2024-08-22 07:53

Aug 22 (Reuters) - Sibanye Stillwater (SSWJ.J) , opens new tab has secured a 500 million euros ($557.30 million) financing package to complete its Keliber lithium project in Finland, the miner said on Thursday. The South African company owns 79.8% of Keliber after it invested in the project in 2021 to diversify away from platinum and gold production into battery metals amid a global shift towards cleaner energy. State-owned Finnish Minerals Group and other Finnish investors own the remaining stake in the Keliber project. Sibanye got 250 million euros from export credit guarantee agencies including Finland's state-owned Finnvera, 150 million euros from the European Investment Bank and a syndicated tranche of 100 million euros from commercial banks. The funding meets Keliber's final capital expenditure requirements of about 667 million euros to complete the project, Sibanye said. About 250 million euros was previously raised through equity. "The financing solution that has now been secured enables the construction phase to be completed and the production of battery-grade lithium hydroxide to begin," Matti Hietanen, CEO of Finnish Minerals Group, said. When completed, Keliber is expected to have annual production of about 15,000 metric tons of battery-grade lithium hydroxide monohydrate for at least 16 years, according to Sibanye's website. Sibanye CEO Neal Froneman said the funding provided by European lenders showed the project's "strategic importance to the European clean energy transition". The funding also "significantly improves the group's liquidity, effectively ring-fencing the existing group facilities for operational requirements", Froneman added. On Wednesday, Sibanye said it had agreed a $101 million gold prepayment deal to raise cash to help repay loans after a slump in platinum group metal prices hurt its income. It has also agreed to refinance its 5.5 billion rand ($306.86 million) revolving credit facility with South African banks, which was increased to 6 billion rand. ($1 = 0.8972 euros) ($1 = 17.9233 rand) Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/miner-sibanye-gets-500-mln-euros-financing-complete-finland-lithium-project-2024-08-22/

2024-08-22 07:37

BEIJING, Aug 22 (Reuters) - China has widened its investigation into imported EU products, adding an anti-subsidy probe of cheese, milk and cream to anti-dumping checks on pork and brandy. Beijing announced the move on Wednesday, a day after the EU published a revised tariff plan for China-made electric vehicles (EVs). Here are the main issues: WHY IS CHINA TAKING ACTION? Beijing is assessing whether EU dairy imports are benefiting from subsidies. Its probe comes as the EU evaluates a plan to impose tariffs of up to 36.3% on imported Chinese-made EVs subject to a vote in October. France, Italy and Spain backed the proposed tariffs in July, while Germany, Finland and Sweden abstained, government sources have said. WHAT COUNTRIES ARE MOST AT RISK? France stands to be worst affected as it exported $211 million worth of the targeted dairy products last year, Chinese customs data showed, mostly milk and cream. Italian, Danish, Dutch and Spanish farmers last year sold dairy goods subject to China's new probe worth $65 million, $55 million, $52 million and $49 million, respectively, the data showed. EU exports of milk powder to China, worth $357 million last year, are not subject to investigation. France also supplied 99% of China's imported brandy last year as well as some of its pork, making it the most impacted country if Beijing acts on each of the investigations. Paris has repeatedly voiced concerns about the surge in Chinese EVs into the European market and taken measures domestically to ensure that French subsidies for buying EVs do not benefit vehicles made in China. Major pork exporters Denmark, the Netherlands and Spain are also under pressure from Beijing's probes. WHAT MIGHT HAPPEN? An anti-dumping investigation into imported European large-engine gasoline cars could be on the cards, according to the state-owned Global Times, which first reported that Beijing was considering the probes. Such an investigation would hit Germany hardest. Its exports of vehicles with engines of 2.5 litres or larger to China were worth $1.2 billion last year, Chinese customs data shows. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/china/what-you-need-know-about-chinas-widening-probe-eu-imports-2024-08-22/

2024-08-22 06:36

Canadian National workers to return to work on Friday Work stoppage at Canadian Pacific still ongoing Labour Minister MacKinnon expects trains running within days Business groups and companies demanded government action Teamsters union says picket lines will remain in place for now OTTAWA, Aug 22 (Reuters) - Workers at Canadian National Railway (CNR.TO) , opens new tab will begin returning to work on Friday, the Teamsters union said, hours after the Canadian government moved to end an unprecedented rail stoppage. The union said the work stoppage at Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CP.TO) , opens new tab would continue pending an order from the Canadian Industrial Relations Board (CIRB). The union and company officials are scheduled to meet with the board on Friday morning. Canada's top two railroads, Canadian National Railway and Canadian Pacific Kansas City had locked out more than 9,000 unionized workers earlier on Thursday, triggering a simultaneous rail stoppage that business groups said could inflict hundreds of millions of dollars in economic damage. The Canadian government on Thursday announced that it would ask the country's industrial relations board to issue a back-to-work order that should come soon. The CIRB, which is independent, will now consult the companies and unions before issuing an order. CN had said it would end its lockout on Thursday at 6 p.m. ET (2200 GMT). CPKC said it was preparing to restart operations in Canada and further details on timing would be provided once it received the CIRB's order. "I assume that the trains will be running within days," Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon told reporters. As well as requesting a back-to-work order, MacKinnon asked the board to start a process of binding arbitration between the Teamsters union and the companies, and extend the terms of the current labor agreements until new agreements have been signed. The sides blamed each other for the stoppage after multiple rounds of talks failed to yield a deal. In a new statement during the early hours on Friday, the Teamsters union posted on X , opens new tab that it had taken down picket lines at CN. CN spokesperson Jonathan Abecassis told the Canadian Broadcasting Corp it could take the company a week or more to catch up on shipments. MacKinnon's decision marked a change of mind by the Liberal government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, which had said it wanted to see the matter settled at the bargaining table. "We gave negotiations every possible opportunity to succeed ... but we have an impasse here," MacKinnon said. "And that is why we have come to this decision today." RELIANT ON RAIL Business groups and companies had demanded the government act. Trudeau, in a post on X, said "collective bargaining is always the best way forward," but added governments must act when faced with serious consequences to supply chains and the workers who depend on them. Canada is the world's second-largest country by area and relies heavily on railways to transport a wide range of commodities and industrial goods. Its economy is heavily integrated with that of the United States, meaning a stoppage would roil North American supply chains. "We are pleased the government has responded to our calls to intervene ... A prolonged stoppage would have imposed enormous costs on Canadian business," the Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters, an industry group, said in a statement. The rail companies previously said they were forced into the lockouts to avoid strikes at short notice. They said they had bargained in good faith and made multiple offers with better pay and working conditions. Paul Boucher, head of the Teamsters rail union, had accused CN and CPKC of being "willing to compromise rail safety and tear families apart to earn an extra buck". Unions typically do not want contracts decided through arbitration as it removes their leverage from withholding labor to secure better terms. The left-leaning New Democratic Party, which has traditionally received strong union support and props up Trudeau's government, opposed the government's decision. "Justin Trudeau has just sent a message to CN, CPKC and all big corporations - being a bad boss pays off," party leader Jagmeet Singh said in a statement. The stoppage has crippled shipments of grain, potash and coal while also slowing the transport of petroleum products, chemicals and autos. Tens of thousands of people who depend on certain commuter rail lines into Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal were also hit by the lockouts, since all train movement on these CPKC-owned lines had halted indefinitely. The stoppage was largely rooted in scheduling, availability of labor and demands for better work-life balance, according to the union and companies. It comes after Ottawa introduced new duty and rest-period rules in 2023. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/canadian-national-railways-canadian-pacific-lock-out-teamsters-union-workers-2024-08-22/

2024-08-22 06:34

DUBAI/ATHENS, Aug 22 (Reuters) - A Greek-flagged oil tanker carrying 150,000 tonnes of crude that was evacuated by its crew after being attacked in the Red Sea now poses an environmental hazard, the EU's Red Sea naval mission "Aspides" said on Thursday. Houthis, who control Yemen's most populous regions, said on Thursday that they attacked the Sounion oil tanker in the Red Sea, as the Iran-aligned group has been attacking ships in solidarity with Palestinians in the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. Sounion "belongs to a company that have ties with the Israeli enemy and violated the ban decision of entry to the ports of occupied Palestine," the Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said in a televised speech. Sounion was targeted on Wednesday by multiple projectiles off Yemen's port city of Hodeidah. "Carrying 150,000 tonnes of crude oil, the MV SOUNION now represents a navigational and environmental hazard," Aspides said in a post on social media platform X. The Sounion was the third vessel operated by Athens-based Delta Tankers to be attacked in the Red Sea this month. The attack caused a fire onboard, which the crew extinguished, Delta Tankers said in a statement. The attack led to the loss of engine power, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency said on Wednedsday. On Thursday, UKMTO said the vessel was at anchor and all its crew evacuated. The vessel was now anchored between Yemen and Eritrea, a maritime security source told Reuters. Delta Tankers said it was working on a plan to move Sounion to a safer destination for further checks and repairs. The EU Red Sea naval mission said it responded to a request from the captain of the Sounion and dispatched a ship to rescue the crew to Djibouti, the Aspides said. "While approaching the area, the EUNAVFOR ASPIDES ship destroyed an Unmanned Surface Vessel (USV) that posed an imminent threat to the ship and the crew," Aspides added. The Greek shipping ministry said the vessel was sailing from Iraq to Agioi Theodoroi in Greece with a crew of two Russians and 23 Filipinos. In dozens of attacks in the Red Sea since November, the Houthis have sunk two vessels and seized another, killed at least three sailors and upended global trade by forcing ship owners to avoid the popular Suez Canal trade shortcut. The Houthis' leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi said on Thursday "from this week's operations targeting ships violating blockade on vessels heading to Israel, a ship was adrift due to waves after it malfunctioned because of strikes", without specifying the name of the ship. In another incident on Thursday, the SW North Wind I vessel reported an explosion close to it that caused minor damage after an encounter with an uncrewed vessel 57 nautical miles south of Yemen's port of Aden, the UKMTO said. The vessel and its crew were safe and it was proceeding to its next port of call. The Houthis claimed responsibility for this attack saying that they directly hit the SW North Wind I in both the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea. Greek Shipping Minister Christos Stylianidis condemned on Wednesday the attack on the Sounion, saying its was "a flagrant violation of international law and a serious threat to the safety of international shipping". Houthi attacks have drawn U.S. and British retaliatory strikes. British ambassador to Yemen Abda Sharif called the Houthi attacks "illegal and reckless". "Another Houthi attack threatens Yemen's coastline, fishing industry and environmental catastrophe. Thankfully, the crew have been rescued, but MV Sounion, carrying 150,000 tonnes of oil, is now stranded," she added in a post on X. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/fire-spotted-red-sea-off-yemen-port-salif-ambrey-says-2024-08-22/

2024-08-22 06:29

TOKYO, Aug 22 (Reuters) - Japan's Tokyo Electric Power (9501.T) , opens new tab has suspended preparation work for the test removal of nuclear fuel debris from the tsunami-stricken Fukushima Daiichi plant, a company spokesperson said. The preparatory work was suspended due to an error in the installation of the extraction equipment and it is unclear when the work, the first of its kind since the accident in 2011, may resume, he added. The work was initially planned to start in 2021, but was pushed back due to delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the spokesperson. The debris, which consist of nuclear fuel and parts of the plant's infrastructure, is estimated to weigh around 880 tons and is still radioactive, said public broadcaster NHK which first reported the news on Thursday. "The trial removal of nuclear fuel debris is the most important phase of the decommissioning process, so it is necessary to proceed with extremely safely," NHK quoted TEPCO's President Tomoaki Kobayakawa as saying on Thursday. Last August, TEPCO started to release treated radioactive water from the Fukushima plant, part of the decomissioning process, which resulted in a ban of Japanese seafood imports by China, Japan's top seafood buyer at a time. Russia has followed China to ban seafood imports from Japan over safety concerns that Tokyo has said are scientifically unjustified. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/japans-tepco-halts-preparations-remove-nuclear-debris-fukushima-plant-nhk-2024-08-22/

2024-08-22 06:08

U.S. stocks decline as markets eye Fed rate cuts U.S. dollar rebounds Treasury yields up Oil rebounds Aug 22 (Reuters) - Stocks fell and the dollar gained on Thursday as traders digested fresh economic data and awaited confirmation from the U.S. Federal Reserve on Friday that it will soon start to cut interest rates. All three major U.S. stock indexes lost ground, weighed by technology shares. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) , opens new tab fell 0.43%, to 40,712, the S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab lost 0.89%, to 5,570 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) , opens new tab lost 1.67%, to 17,619. Fed meeting minutes, released on Wednesday, said the "vast majority" of policymakers felt that, if data came in as expected, a September cut was likely to be appropriate - validating market expectations. On Thursday, fresh data showed the number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits rose in the latest week, consistent with a gradual cooling of the labor market. A slowdown in overall U.S. business activity this month added to the evidence that the economy is slowing and inflation is downshifting, which should allow Fed officials to focus more attention on jobs. Interest rates on home loans have already begun dropping, helping fuel a larger-than-expected rebound in existing home sales last month. Steve Englander, a markets strategist for Standard Chartered Bank, said the minutes showed the Fed was in sight of its inflation target and unemployment is rising, putting a 50 bps rate cut "on the table". "If they are not announcing that they have won on inflation, they are saying they expect to win relatively soon," Englander wrote in an email on Thursday. Global stocks (.MIWD00000PUS) , opens new tab after a phenomenal rebound from early-month lows plumbed after a bout of volatility, fell about 0.6%. European shares (.STOXX) , opens new tab gained 0.35%, helped by retail and healthcare stocks, after a subdued trading session in Asia. They added to initial gains after data for the euro zone showed surprising strength in business activity this month. Earlier, MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) , opens new tab gained 0.3%. Oil prices rallied after losses driven by investors worried about the global demand outlook. U.S. crude and Brent both gained about 1.4% on the day. Euro zone bond yields were higher after survey data showed the bloc's services sector fared better than expected in August, although a separate measure of wage pressures eased. DOLLAR REBOUND The dollar rebounded from a 13-month low against the euro before Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is due to speak on Friday. The greenback's recent weakness was seen as being overdone. The dollar index , gained about 0.4%. Lower U.S. rates would give central banks around the world room to move. On Thursday the Bank of Korea opened the door to a cut in October, while Bank Indonesia has lined up cuts in the fourth quarter. Still, rates and currency markets see a U.S. easing cycle as having further to run than other countries. Interest rate futures markets have priced in a 25-basis-point cut from the Fed next month, with a chance of a 50-bp cut. They project around 213 bps of U.S. easing by the end of 2025, to a rate of nearly 3.2%, against around 157 bps for Europe, a 2.09% rate. U.S. Treasury yields recovered from two-week lows hit the previous session, in line with gains in the European bond market. The yield on benchmark 10-year notes rose 8.6 basis points to 3.862%, from 3.776% late on Wednesday. The 2-year note yield rose 9.4 basis points to 4.0161%, from 3.922% late on Wednesday. The euro, which has made strong gains this month, fell about 0.4%. In Britain, the pound initially rose to a new 13-month high on the dollar and also strengthened against the euro after British business activity data showed steady growth momentum going into the second half of 2024. The pound was last little changed at $1.3086. Gold prices fell more than 1%, pressured by a rebound in the dollar and higher Treasury yields. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/global-markets-wrapup-1-2024-08-22/