 BARRELS PER DAY BELOW TARGET Between April and August, OPEC+ delivered only 75% of production increases, according to a Reuters analysis of OPEC+ data, producing almost 500,000 bpd below the targeted increase of 1.92 million bpd for that period. Data beyond August is not yet available. This shortfall has helped to keep Brent crude prices near a seven-week high of $69 per barrel. OPEC+'s constraints are one factor supporting prices, analysts at Barclays and Kpler said this month. Analysts have yet to revise oil price forecasts. Brent's immediate delivery price rose this week to a $2.39 premium over six-month futures , the highest since early August, indicating a perception that immediate supplies are limited. "The futures curve... is indicating market tightness, which is in contrast to observers claiming there's a glut," said Giovanni Staunovo of UBS, who is sticking with his latest price forecasts. MOST CANNOT PUMP MORE Two main factors explain the shortfall. Firstly, OPEC+ told members including Kazakhstan and Iraq to make extra cuts, called compensation cuts, for previously exceeding agreed levels. Secondly, the group faces dwindling spare production capacity - idle output that could quickly come online - after years of low investment, said OPEC+ sources, industry executives and analysts. One OPEC+ delegate, who declined to be named because of the sensitivity of the matter, said most member countries cannot produce more. The International Energy Agency put OPEC+ spare capacity at 4.1 million bpd as of August. But almost all of that is held by Saudi Arabia and the UAE, said an industry source who regularly buys oil from multiple OPEC+ producers. OPEC+ spare capacity and government oil stocks in the West and China serve as the world’s primary buffers against supply disruptions from wars or natural disasters. Perceptions of falling spare capacity often unsettle markets, especially when OPEC+ raises production. SEPTEMBER, OCTOBER HIKES OPEC+ is due to raise production by 547,000 bpd in September and a further 137,000 bpd in October. Data for those months is not yet available but actual production increases will likely represent only half of targets, analysts said. OPEC+ members Algeria, Kazakhstan, Oman and Russia are already producing near capacity, said Homayoun Falakshahi, head of crude oil analysis at Kpler. The group is able to increase real production only by 0.7-0.8 million bpd if it decides to fully unwind the second layer of cuts of 1.65 million bpd, Falakshahi said. OPEC+ will begin unwinding the second layer of cuts in October with a small increase in targets by 137,000 bpd. The group will likely fall short and the real production boost will not exceed 70,000 bpd, analysts at RBC Capital said. Saudi crude output in August was 747,000 bpd higher than in March, accounting for more than half of the cumulative OPEC+ increase between April and August, the OPEC data showed. Unused capacity is set to diminish further into next year. Barclays predicts OPEC spare capacity will fall to 2 million bpd by September 2026. OPEC+ still has in place its third group-wide layer of cuts of 2 million bpd until end-2026. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/opec-is-poised-slip-further-below-oil-output-target-2025-09-26/

2025-09-26 05:43

Stock indexes post daily gain but weekly loss U.S. inflation comes in line with economist expectations Consumer spending boosts Treasury yields Rate cut expectations buoy gold NEW YORK, Sept 26 (Reuters) - Gains in Wall Street indexes on Friday were not enough to erase a loss for the week while resilient consumer spending supported longer-dated Treasury yields and gold rose as a steady inflation reading supported bets on future Federal Reserve rate cuts. Consumer spending climbed slightly more than expected in August while the inflation rate rose to 2.7% from 2.6% in July, data showed, in line with economists' expectations. Sign up here. Analysts said some companies had fended off price pressures by stockpiling in anticipation of tariffs, but some volatility was to be expected ahead of corporate earnings releases in the coming weeks. "Corporates have been able to withstand (a) tariff hit because they've had inventory build. But the earnings season will become the bigger test because many companies have told us they will start some price increases around the end of the year," said Kevin Gordon, senior investment strategist at Charles Schwab. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) , opens new tab rose 0.65%, the S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab rose 0.59% and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) , opens new tab was up 0.44%. Individual stocks responded to fresh White House tariffs on goods including pharmaceuticals and trucks. Paccar (PCAR.O) , opens new tab, which makes most of its trucks for the U.S. market domestically, gained 5%, and drugmaker Eli Lilly (LLY.N) , opens new tab rose 1.5%. Richmond Fed Bank President Thomas Barkin told Bloomberg Television he had very low confidence in inflation forecasts, as tariffs continue to impact the economy. The prospect of a potential government shutdown is also adding uncertainty and could disrupt the data releases that investors follow closely for guidance. NOT FALLING OFF A CLIFF Friday's personal consumption expenditures index functions as a key component of the Federal Reserve's inflation outlook. U.S. Treasury yields, which influence borrowing costs, moved little after the data was released. The yield on benchmark U.S. 10-year notes rose 0.7 basis points to 4.181%, from 4.174% late on Thursday. The 30-year bond yield rose 0.5 basis points to 4.7576% from 4.753% late on Thursday. "The one bright spot was that income and spending were a little bit firmer than expected, which means the consumer isn't falling off a cliff as the market was expecting," said Gennadiy Goldberg, head of U.S. rates strategy at TD Securities. Gold, a safe haven which usually benefits from lower interest rates, broadly held on to recent gains. Spot prices were last quoted 0.46% higher at $3,766.25 an ounce. Investors now estimate an 89.8% probability of a rate cut in October and a 67% chance of another in December, the CME FedWatch Tool shows. The Fed made its first interest rate cut of the year last week, and signalled further easing was to come. Fed Chair Jerome Powell offered little more direction at a speech on Tuesday, saying the central bank needed to continue balancing , opens new tab the risk of high inflation against a weakening job market. Oil prices rose as Ukrainian drone attacks on Russia infrastructure cut the major energy producer's exports. Brent futures settled at $70.13 a barrel, up 71 cents, or 1.02%. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude finished at $65.72 a barrel, gaining 74 cents, or 1.14%. https://www.reuters.com/world/china/global-markets-wrapup-1-2025-09-26/

2025-09-26 05:20

US consumer spending rises in August PCE index rises in line with expectations Euro on track to snap three straight weeks of gains Dollar-yen on course for fifth consecutive week of gains NEW YORK, Sept 26 (Reuters) - The dollar fell but was still on course to notch a second straight week of gains against major peers on Friday after data continued to show U.S. economic resilience, potentially complicating the Federal Reserve's efforts to cut interest rates. The dollar was down 0.21% to 149.48 against the Japanese yen , on track for a fifth consecutive week of gains and trading near its highest level since August 1. Sign up here. The euro was up 0.31% to $1.1701. It was on course to finish the week lower, snapping three straight weeks of gains. US DATA TAKES STEAM OUT OF FED RATE CUT PRICING U.S. consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of economic activity, rose 0.6% in August, slightly higher than the 0.5% estimated by economists polled by Reuters. The Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index, which is the Fed's preferred inflation measure, rose 0.3% last month, in line with expectations, U.S. Commerce Department data showed. "I think it's pretty clear that stronger economic data has taken the steam out of the pricing for Fed rate cuts and that's sort of narrowed the interest rate differential with other countries and pushed the dollar higher," said John Velis, Americas FX and macro strategist at BNY in New York. "We still think that hedging behavior is quite strong, so we still see lots of forward selling of dollars even while the U.S. assets, particularly U.S. equities, continue to gain influence from abroad, although that's taken a little bit of a backseat this week as well to some degree. But I think it's fairly clear that as Fed expectations go so will the dollar go in the short term," Velis added. The dollar index , which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies including the yen and the euro, fell 0.33% to 98.17. It was still on track for the second straight week of gains. The two-year note yield, which typically moves in step with interest rate expectations for the Fed, fell 1.8 basis points to 3.645%. Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin said he sees limited risks of a big rise in either unemployment or inflation, letting the Fed balance its two goals as it debates further interest rate cuts. Fed Vice-chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman said the central bank is near to achieving its 2% inflation target and that she believes decisive interest rate cuts are needed to ward off rising trouble in the job market. Barkin and Bowman are the latest Fed officials to comment on the Fed's decision last week to start cutting rates. Traders are pricing in an 89.8% chance of a 25 basis-point rate cut at the Fed's next meeting, down from nearly 92% probability a week ago, according to CME's FedWatch tool. "USD solidly back in range but less risk of disorderly unwind of shorts, based on positioning," Bank of America analysts wrote in an investor note. "Pivotal jobs report ahead. Few near-term narratives to support rest of G10." Data had shown on Thursday that U.S. gross domestic product rose by an upwardly revised 3.8% from April through June, beating expectations. The dollar was down 0.23% to 0.798 against the Swiss franc . It was still on track to finish the week higher, ending a run of six consecutive weeks of losses. https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/dollar-holds-gains-attention-turns-spending-data-fed-clues-2025-09-26/