2025-12-04 20:13
Adds CEO comments, paragraphs 3 and 8 NEW YORK, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Multinational Spanish construction company Ferrovial (FERF.AS) , opens new tab sees more opportunities for investment in airports across the U.S. after leading a massive terminal overhaul at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, CEO Ignacio Madridejos said on Thursday. Speaking at the Reuters NEXT conference in New York, Madridejos said the infrastructure company expects long-term growth in air travel. U.S. inbound travel demand has ebbed in 2025 in part due to inflation and concerns over President Donald Trump's policies around immigration and trade. Sign up here. "We are trying to do something similar in the U.S. We see opportunities," Madridejos said. "When you see the airports some of them need expansion, some of them need refurbishment and I think that working with private partners like us will help to accelerate and to have a better service to customers." The New Terminal One at JFK Airport has a $9.5 billion price tag and is expected to open in phases starting in 2026. A consortium of labor, operating and financial partners led by Ferrovial secured $6.5 billion in bank loans, the largest ever committed for an airport terminal. Madridejos said despite short-term travel disruptions, Ferrovial was looking at long-term trends. He said New York in particular was a "destination that was quite unique" with more passengers passing through, and that the company did not regret betting on such a massive overhaul. The firm, which also develops toll roads across the U.S., sells its stake in assets once fully matured, Madridejos said. In July, Ferrovial said it completed the sale of its remaining 5.25% stake in Heathrow Airport for an estimated profit of 31 million euros. Revenue in Ferrovial's highways division increased 14% to 1 billion euros ($1.17 billion) in the first nine months of 2025, year over year, driven by performance in North America. Madridejos said he expects public-private partnerships to continue to be a mainstay in infrastructure spending in the coming decades, especially as more Americans move into cities. Madridejos said the company was also seeing a huge pipeline of opportunities for developing toll roads and managed lanes. View the live broadcast of the World Stage here and read full coverage here. ($1 = 0.8579 euro) https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/ferrovial-eyeing-more-opportunities-us-airports-ceo-says-2025-12-04/
2025-12-04 20:03
US mining execs urge faster government action against China's mineral dominance Executives call for comprehensive US minerals plan and faster loan approvals Pressure on Indonesia to limit nickel output suggested to stabilize prices US Export-Import Bank urged to move faster on loan review NEW YORK, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Washington must move even faster to bolster critical minerals projects and offset Beijing's grip on the world's supply of the building blocks for electronics, weapons and a range of other goods, three U.S. mining and refining executives said on Thursday. The push underscores how Washington's surging support this year for the sector - including taking stakes in mining companies and guaranteeing a price floor for the only U.S. rare earths mine - is falling short of what industry leaders say is needed amid intense Chinese competition. Sign up here. Executives from Perpetua Resources (PPTA.O) , opens new tab, American Rare Earths (ARR.AX) , opens new tab and Westwin Elements told the Reuters NEXT conference in New York that the U.S. government should release a comprehensive minerals plan, pressure Indonesia to trim nickel production, and speed up the time for the U.S. Export-Import Bank and other agencies to approve loan funding, among other steps. "We need an industrial vision," said Melissa Sanderson, a director at American Rare Earths, which is working to build a rare earths mine in Wyoming. "What we need is an integrated plan for building the critical minerals supply chain with all of the myriad inputs, antimony, nickel, copper, rare earths and how that flows through to the battery makers, to the magnet manufacturers, to the various end-users." KaLeigh Long, CEO of privately held Westwin, which is building the only U.S. nickel refinery, is asking the Trump administration to pressure Indonesia to limit its nickel output, which has surged in the past two years to roughly 60% of global supply and dragged down nickel prices nearly 50% as a result. That forced BHP BHP.AX and others to shutter their operations and has posed a challenge for Westwin as it aims to secure financing to refine 34,000 metric tons of nickel per year in Oklahoma by 2030. "I'm really urging the U.S. government to think simple," Long said. "In terms of nickel, let's get a quota on Indonesian production. You do that, and I can almost promise you that overnight you will see a cure in the nickel price." Long said a price floor for nickel from Washington would be impractical given the large size of the market for that metal and pushed for limits on Indonesia's output instead. "A price floor is kind of a waste of our energy right now," she said. "I don't see that being a stable solution or a near-term solution." Rare earths, though, are a much smaller market than nickel and price supports are key until there is more transparent pricing, said Sanderson, a former U.S. diplomat and executive at copper miner Freeport-McMoRan (FCX.N) , opens new tab. The London Metal Exchange, for example, trades nickel but not rare earths, a market that China also dominates. "The LME has shown no interest so far in trying to develop a rare earths market and part of that is because it's currently a narrow spectrum of an already narrow market," Sanderson said. "It would be helpful if LME were to develop a pricing mechanism for rare earths, but the question becomes, 'Would China actually honor it?'" SPEED UP FINANCING REVIEW Mckinsey Lyon of Perpetua, which is building an antimony and gold mine in Idaho with support from JPMorgan Chase's JPM.N$1.5 trillion investment fund for U.S. national security, said Washington's recent moves reflect a "frantic scramble" to understand what can be a confusing web of federal agencies and programs, each with priorities that sometimes conflict. "Companies are getting some solutions, but what's not happening right now is a comprehensive strategy or road map," said Lyon. Both Perpetua and Westwin have applied for funding from the U.S. Export-Import Bank (ExIm), which acts as the U.S. government's export credit agency. Long said Washington must move faster to approve those loans, which often have terms more attractive than with private lenders and at higher amounts. Perpetua, for instance, has asked for $1.8 billion in government loans. "ExIm debt could allow us to execute on our commercial expansion, but the underwriting needs to speed up," Long said. "They just simply need more processability and more people, basically." View the live broadcast of the Reuters NEXT World Stage here and read full coverage here. https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/us-minerals-projects-seek-more-support-washington-compete-with-china-2025-12-04/
2025-12-04 19:34
Dec 4 (Reuters) - Energy trader Vitol is expected to supply Colombia’s new liquefied natural gas import terminal for five years starting in 2027, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday, citing the project’s developer. "The country currently has one LNG import terminal in operation, with a slate of new projects proposed by state oil company Ecopetrol SA and others," the report said. Sign up here. Last week, Colombian state-run energy company Ecopetrol (ECO.CN) , opens new tab warned that natural gas supply to the country's northern and central regions could be at risk due to an ongoing roadblock at its Guajira field. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/vitol-set-supply-new-colombia-lng-project-bloomberg-news-reports-2025-12-04/
2025-12-04 19:28
Dec 4 (Reuters) - The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) said on Thursday that spot crypto asset contracts will begin trading for the first time on futures exchanges registered with the agency. The move, first hinted at in August is another effort by the Trump administration to weave digital assets into mainstream finance and could help open the door for the broader use of cryptocurrencies. Sign up here. "Recent events on offshore exchanges have shown us how essential it is for Americans to have more choice and access to safe, regulated U.S. markets," CFTC Acting Chairman Caroline Pham said. The CFTC, which regulates U.S. derivatives markets, had also launched an initiative , opens new tab in September to collect feedback and suggestions from interested stakeholders on the use of tokenized collateral including stablecoins in derivatives markets. The digital assets industry has made advances this year under President Donald Trump, with bills like the GENIUS Act and CLARITY Act designed to provide new, tailored rules it has long pushed for. Trump's support for digital assets stands in sharp contrast to the stance of former President Joe Biden, who moved aggressively against the industry in an effort to curb fraud and money laundering. https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/spot-crypto-products-begin-trading-cftc-registered-exchanges-2025-12-04/
2025-12-04 19:26
MILAN, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Italy's Economy Ministry has ordered an in-depth review of existing safeguards against cryptocurrency risks, which are seen potentially rising, the Bank of Italy and other financial regulators said on Thursday. "An in-depth review has been launched to assess the adequacy of existing safeguards for direct and indirect investments Sign up here. in crypto-assets by retail investors," the regulators said in a statement. The decision was taken at a meeting of the so-called Committee for Macroprudential Policies, including the heads of the Bank of Italy, market watchdog Consob, insurance and pension funds watchdogs, and the director general of the Treasury. "The risks associated with the spread of crypto-assets could increase due to growing interconnections with the financial system and regulatory fragmentation at the international level," the committee members said in a statement The committee, tasked with safeguarding the stability of Italy's financial system, said economic and financial conditions in Italy remain broadly favourable, albeit in a context of high global uncertainty. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/italy-launches-in-depth-review-cryptocurrency-risks-2025-12-04/
2025-12-04 19:15
Dec 4 (Reuters) - Bank of America (BAC.N) , opens new tab will begin allowing its wealth advisers to recommend allocations to crypto in client portfolios from next month, the U.S. lending giant said on Thursday, in a landmark moment for the digital assets sector. Starting January 5, advisors at Bank of America Private Bank, Merrill, and Merrill Edge will be able to suggest several crypto exchange-traded products (ETPs) clients, without any asset threshold. Sign up here. Clients whose assets met predetermined thresholds have had access to bitcoin ETFs since early 2024, the bank said. However, the latest move evolves the role of advisors from executors of crypto orders to advisers. As U.S. President Donald Trump continues to push regulatory relief for the asset class, crypto has been benefiting from widespread institutional adoption. Several of these investors prefer to hold crypto via ETFs and ETPs, which provide greater liquidity and security, and simplified regulatory compliance compared to managing the underlying asset directly. "For investors with a strong interest in thematic innovation and comfort with elevated volatility, a modest allocation of 1% to 4% in digital assets could be appropriate," said Chris Hyzy, Chief Investment Officer for Merrill and Bank of America Private Bank. Proponents of crypto have long championed it as a diversification tool against inflation and conventional assets. However, critics warn against its volatility and security concerns as an asset class. Bitcoin shed more than $18,000 in November, as a record amount of money rushed out of the market, making this its largest monthly dollar loss since May 2021, when a number of cryptocurrencies collapsed. "The link between adoption and long-term value is real but not guaranteed, and periods of speculative excess can distort prices far above true utility," Merill said in a note. https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/bank-america-expands-crypto-access-wealth-management-clients-2025-12-04/
