2025-12-05 18:44
Carbon charge on aluminium imports into Europe starts in January Cost inflation will be 'death by a thousand cuts' for clients, Constellium CEO says Dec 5 (Reuters) - The European Union should drop a looming carbon border tax that risks pushing its aluminium sector into long-term decline by inflating costs and benefiting more polluting overseas suppliers, the CEO of aluminium products maker Constellium said on Friday. The EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, which will impose a levy on imports of a handful of commodities starting in January, is intended to shield European producers against cheaper rivals in countries with looser climate laws. Sign up here. But industry representatives see it as deeply flawed and hope the EU's final adjustments to the mechanism, due to be released this month, will address their concerns. "The first thing to do about CBAM is just to eradicate it, get rid of it," said Jean-Marc Germain, the chief executive officer of Paris-based Constellium, one of the world's largest suppliers of aluminium products for aviation, car making and packaging. "The core of the issue is the competitiveness of Europe. We are shooting ourselves in the foot knowingly," he told Reuters. Euro zone manufacturing activity slipped into contraction territory in November. Constellium mostly buys European aluminium, which is not subject to a CBAM charge, for processing at its factories in the region. But the upcoming tax - coupled with concerns over supply from smelters in Iceland and Mozambique - has nonetheless pushed up European premiums for physical metal to a 10-month high. The premium will rise to the cost of the last ton of aluminium needed to satisfy demand, meaning all metal will become more expensive regardless of its origin, Germain said, warning that the cost inflation would be "death by a thousand cuts" for Constellium's industrial customers in Europe. Loopholes in the scheme mean overseas suppliers could avoid CBAM by shipping in scrap, or could send low-carbon aluminium to Europe and keep producing high-carbon metal for other regions. "It doesn't do anything for the planet," Germain said. CBAM's impact will not be immediate but could eventually see companies invest elsewhere and shut European capacity, he said. "It's not one of those things where all of a sudden you turn the lights off. It's going to be a gradual decline." https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/eu-risks-slow-demise-aluminium-industry-if-carbon-tax-not-scrapped-constellium-2025-12-05/
2025-12-05 16:40
Lula's central bank nominations delayed amid strained relations with Senate Two of central bank's nine board seats may be empty at January meeting Markets awaiting potential interest rate cuts amid economic slowdown BRASILIA, Dec 5 (Reuters) - Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is not expected to submit his next two nominees for the central bank's rate-setting board until next year, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters, leaving only seven of the nine seats on the committee filled for the January interest rate decision. The last two central bank directors appointed by Lula's predecessor reach the end of their terms this month, and the leftist Brazilian leader has been slow to name their replacements. His government's relations with the Senate, which must confirm the nominations, also are strained by a standoff over Lula's latest Supreme Court nominee. Sign up here. Although Diogo Guillen and Renato Gomes could legally stay on the bank's rate-setting committee, known as Copom, until their successors take office, they are expected to step down, two of the sources said on condition of anonymity. Their responsibilities would then be temporarily taken up by other members of the rate-setting board - all named by Lula. Copom has never made a policy decision with two empty seats, according to public records of meeting minutes since 1998. The central bank, Finance Ministry and presidential palace did not immediately comment on the matter. Markets are watching closely to see if the central bank will start a much-anticipated cycle of interest rate cuts at its January 27-28 meeting or delay the easing until March. Latin America's largest economy has shown signs of cooling off, with GDP growing only 0.1% in the third quarter from the previous three-month period. The central bank has held its key policy rate at 15% since July, the highest level in nearly two decades, and is expected to maintain that stance at its policy meeting next week, according to a Reuters poll of economists. Central bank chief Gabriel Galipolo has cited inflation expectations that remain above the 3% target to justify the current monetary policy position. Once nominated by the president, central bank board candidates must undergo a confirmation hearing in the Senate's economic affairs committee, followed by a full floor vote. "I haven't been approached about central bank nominations," Senator Renan Calheiros, a government ally who chairs that committee, told Reuters. Senator Jaques Wagner, the government's leader in the upper house, said the administration "must be working on the issue, but nothing has reached me." This year's crowded legislative calendar ends on December 22. Lula's agenda is facing headwinds in the Senate after tapping - but not yet formalizing - his Solicitor General Jorge Messias for a Supreme Court seat, angering Senate President Davi Alcolumbre, who had pushed for another selection. Brazil's Congress will resume its schedule on February 2. Without Senate approval this year, new directors could only join Copom in time for its March 17-18 meeting, the second one of 2026. HANDFUL OF POTENTIAL CANDIDATES Two of the sources said the government itself has not settled on its central bank nominees. One option would be for the central bank's international affairs director, Paulo Picchetti, to shift into Guillen's economic policy role, one source said. That job is one of the bank's most strategic positions, responsible for the technical assessment of economic conditions that underpin rate decisions. Picchetti is close to Finance Minister Fernando Haddad and has a strong background in measuring inflation. The same source said the government may tap a career central bank staffer to fill the role vacated by Gomes, who is in charge of the organization of the financial system. Potential candidates for that job include Gomes' chief of staff, Angelo Duarte; Carolina Bohrer, the department head at the central bank; and Rogerio Lucca, the central bank's executive secretary who some see as close to Galipolo. The central bank and government declined to comment on potential nominees. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/two-brazils-nine-central-bank-seats-likely-be-unfilled-january-meeting-sources-2025-12-05/
2025-12-05 16:01
Dec 5 (Reuters) - Argentina announced on Friday the tender for a four-year dollar bond governed by local law as President Javier Milei's administration continues to test the waters for an eventual return to international capital markets. The tender for the so-called Bonar, with a 6.50% coupon, will take place December 10, Argentina's Economy Ministry said. The local law issuance, maturing November 30, 2029, does not need the approval of Congress. There were no details on the size of the offering. Sign up here. Milei's government is seeking to rebuild investor confidence and bolster depleted foreign currency reserves after years of overspending that left the country locked out of global capital markets. Argentina, a serial defaulter, most recently missed payments on its international debt in 2020. "We estimate that this bond could be priced around 86, with a yield of approximately 10.5%-11%, given that it operates under local law," local financial advisory Max Capital wrote in a client note. It added that the issuance in practice functions similarly to auctions in local pesos. Regaining access to international financing has been one of Milei's top priorities since taking office in 2023, with Argentine companies and provinces, including Santa Fe province earlier this week, tapping markets as investor confidence grows. Argentina must meet hefty debt obligations in the first month of 2026, totaling around $4.5 billion, as well as maturities this month of roughly 40 billion pesos ($27.68 million), traders said. Investor appetite for Argentine assets has strengthened since Milei's party scored a decisive victory in midterm legislative elections in October, when voters handed him a mandate to press ahead with sweeping economic reforms. In a statement on social media on Friday, the Economy Ministry said the country was launching a "new strategy aimed at refinancing its dollar capital maturities without affecting the process of strengthening the central bank's balance sheet." Argentina's treasury is "seeking to expand its financial objectives to cover dollar debt maturities without affecting the central bank's net reserves," it added. The ministry cited a "strong compression of dollar bond interest rates" resulting from Milei's economic program and the outcome of the October election. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/argentina-unveils-tender-local-us-dollar-bond-milei-seeks-market-return-2025-12-05/
2025-12-05 14:48
Poland's government fails to overturn presidential veto on cryptocurrency bill Tusk claims Russian intelligence exploits cryptocurrency market Opponents argue bill would burden crypto firms WARSAW, Dec 5 (Reuters) - Poland's government failed to overturn a presidential veto of a bill regulating cryptocurrencies on Friday, hampering its bid to increase oversight of a market it says is plagued by money laundering and open to exploitation by Russian intelligence. The clash over the cryptocurrency bill is the latest chapter in a bitter feud between liberal Prime Minister Donald Tusk and nationalist President Karol Nawrocki at a time when Warsaw faces what it says is a growing threat from Moscow. Sign up here. "There's no doubt that this market is highly susceptible to exploitation by foreign services, intelligence agencies, and mafias," Tusk told parliament. "The challenge is for the state to provide the tools to ensure it's not helpless." Tusk addressed lawmakers in a closed session before the open debate to present "urgent information concerning national security". In a post on X he portrayed the vote as "Russian money and services versus the security of the state and citizens". RIGHT-WING PARTIES SAY REGULATIONS EXCESSIVE The bill would have implemented the European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), giving Poland's financial regulator supervisory powers over the cryptocurrency market and introducing criminal liability for offences concerning the issuing of tokens or the provision of crypto-asset services. Nawrocki and right-wing parties in parliament say the bill would drive crypto firms away due to excessive burdens and that other EU member states have implemented MiCA with much simpler and less restrictive legislation. "To stand on this podium and say, 'Either you vote for the Russian mafia or you vote for my bill' is to give a false choice and you know it perfectly well," the chief of the president's chancellery Zbigniew Bogucki said. He called on the government to work together with the presidential palace on drafting new legislation. The government would have needed a three-fifths majority with at least half of lawmakers voting to overturn the veto. While lawmakers remained tight-lipped over the content of the closed session, state news agency PAP cited sources as saying Tusk spoke about Russia's involvement in cryptocurrency scandals. Poland's security services have said in the past that Moscow has used cryptocurrencies to pay people to carry out sabotage, allegations that Russia has repeatedly denied. Officials in many European Union countries have reported a growing number of cyberattacks on critical infrastructure and drone incursions this year. https://www.reuters.com/business/polish-parliament-upholds-crypto-veto-brushing-aside-pms-russia-warning-2025-12-05/
2025-12-05 13:07
LONDON, Dec 5 (Reuters) - Sterling edged up against the dollar and was set for its second consecutive week on the rise as budget worries receded and a revision of UK business activity this week offered some support. The pound has jumped in the last week after British finance minister Rachel Reeves' long-awaited budget passed the bond market's test without too much fuss. Sign up here. On Wednesday, November's S&P Global UK Composite Purchasing Managers' Index, which incorporates both services and manufacturing activity, was revised upwards. That all left the pound up 0.13% at $1.3344 on Friday, marching towards Thursday's more than five-week high of $1.3385. Against the euro, sterling also edged 0.1% higher at 87.28 pence, having hit an almost five-week high on Thursday. It is set for the third consecutive weekly increase against the single currency . Chris Turner, Global Head of Markets at ING, attributed the sterling rally to short squeeze positions, in which traders, who were betting against the currency, are now buying it back. ING were "a little bearish on the dollar and have a year-end GBP/USD target at $1.34," he said. "But we also favour some sterling underperformance against the euro as the Bank of England restarts its easing cycle this December." The BoE is widely expected to reduce borrowing costs by 25 basis points to 3.75% in December, after keeping them on hold in November. Britain's housing market slowed in November in both annual and monthly terms, figures from mortgage lender Halifax showed on Friday. Some other measures of Britain's housing market have suggested a slowing in house price growth, attributed to caution among homebuyers before the November 26 budget. Also supporting the sterling rally, there were expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut rates when it meets next week. Those bets have weakened the U.S. dollar, which is set for weekly declines. https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/post-budget-rally-keeps-sterling-hovering-around-five-week-high-2025-12-05/
2025-12-05 12:15
Dec 5 (Reuters) - Cloudflare (NET.N) , opens new tab has restored impacted software services after a minor outage on Friday hampered access to crypto trading exchange Coinbase (COIN.O) , opens new tab and Anthropic's artificial intelligence chatbot Claude AI. The web-infrastructure company's shares fell as much as 4.5% in premarket trading, as the disruption came less than a month after a widespread outage prevented thousands from accessing major internet platforms, including X and ChatGPT. Sign up here. Cloudflare's outage between 0847 GMT and about 0913 GMT on Friday was not an attack, but caused by a change made to how its firewall handles requests, the company said. "The change was deployed by our team to help mitigate the industry-wide vulnerability disclosed this week in React Server Components." Both Coinbase and Claude AI confirmed that the outage was resolved. React, a tool used to build user interfaces, had disclosed a vulnerability in its application on Wednesday that could potentially allow unauthenticated, malicious code to be run on a system. Reports about issues with Cloudflare dropped to about 120 by 06:10 a.m. ET (1110 GMT) from a peak of nearly 2,000, outage-tracking tool Downdetector showed. Downdetector tracks outages by collating status reports from a number of sources, and the actual number of affected users may vary. A rise in outages has raised concerns about organizations' dependence on a few vendors for wide-ranging security and web solutions, and whether they have contingency plans when issues emerge from a single point of failure. In October, an outage at Amazon's cloud service made thousands of popular websites and apps, including Snapchat (SNAP.N) , opens new tab and Reddit (RDDT.N) , opens new tab, inaccessible. Last year, a global tech outage related to issues at cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike (CRWD.O) , opens new tab and Microsoft (MSFT.O) , opens new tab hit various sectors. https://www.reuters.com/technology/cloudflare-restores-services-after-minor-dashboard-outage-2025-12-05/
