2025-09-15 22:00

Sept 15 (Reuters) - U.S energy firm Chord Energy (CHRD.O) , opens new tab said on Monday it would buy assets in the Williston Basin from Exxon Mobil's (XOM.N) , opens new tab unit XTO Energy for $550 million. The Williston Basin is located in parts of North Dakota, Montana and Canada, and is a major U.S. shale oil and gas region centered by the Bakken formation. Sign up here. The company said it would acquire 48,000 net acres in the Williston core and expects near-term production to be around 9 million barrels of oil equivalent per day, mostly oil, with a low decline rate and strong potential to improve margins on existing wells. Chord Energy added that the deal is expected to be accretive to cash flow, free cash flow and net asset value, and will be funded through a combination of cash and borrowings. The transaction is expected to close by year-end. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/chord-energy-buy-assets-williston-basin-550-million-2025-09-15/

2025-09-15 21:10

WASHINGTON, Sept 15 (Reuters) - The U.S. Department of Agriculture is working with Congress to evaluate whether economic aid might be needed for the nation's farmers this autumn amid trade disputes and record-high yields, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said on Monday. U.S. farmers have missed out on billions in soybean sales to China as stalled trade talks halt exports, and the USDA's recent forecast of a record corn crop this autumn will likely weigh on a farm economy already saddled with low prices and rising fertilizer and seed costs. Sign up here. Rollins pointed to inflation, high yields and the stalled talks with China as reasons for a year of projected losses for farmers. "We are working with our colleagues in Congress and closely monitoring markets daily to evaluate the amount of additional assistance that might be needed this fall," Rollins said at a conference of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture in Rogers, Arkansas. Rollins also said the USDA is reviewing fertilizer markets, "ranging from ensuring input suppliers are giving farmers a fair shake, to exploring options to provide relief." The first administration of President Donald Trump gave billions in aid to farmers to offset losses from a trade war with China that decimated some commodity exports. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/usda-considering-economic-aid-farmers-this-fall-says-secretary-2025-09-15/

2025-09-15 21:04

ORLANDO, Florida, Sept 15 (Reuters) - TRADING DAY Making sense of the forces driving global markets Sign up here. By Jamie McGeever, Markets Columnist U.S. and world stocks roared to new highs on Monday, and the dollar and Treasury yields slipped as investors maintained an aggressively "risk on" stance in anticipation of an interest rate cut from the Federal Reserve later this week. More on that below. In my column today I look at the U.S. housing and labor markets, and how the simultaneous declines in both threaten to feed off each other and create a powerful headwind for the economy. If you have more time to read, here are a few articles I recommend to help you make sense of what happened in markets today. Today's Key Market Moves Today's Talking Points: * US-SINO TRADE U.S.-China trade talks took a forward leap on Monday, with a framework agreement reached to switch TikTok to U.S.-controlled ownership and President Donald Trump confirming he will talk to Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on Friday. Tech and AI are very much at the heart of the talks, and there may be a lot of hard bargaining still to be done. Beijing also said on Monday that a preliminary investigation of Nvidia found the U.S. chip giant had violated its anti-monopoly law. * Tech-tonic fizz Whether it be price, valuation, or concentration, investors know there are reasonable grounds to at least be cautious on the U.S. tech/AI boom. But it shows no sign of slowing, far less reversing, and on Monday it broke new ground. Tesla surged on CEO Elon Musk's $1 billion share purchase, Alphabet joined the $3 trillion club, and the communication services sector rose 2.3% - despite Nvidia's lackluster performance on news of China's probe. The sector is now up 27% this year, more than double the S&P 500 index's 12% gain. * Fragile China The Chinese economic "data dump" for August has been pretty unambiguous - Asia's largest economy is struggling. The latest readings of inflation, industrial production, bank lending, urban investment and retail sales have all missed expectations , opens new tab, while one of the few indicators to surprise in the upside was the unemployment rate. This will add pressure on Beijing to inject more fiscal stimulus to ensure this year's growth target of "around 5%" is met. Chinese stocks have climbed sharply lately and the yuan is its strongest this year. But these bets on a sustained recovery may be premature. Again. U.S. economy braces for twin housing, labor market headwinds The U.S. labor market appears to be deteriorating rapidly just as the country's housing market is also creaking, two negative forces that risk feeding off each other and smothering economic growth. On the labor side, the latest sweep of data shows why the Federal Reserve is almost certain to resume its interest rate-cutting cycle this week - the unemployment rate and weekly jobless claims are both the highest since 2021, and unemployed people now outnumber available jobs for the first time in four years. Meanwhile, pressure in the housing market remains elevated. Average monthly mortgage payments are nearly double pre-pandemic levels, and overall affordability is near record lows. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said earlier this month that the government may soon declare a national housing emergency. He has reason to be worried. High mortgage rates and soaring rents can weigh on consumer spending, leading to lower corporate profits, and ultimately less hiring and more firing. Rising unemployment, of course, puts further downward pressure on spending, creating a vicious negative spiral. Adding to these worries is the fact that many homeowners can't move even if they want to, as they are locked into ultra-low mortgage rates secured in the aftermath of the pandemic. As a result, mobility is falling, just when the labor market needs a more flexible and dynamic workforce. In other words, at exactly the wrong time. DECLINING MOBILITY High mortgage rates and soaring rents are exacerbating a long-standing U.S. housing crisis. The country currently has a record 4.7 million fewer units than it needs, according to realtor Zillow. That's bad news for the economy – long lauded for its flexibility – because a lack of affordable housing limits labor mobility. That, in turn, can fuel higher unemployment in certain regions and make it hard for businesses in thriving regions to fill positions. Limited access to housing "directly impacts the efficiency and flexibility of the labor market," says Shelley Stewart III, a senior partner at McKinsey. "Addressing housing affordability can alleviate these imbalances, leading to a more dynamic and balanced labor market." Indeed, according to academic research cited in a Bipartisan Policy Center report last year, if three of the country's 'productive job markets' – New York City, San Francisco, and San Jose - had adequate housing in the 45 years between 1964 and 2009, the U.S. economy would be 3.7% bigger. Failure to improve housing affordability damages U.S. economic growth over the long term, not just this cycle. WHAT TO DO? It's not all gloom and doom, though. First, technology could help maintain some labor mobility despite the housing crunch. The number of households with flexibility to work remotely and thus live further away from the office tripled between 2019 and 2021, the Bipartisan Policy Center study found. This may partially explain the increased migration in recent years of households to the South and Mountain West from the Northeast and Midwest. But work-from-home policies can only do so much. Consider that the overall rate of movement within the U.S. was less than 9% in 2022, compared with an annual average of almost 20% between 1948 and 1980. Next, there are some signs that the housing squeeze may be easing. The recent decline in long-term U.S. government bond yields has brought average 30-year mortgage rates to an 11-month low of 6.35%, while rising inventory and sluggish demand are capping house prices. But Americans seem unconvinced. Nearly 70% report being concerned about the rising cost of housing, an increase of eight percentage points from a year earlier, according to a McKinsey study. That negative sentiment could chill consumer spending regardless of the facts on the ground, especially when coupled with intensifying job fears. So what else can be done? Building new homes is the obvious answer. Investment in the housing sector has a strong multiplier effect on economic growth and tax revenues. McKinsey estimates that investing to close the housing shortfall could create up to 1.7 million jobs and add nearly $2 trillion in cumulative GDP through 2035. But investment on that scale will be hard to execute, especially when conditions in the sector are so fragile. And it will take time. In the short term, therefore, the economy can't bank on a housing renaissance. A more realistic hope may be that monetary easing, fiscal largesse and the Trump administration's deregulation drive will provide enough of a tailwind to offset these two rather powerful headwinds. What could move markets tomorrow? Want to receive Trading Day in your inbox every weekday morning? Sign up for my newsletter here. Opinions expressed are those of the author. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles , opens new tab, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias. https://www.reuters.com/business/global-markets-trading-day-graphic-2025-09-15/

2025-09-15 21:02

CHICAGO, Sept 15 (Reuters) - Nebraska has detected its first case of bird flu in a dairy cattle herd, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said on Monday, showing the virus continues to spread in livestock after an outbreak began last year. Dairy cattle in 17 states have been infected since the start of the outbreak in March 2024, according to the USDA. California, Michigan, Nevada, Idaho, Arizona and Texas have also reported cases in dairy herds this year. Sign up here. The herd in Nebraska is located in the central part of the state and has been quarantined, according to the Nebraska Department of Agriculture. Infected dairy cows often suffer from reduced milk production. https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/usda-reports-nebraskas-first-case-bird-flu-dairy-cattle-herd-2025-09-15/

2025-09-15 21:01

Delaware judge to select final winner after four-day hearing Hearing could extend to October if more evidence is needed Amber's bid includes $2.1 billion cash for PDVSA bondholders Gold Reserve, others prefer waiting for New York case resolution Citgo's valuation at the center of dispute HOUSTON, Sept 15 (Reuters) - A long-awaited sale hearing expected to complete a U.S. court-organized auction of shares in the parent of Venezuela-owned U.S. refiner Citgo Petroleum kicked off on Monday, with bidders and creditors locked in a bitter dispute over who should win. The Delaware court is hearing testimony from involved parties, witnesses and experts in the four-day showdown before Judge Leonard Stark selects a final winner. Sign up here. At stake is the future of the seventh largest U.S. refiner, whose parent was found liable for the South American nation's debt, as 15 companies with expropriated assets and holders of defaulted bonds pursue its assets. Judge Stark on Monday denied a motion to extend the hearing to consider a last-minute bid from Blue Water (BLUW.O) , opens new tab, and also denied Venezuela's request to suspend the proceeding over an alleged conflict of interest involving law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges, which is advising the court. Another set of arguments could be presented in October if the court decides more time and evidence are needed. "This sale hearing represents a significant milestone in an 18-year litigation effort that ConocoPhillips (COP.N) , opens new tab has been engaged in since its assets were expropriated in 2007 by (Venezuelan) President Hugo Chavez," Amy Wolf, a lawyer representing the oil company, the largest creditor in the case with more than $11 billion in claims, said during the hearing. Blue Water representatives told Reuters the firm was granted access to Citgo's data room and expects the court to allow it to present supporting evidence at the end of the hearing. Weil, Gotshal & Manges did not immediately reply to a request for comment. RIVAL BIDS FOR CITGO CLASH IN COURT In July, a court officer overseeing the process selected a subsidiary of Toronto-listed miner Gold Reserve (GRZ.V) , opens new tab as the auction's frontrunner. But following a last-minute bidding war, officer Robert Pincus last month switched his recommendation to a $5.9 billion bid from Amber Energy, an affiliate of hedge fund Elliott Investment Management. The decision has unleashed objections and a motion to disqualify Amber's bid, which remains pending, amid a battle between expropriated companies and holders of the nation's defaulted bonds. Miner Crystallex, ConocoPhillips (COP.N) , opens new tab and an affiliate of bondholder Contrarian Funds told the court on Monday they support Amber's bid, while Venezuela, Gold Reserve and junior creditors objected to it. The hearing "will serve as the first stress test of whether the Amber bid can survive the full gauntlet of procedural, legal, and geopolitical risks," said lawyer Jose Ignacio Hernandez from consultancy Aurora Macro Strategies, in a report last week. By including a $2.1 billion cash payment to holders of PDVSA's 2020 bonds, Amber's bid creates an opportunity to resolve a long-pending claim that is being heard in a separate New York court. However, Venezuela and a handful of creditors prefer to wait for the resolution of the New York case, where the validity of the bonds is in dispute, before anything is paid to the holders. The court on Monday heard testimonies from experts about Citgo's valuation, following Venezuela's arguments that the assets should not be auctioned at a fraction of their value. The company was valued at some $13 billion by court advisors before the first bidding round last year, but a more recent valuation raised it to some $18 billion, one of the experts said. Bids have not surpassed $11 billion. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/citgo-parent-auction-nears-final-stages-sale-hearing-kicks-off-2025-09-15/

2025-09-15 20:59

Sept 15 (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney told Anglo American (AAL.L) , opens new tab to move its headquarters to Canada or its proposed acquisition of Teck Resources (TECKb.TO) , opens new tab would not be allowed to proceed, the Globe and Mail reported on Monday, citing two sources familiar with the matter. London-based Anglo American and Canada's Teck last week announced a $53-billion planned merger, the sector's second-biggest M&A deal ever, and said the merged entity, Anglo Teck, would be headquartered in Canada and have a primary stock listing in London. Sign up here. In his conversations with Anglo American, Carney made it clear that shifting headquarters was a requirement that any prospective buyer for Teck would have to meet, the Globe and Mail report added. An Anglo American spokesperson declined to comment on the report, but pointed to CEO Duncan Wanblad's statement last week that Vancouver is the natural location for the merged company, given its operations and projects are largely based in the Americas. "Anglo American has also had its Americas exploration team based out of Vancouver for a long time, so we are very familiar with the setup," the spokesperson told Reuters in an emailed statement. Reuters could not immediately verify the report. PM Carney's office did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment, while Teck declined to comment on the report. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/canada-pm-told-anglo-american-move-hq-canada-teck-deal-nod-globe-mail-reports-2025-09-15/