2025-09-12 03:01

MUMBAI, Sept 12 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee is poised to find relief at open on Friday after a key U.S. inflation data came in line with expectations, reinforcing bets that the Federal Reserve will restart interest rate cuts next week. Sustained dollar demand from importers is, however, likely to temper the local currency's advance. Sign up here. The one-month non-deliverable forward indicated the rupee will open in the 88.36-88.38 range to the U.S. dollar, compared with 88.4425 on Thursday when it hit a lifetime low. "The U.S. inflation read is helpful for EM currencies overall," a currency trader at a Mumbai-based bank said. "However, with the rupee having printed a new low yesterday, you have to be very wary to take the other side. When a currency makes lows, the hurdle for reversing direction and trend is very high," a Mumbai-based FX trader said. The rupee's slide to new lows on Thursday was unexpected after it looked to be in a range around the 88 handle. Relentless dollar buying from importers and likely an outflow, pushed the move and shows little sign of abating, the trader added. 25 BPS FED CUT NEXT WEEK A measure of U.S. inflation, core CPI, matched expectations, keeping intact the already high odds of a 25-basis-point Fed rate cut next week. Alongside data pointing to softness in the labor market, it left no doubts over the rate cut path, bolstering risk appetite and weighing on the dollar. "The weakening of the jobs market is now the Fed's priority," ING Bank said in a note, and pointed out that the impact of tariffs was "not particularly evident" in Thursday's report. Economists have been watching U.S. inflation for evidence that President Donald Trump's tariffs are pushing prices higher. The Fed last lowered rates in December 2024. With a quarter-point cut fully priced in for next week, investors expect two more reductions this year. KEY INDICATORS: ** One-month non-deliverable rupee forward at 88.47; onshore one-month forward premium at 12 paise ** Dollar index up at 97.62 ** Brent crude futures down 0.7% at $65.9 per barrel ** Ten-year U.S. note yield at 4.03% ** As per NSDL data, foreign investors bought a net $510mln worth of Indian shares on Sept. 10 ** NSDL data shows foreign investors sold a net $41mln worth of Indian bonds on Sept. 10 https://www.reuters.com/world/india/relief-rupee-with-us-inflation-keeping-fed-track-restart-rate-cuts-2025-09-12/

2025-09-12 02:59

Sept 11 (Reuters) - Cryptocurrency firm Gemini Space Station raised $425 million in an initial public offering on Thursday, pricing its stock above a marketed range. The company led by the billionaire twins Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss sold around 15.2 million shares for $28 apiece, after marketing them for $24 to $26, it said in a statement, confirming an earlier report by Reuters. Sign up here. The IPO values Gemini at $3.33 billion on a non-diluted basis, according to a Reuters calculation. The price range was lifted earlier this week from $17 to $19, underscoring robust investor demand. New York City-based Gemini had capped IPO proceeds at $425 million, in a rare move, even as the offering drew orders more than 20 times the shares available, Reuters reported earlier in the day. Record high prices for digital assets and regulatory wins have transformed the once beleaguered sector into an anchor for the IPO market, which has resumed a long-awaited recovery this fall after U.S. tariffs delayed listing plans in April. Nasdaq (NDAQ.O) , opens new tab had committed to a $50 million investment in a private placement at the time of the IPO. Reuters was the first to report on the investment. Gemini will begin trading on Nasdaq on Friday under the ticker "GEMI". Crypto listings are gathering momentum. Stablecoin issuer Figure Technology raised $787.5 million in an upsized U.S. IPO on Wednesday. Earlier this year, CoinDesk owner Bullish (BLSH.N) , opens new tab and stablecoin issuer Circle (CRCL.N) , opens new tab both enlarged their offerings. The Securities and Exchange Commission under President Donald Trump has eased oversight of the crypto sector, which has frequently seen ventures from entities connected to him and his family. Gemini has benefited as well, with the Winklevoss twins moving closer in April to resolving an SEC lawsuit claiming they failed to register a cryptocurrency asset lending program before offering it to retail investors. The case has not been resolved. A status report from both sides is due by September 15. In another display of the sector's proximity to Washington, Trump's Commodity Futures Trading Commission nominee accused Tyler Winklevoss on Wednesday of lobbying the White House to stall his nomination after a text exchange. https://www.reuters.com/business/crypto-exchange-gemini-prices-ipo-above-range-raise-425-million-2025-09-11/

2025-09-12 00:35

More than half of generating capacity restored Officials hope to restore full service on Thursday Residents say they are frustrated HAVANA, Sept 11 (Reuters) - The Cuban Energy and Mining Ministry said on Thursday 80% of the capital, Havana, had power and most of the country's energy grid had been reestablished 24 hours after it crashed, leaving 9.7 million residents in the dark. "Electricity coverage has been increasing, and we are generating approximately 1000 Megawatts (MW) that will increase today," the ministry's electricity director Lazaro Guerra said during a morning state television broadcast. Sign up here. "The restoration process is going well. ... We are in the concluding stage of the restoration of the electrical system," he said. POWER SYSTEM IN A LONG-TERM CRISIS That system has been in crisis for years and has an effective capacity of just under 2000 megawatts and a national demand of over 3,000 MW. Even before Wednesday's collapse the vast majority of residents were experiencing daily blackouts of 16 hours or more. Cuba's oil-fired power plants, already obsolete and struggling to keep the lights on, reached a full crisis last year as oil imports from Venezuela, Russia and Mexico dwindled. The grid failure follows four nationwide blackouts since late last year. Communist Party authorities have launched a crash program with China to install 1000 MW of solar power this year and another 1,000 MW after that. The country has also been facing fuel, food and other shortages as part of its worst economic crisis in decades. "The electrical system seems to be going through a very difficult situation, but we think ... measures can be taken that may contribute to an improvement," said Sergio Serrano, a self-employed Havana resident. Housewife Thalia Martinez was not so sure. "I don't understand what the state is doing about it. ... It is the people who suffer, the children, the mothers, the grandparents, the elderly, and that is super bad," she said. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/cuban-capital-back-normal-recovery-moves-forward-national-blackout-2025-09-11/

2025-09-11 23:38

NEW YORK, Sept 11 (Reuters) - U.S. consumer prices rose more than expected in August while the annual increase in inflation was the largest in seven months, although the numbers will not prevent an interest rate cut from the Federal Reserve next week in the midst of a weakening labor market. The Consumer Price Index rose 0.4% last month after increasing 0.2% in July, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) said on Thursday. In the 12 months through August, the CPI advanced 2.9%, the largest increase since January, after climbing 2.7% in July. Sign up here. MARKET REACTION STOCKS: U.S. stock futures gained after the data. S&P 500 E-minis were up 19 points, or 0.3%. BONDS: U.S. Treasury yields dipped, 10-year yield last down on the day at 4.022% . FOREX: The dollar index slipped, last down 0.2% at 97.61. COMMENTS: JAMES EGELHOF, CHIEF US ECONOMIST, BNP PARIBAS, NEW YORK: "CPI is consistent with what we were looking for in the headline, although a bit hotter than what the market was looking for. A lot of the strength in this CPI print is coming from an unexpected source, perhaps, which is strength in air fares and hotels, and that's something that was reasonably well telegraphed by the airlines, but perhaps not at this magnitude. It's consistent with a recovery in corporate demand for travel, as well as perhaps some improvements in consumer confidence and a willingness to spend on discretionary items. So that's encouraging to us about the outlook." "That said the evidence in this print of tariff pass through is soft, and so it shows continued business reticence to pass on tariff increases, perhaps due to lingering concerns about the strength of the consumer and their ability to pay higher prices." "We think that inflation at this point is unlikely to land at 2% anytime soon. We're very comfortable with an above consensus view on inflation and above 2% view on inflation next year. That reinforces our confidence that the economy will stay out of recession and that inflation will remain resurgent and remain modestly above the Fed's 2% target." OLIVER PURSCHE, SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, ADVISOR, WEALTHSPIRE ADVISORS, WESTPORT, CONNECTICUT: "The slightly elevated CPI and core CPI being in line with expectations reinforces the notion that the Fed is going to cut rates next week. The higher unemployment filings suggest there's a possibility it could be 50 basis points as opposed to 25... although I think that's still only a remote possibility. But it certainly seems like 'bad news is good news' is back." BRIAN JACOBSEN, CHIEF ECONOMIST, ANNEX WEALTH MANAGEMENT, BROOKFIELD, WISCONSIN: (VIA EMAIL) "There's nothing to see here, at least to inform what the Fed might do next week. Shelter price inflation is still the big driver of services inflation and we know the Fed pretty much ignores that component. Goods price deflation turned to inflation, but it's a slow simmer higher instead of a raging fire." "Retirees are going to start caring about the inflation numbers because Social Security benefits are indexed to the change in prices during the third quarter. So far, that looks like a 2.7% cost of living adjustment for 2026. This illustrates why retirees should care a lot about the integrity of the BLS data. If there are political incentives to tilt the official readings lower, that has real dollars and cents consequences for many people. This also shows why the government would have a rough time trying to inflate its way out of its debt mess. More and more of government spending automatically increases with inflation." GARY SCHLOSSBERG, GLOBAL STRATEGIST, WELLS FARGO INVESTMENT INSTITUTE, SAN FRANCISCO: "Inflation is firming, not as much as we expected earlier this year when those broad tariffs were first announced by the President, but it is firming nonetheless ... in a way, that the market can digest it.""The market seems to be absorbing a number that all in all was pretty much in line with expectations.""We're still looking for a rate cut next week. We're not looking for a jumbo cut as some had expected after the big downward revision to the jobs numbers and then we were still looking for another one or two cuts before the end of the year." "(The data) may temper the market's enthusiasm for big multiple cuts, certainly for big cuts, but I don't think it really changes the trajectory at the margin." (This story has been refiled to add the analyst's name, firm and title to the first comment in paragraph 4) https://www.reuters.com/business/instant-view-us-consumer-prices-rise-more-than-expected-rate-cut-still-coming-2025-09-11/

2025-09-11 23:34

MEXICO CITY, Sept 11 (Reuters) - Margarita Perez, the head of the commercial arm of Mexican state energy company Pemex, has left her position and will be replaced by finance ministry official Adan Garcia, a spokesperson for the company said on Thursday. Reuters reported the news earlier based on information from four sources and one internal email. Sign up here. PMI Comercio Internacional, as the entity is known, is responsible for importing refined fuels into Mexico and exporting crude oil, mainly the country's flagship Maya. The Pemex spokesperson said that Garcia's appointment is set to be discussed on Friday at a meeting of the oil company's board of directors. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/mexicos-pemex-replaces-head-commercial-arm-2025-09-11/

2025-09-11 23:33

HOUSTON, Sept 11 (Reuters) - Valero Energy Corp (VLO.N) , opens new tab is overhauling the gasoline-producing fluidic catalytic cracking unit (FCCU) at its 180,000 barrel-per-day Memphis, Tennessee refinery, people familiar with plant operations said on Thursday. A Valero spokesperson was not immediately available to discuss refinery operations on Thursday. Sign up here. The 65,000-bpd FCCU was shut over the weekend along with the 12,000-bpd alkylation unit for the overhaul, the sources said. The overhaul is scheduled to finish by November 1, the sources said. The refinery’s flare gas recovery unit was also shut for work and a hydrotreater was taken out of production for a catalyst change, according to the sources. The FCCU uses a fine silica powder catalyst to convert gas oil into unfinished gasoline. Alkylation units convert refining byproducts into octane-boosting liquids that are added to unfinished gasoline. The flare gas recovery unit recovers gases that would otherwise be burned in the refinery’s safety flare system for use as fuel in boilers. Hydrotreaters use catalysts in the presence of hydrogen to remove sulfur from motor fuels in compliance with U.S. environmental rules. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/valero-overhauling-fccu-tennessee-refinery-sources-say-2025-09-11/