2024-09-11 11:16
GDANSK, Sept 11 (Reuters) - Poland's largest refiner and energy firm Orlen (PKN.WA) , opens new tab discovered a "big" oil field in western Poland, it said in a press release on Wednesday. The oilfield was discovered in the Lubuskie region next to the existing Rzeczyca field which holds 100,000 metric tons of oil. The entire complex is now estimated to hold 500,000 tons of oil. After the development of the deposit, the site will produce 16,500 tons of oil annually. Tests at the site indicate a high probability of further oil deposit discoveries, Orlen said in a press release. "The Rzeczyca field is one of the biggest oil discoveries in Poland in more than a decade," Orlen's CEO, Ireneusz Fafara, said in the statement. The majority of Orlen's national oil extraction comes from oil deposits in western Poland. Last year the group's output of oil, condensate and natural gas liquids amounted to about 824,000 tons. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/polands-top-refiner-orlen-discovers-big-oilfield-western-poland-2024-09-11/
2024-09-11 11:08
Hurricane briefly upgraded to Category 2 before coming ashore Nearly 39% of oil and half of natural gas production in Gulf of Mexico offline Louisiana parishes issue evacuation orders, curfews set U.S. government and Louisiana both declare state of emergency NEW ORLEANS, Sept 11 (Reuters) - Hurricane Francine came ashore in southern Louisiana on Wednesday, threatening New Orleans and the wider Gulf Coast with powerful winds, rain and a storm surge that led to evacuation orders for thousands of people. Francine packed maximum sustained winds of 90 miles per hour (150 kph) after the eye of the storm traveled inland over southern Louisiana about 65 miles (105 km) west-southwest of New Orleans, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. The hurricane center briefly upgraded the storm from Category 1 to Category 2 on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale just before it made landfall. Even as a Category 1 storm, its very dangerous winds are capable of producing damage, and the whole of the Gulf Coast in Louisiana and Mississippi was under a warning for storm surge that the hurricane center called life-threatening. The New Orleans metropolitan area was under a hurricane watch, meaning hurricane conditions were possible. The iconic French Quarter neighborhood known for its tourist bars and restaurants was locked down with a noticeable police presence and very few pedestrians. On Bourbon Street, Gina Kralek said she was working at the Clover Grill covering for a pair of co-workers who had evacuated before the storm. "Normally I evacuate but I've got my three dogs," Kralek said. "Not everyone wants to take me with the dogs." Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry and U.S. President Joe Biden each declared a state of emergency in anticipation of the storm, freeing up emergency management resources and potential financial aid in the event of serious damage. Several parishes, or counties, on or near the Louisiana Gulf Coast earlier issued mandatory evacuation orders, and the state transportation department issued evacuation maps. The city of New Orleans distributed sandbags at five sites. Any major storm near Louisiana evokes memories of Hurricane Katrina, the 2005 storm that devastated New Orleans and surrounding areas, killing nearly 1,400 people and causing $125 billion in damage, according to a 2023 hurricane center report , opens new tab. Water from Lake Pontchartrain, which borders the city to the north, was starting to churn over its seawall. However since Katrina, the federal government built a $14.5 billion levee protection system, which includes storm water gates that can prevent storm surge into the city's interior drainage canals, which experienced catastrophic failure during Hurricane Katrina. Grocery stores were boarded up by late afternoon but not before veterans of previous storms loaded up on provisions. "We're all set. We have our canned goods. Have our supplies," said Steve Rodriguez, who has lived in New Orleans since 1983 and was attempting some additional last-minute shopping. "I was hoping to get some sausage. I've got meat in the freezer but it would be easier to cook up some beans or something." The storm already had the effect of disrupting energy production and agricultural exports out of the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. Nearly 39% of oil and almost half of natural gas production in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico was offline on Wednesday, according to the offshore regulator. A total of 171 production platforms and three rigs had been evacuated. The hurricane center reported a peak gust of 97 mph (156 kph) in Dulac, a coastal fishing community 70 miles southwest of New Orleans. That's where fisherman Barry Rogers said he planned to ride out the storm on his 80-foot (24-meter) shrimp boat rather than his home. "The house is not going nowhere. If it does, there's nothing you can do about it," he said. "If a rope breaks on the boat, I'd rather be there to tie up another one." Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/new-orleans-braces-hurricane-francine-evacuations-ordered-2024-09-11/
2024-09-11 11:08
WARSAW, Sept 11 (Reuters) - Poland will this week send a request for European Commission approval of a plan to finance its first nuclear power plant, a top energy security official said on Wednesday. The Commission is in charge of ensuring any state aid given to companies by member states complies with EU rules on fair competition. "This week I will sign an official request to the European Commission, starting the notification process," Maciej Bando, deputy climate minister in charge of strategic energy infrastructure, told a conference in Warsaw. To cut reliance on coal, Poland chose Westinghouse Electric to build the plant on the Baltic sea coast that is set to cost some $40 billion, and is now negotiating the funding structure with U.S. partners. The government is working on legislation that will allow it to inject 60 billion zloty ($15.45 billion) into state-owned Polskie Elektrownie Jadrowe, which is in charge of overseeing the building the first of the three reactors by 2035. Bando said he expects Poland's request for a nod for public aid for the project, which will include a scheme for pricing the electricity produced via a so-called contract for difference, to be cleared by the EU by the middle of next year. ($1 = 3.8839 zlotys) Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/poland-ask-eu-nod-nuclear-power-plant-financing-this-week-2024-09-11/
2024-09-11 10:32
Sept 11 (Reuters) - U.S. cryptocurrency shares fell in early trading on Wednesday after Democratic candidate Kamala Harris put her Republican rival and crypto supporter Donald Trump on the defensive in a combative presidential debate. The former president had positioned himself as a pro-bitcoin candidate whose return could mark a win for the industry that has accused the current administration of regulatory overreach. After the debate, pop megastar Taylor Swift said she will vote for the Democratic candidate to her 280 million followers in a post on Instagram. "Following the performance of Harris in the debate and perhaps Taylor Swift's endorsement, there is a slightly lower chance of a crypto-supporting Trump in the White House," said Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown. Bets on a win for Harris improved to 56% from 53% before the debate, while Trump's chances slipped to 48% from 52%, according to online betting site PredictIt. Bitcoin , the world's largest cryptocurrency, pared losses and was last down 2%, while ether fell 2.6%. Trump had in July courted the crypto industry in a conference in search of donations and votes with a promise of friendlier regulation. "Never sell your bitcoin," Trump said at the time, adding that if elected the U.S. government will hold bitcoin as a store of value. Meanwhile, Harris has yet to detail a policy position on crypto. In the run-up to the debate, many market participants and analysts viewed bitcoin as the asset to watch for clues on which candidate was gaining an upper hand. "The U.S. presidential debate did not address crypto directly. However, market sentiment is shifting in favor of Kamala Harris," Valentin Fournier, analyst at research firm BRN. "This creates a somewhat less optimistic outlook for bitcoin compared to the more enthusiastic projections made by Trump at the Bitcoin 2024 Conference." The crypto market is often seen as a risky fringe business with high volatility and has been accused by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission of flouting securities laws. But its mainstream appeal has improved, thanks to the support from Wall Street institutions and corporate titans like Elon Musk and the approval of U.S. exchange-traded crypto funds. "We expect the uncertainty to hang over risk assets till November," Aurelie Barthere, principal research analyst, Nansen. Crypto miners Riot Platforms (RIOT.O) , opens new tab Marathon Digital (MARA.O) , opens new tab, and U.S.-listed shares of Hut 8 (HUT.O) , opens new tab were down between 3.6% and 5.3%. Software firm and BTC buyer MicroStrategy (MSTR.O) , opens new tab fell 5.4% and crypto exchange Coinbase Global (COIN.O) , opens new tab and Blockchain farm operator Bitfarms were down 3.6% and 3.8%, respectively. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/us-crypto-stocks-fall-rising-bets-harris-win-after-presidential-debate-2024-09-11/
2024-09-11 10:15
LONDON, Sept 11 (Reuters) - Sterling gained slightly versus the dollar on Wednesday, recovering from a dip earlier in the session, but slid against the euro after data showed Britain's economy stagnated unexpectedly in July, as manufacturing output fell. British economic output showed no change in month-on-month terms in July, as it did in June, data from the Office for National Statistics showed. A Reuters poll of economists had forecast 0.2% month-on-month growth in gross domestic product. "We should not worry too much about the miss," analysts at Peel Hunt said in a note, pointing to still healthy forward-looking business activity surveys and highlighting the known volatility of monthly data, particularly in heavy industries. Also analysts at JPMorgan said July economy output is not indicative of the trend. However, upside risks to third-quarter GDP growth have faded, they said. Deutsche Bank senior economist Sanjay Raja said that after seeing upside risks to third-quarter GDP growth, relative to the bank's baseline of 0.4% quarter on quarter, it now sees downside risks building. Sterling edged up 0.1% to $1.3093, after sliding to $1.3071 earlier in the session. The dollar fell to its lowest against the yen this year after investors increased the chances of Democrat Kamala Harris beating Republican rival Donald Trump in November's presidential election after a scheduled debate. The pound fell 0.7% against the yen to 185.05 yen, around its weakest in a month. Investors were also awaiting a key U.S. inflation report that could provide indication of how aggressively the Federal Reserve will cut rates next week. The euro rose versus sterling, trading 0.14%higher at 84.37 pence. The Bank of England is expected to keep interest rates unchanged next week, although markets show traders believe it could cut once more this year, probably in November . In the coming weeks, focus in UK markets will also be on the new Labour government's first budget next month. Banks in Britain are intensifying their lobbying against potential tax hikes in the upcoming budget on Oct. 30, amid worries it may tap the sector to boost public finances, senior industry sources told Reuters. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/sterling-edges-up-against-dollar-after-uk-data-2024-09-11/
2024-09-11 10:03
LONDON, Sept 11 (Reuters) - A look at the day ahead in U.S. and global markets by Dhara Ranasinghe. As a combative U.S. presidential debate grabs attention, upcoming U.S. inflation numbers have fallen into the background -- but perhaps only temporarily. After all, the August consumer price inflation report released later on Wednesday is the last big data release before a much anticipated Sept. 18 Federal Reserve rate decision. And given that markets still attach a roughly 35% chance to an aggressive 50 basis points cut next week (a 25 bps move is fully priced in), the latest numbers have the scope to move traders' rate bets and therefore broader markets. Economists polled by Reuters forecast a 0.2% month-on-month rise in both the headline and core consumer price index, with the headline annual measure expected to fall to 2.6% in August from 2.9% in July. That would be the lowest annual inflation number since March 2021 and could cement expectations for a modest rate cut next week, which could support the dollar. For Deutsche Bank economists, rental inflation is one to watch as there was a surprise rise in July, so the question is whether this was a one-off or not. Ahead of the CPI release, markets appear to be taking their cue from Tuesday's debate between Democratic candidate Kamala Harris and Republican rival Donald Trump - after which pop megastar Taylor Swift said she would vote for Harris. U.S. Treasury yields are lower, while the dollar (and bitcoin) as well as U.S. stock futures are broadly softer, in what is seen as a signal from markets that the debate has given Harris an edge ahead of the Nov. 5 presidential election. Following the debate, online betting site PredictIt showed Harris' odds of winning improving 3 cents to 56 cents for a $1 payout, while Trump's chances dropped 5 cents to 47 cents. The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield touched 3.605%, its lowest since June 2023 , while the dollar was at 141.68 yen . Budget forecasters' estimates so far suggest Trump's agenda would pile on more new federal debt. A sale of 10-year Treasuries later on Wednesday should offer a taste of investor appetite for U.S. government debt. Bank stocks could also be in focus a day after falling sharply. The Fed's regulatory chief on Tuesday outlined a plan to raise big banks' capital by 9%, significantly easing an earlier proposal after intense Wall Street opposition but disappointing bank investors and some critics of the rule. That coincided with some downbeat comments from the banking sector -- on Tuesday, JPMorgan Chase (JPM.N) , opens new tab tempered expectations about income from interest payments and late Monday, Goldman Sachs (GS.N) , opens new tab CEO David Solomon said trading revenue could fall 10% this quarter. In Europe, meanwhile, Italy's UniCredit (CRDI.MI) , opens new tab said on Wednesday it had acquired a 9% stake in Commerzbank and will seek approval to potentially buy more, in a move that raised the prospect of CEO Andrea Orcel preparing to take over the German lender. Key developments that may provide more direction to U.S. markets later on Wednesday: * U.S. August CPI * U.S. 10-year Treasury auction Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/global-markets-view-usa-2024-09-11/
