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LME's new Hong Kong storage facilities are attracting a lot of interest in metal deliveries, according to the CEO.
According to the CEO of the London Metal Exchange, there is a strong demand for metal delivery before the new warehouses open in Hong Kong next month. This is partly due the tightness of the copper market. The LME approved the construction of three new warehouses in Hong Kong last month, bringing the total up to seven. This is part of its efforts to increase its presence in this city, which is the gateway for the world's largest metals consumer - China. Hong Kong's high costs have led to questions regarding the viability and cost of new storage facilities in comparison with other Asian sites like Korea or Malaysia. Matthew Chamberlain, Chief Executive Officer of LME, said on the sidelines at the International Derivatives Expo: "They can place metal in the warehouses but it will not show on our numbers because the location won't be live until July 15th." My understanding is that there is a great deal of interest to get some metal into there before then." Since Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing acquired the LME, in 2012, obtaining approval for warehouses to store LME traded metal in China has been a major strategic objective. Chamberlain stated that the exchange, which is the oldest and largest industrial metals market in the world, would like to open warehouses on the mainland of China but this would be subject to approval from the Chinese authorities. But ultimately, it is up to the mainland policymakers whether they want LME storage warehouses. He said that Hong Kong had a wide range of locations for different types of clients, including several close to the northern border of Shenzhen, and the mainland. Chamberlain stated that "they'll be in a position to serve Chinese metal owners, who want, for example to put copper into an warehouse, truck it just across the border to the new territories and put it into a storage facility," This is a very important topic right now, with the tightening of copper. This will enable people to attack those backwardations with greater effectiveness. The fall in stocks at LME-registered storage facilities has created a premium or backwardation for contracts with shorter maturities. Copper Stocks In LME registered storage warehouses, the 107.350 tons has dropped by 60% since March. This is their lowest level since May 2024. Eric Onstad is responsible for the reporting. (Editing by Jane Merriman.)
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Gaz-System, a Polish company, will receive a loan of $593 million for the country's floating LNG Terminal
BGK announced on Wednesday that Polish pipeline operator Gaz-System would receive a 2.2-billion-zloty loan ($593-million) from the state bank to finance the onshore portion of Poland's floating storage and regasification units near Gdansk. Marta Pustula, BGK's Deputy President, told reporters that the loan will be financed by funds from the European Union and will go towards the construction of a pipeline of 250 km (155 miles) to connect the terminal with the Polish gas network. Pustula said that the loan would be paid back over a period of 25 years. The floating storage unit and regasification will be located in the Bay of Gdansk. It is expected to be finished in 2028. Gaz-System has completed its expansion of its LNG Terminal in Swinoujscie. This increased its capacity to 8,3 billion cubic meters, which is nearly 50% of the domestic gas demand. ($1 = 3.7112 zlotys) (Reporting by Marek Strzelecki; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
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Iran's Khamenei refuses Trump's unconditional surrender
Ayatollah Ayatollah Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader, said Wednesday in a broadcast read by a TV presenter that his country would not accept the call of U.S. president Donald Trump for unconditional surrender. Khamenei's first remarks after Friday, when Israel bombarded Iran, he said that the Islamic Republic could not be forced to accept war or peace. He said that "intelligent people" who are familiar with Iran, its nation and history would never use threatening words to address this nation because it will not submit. "The Americans must know that any U.S. Military intervention will be accompanied with irreparable damages." On Wednesday, thousands of people fled Tehran after Israeli warplanes bombarded the city over night. A source claimed that Trump is considering joining Israel to attack Iranian nuclear sites. Israel's military reported that 50 Israeli jets struck around 20 Tehran targets overnight, including sites manufacturing raw materials, components, and systems for making missiles. Sources familiar with the internal discussions revealed that Trump and his team had considered a range of options. This included joining Israel to strike Iranian nuclear sites. Ali Bahreini said that Iran told Washington it would take retaliation against the United States if they were to directly participate. He stated that he saw the U.S. already as "complicit" in what Israel was doing.
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Airbus optimistic, but could have to wait on AirAsia's deal
The biggest airshow in the world was set to end with a quiet finale on Wednesday after the owner and operator of AirAsia - a budget airline that is often the source of drama at the last minute - played down the prospects of plane deals expected with Airbus or Embraer. The delegates were prepared for a low key Paris Airshow, after Boeing made huge deals on President Donald Trump's trip to the Middle East. The U.S. firm then reduced its presence at the Paris Airshow to focus on the investigation into the deadly crash of a Boeing 787 by Air India last week. Airbus, the European competitor to Boeing, has steadily increased its business and showed Wednesday that it is confident about the future by announcing the possibility of higher dividends. Airbus was expected to seal a deal with AirAsia on its A321XLR single aisle jet and the smaller A220 in order to add a final shine to the show. Tony Fernandes is the CEO of AirAsia's owner Capital A Group. He said that they were in discussions to purchase 50 to 70 A321XLRs and 100 A220s (or competing E2 regional aircraft) from Brazil's Embraer. He played down the prospects of a deal at Paris, saying that the first priority should be to complete the restructuring of the group. "I don’t think an order will be placed at this airshow." We are still working with Airbus and (other) manufacturers .... In an interview, he stated that he thought they would be looking to do something in the near future. Airbus made an aggressive offer, according to two industry sources. The aim was to increase A220 sales and secure a customer as a launch client for the new 160-seater version or to kickstart a bigger version that is still in development. They added that, barring any other twists in the negotiations which could not be excluded, the talks were stalled. Other deals were still being done. Embraer announced on Wednesday that SkyWest Airlines had placed an order with it for 60 E175 regional jets. SkyWest also acquired the purchase rights to another 50 aircraft. Airbus announced an order for two A350 freighters from logistics company MNG Airlines, and EgyptAir was unveiled as the previously-undisclosed buyer of six A350-900 long-haul jets. Since the end of travel restrictions during the pandemic era, planemakers have struggled to meet demand for newer, more fuel efficient aircraft. Supply chain problems, particularly with engines, has delayed some deliveries. Airbus announced on Wednesday that it has experienced 40% less disruptions due to delayed components in its production facilities since the beginning of 2025. In the defence sector, U.S. drone manufacturer Anduril and Germany’s Rheinmetall announced they would work together to build aerial drones to be sold in European markets. This is a sign that Europe is leveraging U.S. tech to enhance its military capabilities. Reporting by Tim Hepher and Paul Sandle. Giulia Segrit, Joe Brock, Lisa Barrington. Mark Potter edited the story.
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Spain's grid operator disputes blackout report miscalculation
Redeia, the Spanish grid operator, disputed findings in a report by the government that claimed that the operator's failure to calculate the right mix of energy led to the massive blackout that occurred on April 28, both in Spain and Portugal. Concha Sanchez, the Redeia operations director, also said at a press briefing held on Wednesday that the company's own investigation revealed anomalies with the disconnections of power plants from the system on April 28, despite the fact that the voltage was within the legal limits. It also found an anomalous increase in demand for transport services. She said that in the very first seconds after the blackout a combined cycle plant, which was supposed to stabilize the system, disconnected itself when it shouldn't have. She said, "Based on our calculations, Redeia had enough voltage control capability planned." "There would have been no blackout if conventional power plants had done their job of controlling voltage." The Government's A report published on Tuesday stated that Redeia’s mistake was one of several factors that hindered the grid’s ability to deal with the surge in voltage which led to the outage. Sanchez of Redeia said that the system was "absolutely in normal condition" just before the blackout at 12 noon. Beatriz Corredor said that Redeia would release a full report on its own about the reasons for the outage.
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Source: Nigeria exports first gasoline cargo from Dangote refinery to Asia
Sources familiar with the situation say that a 90,000-metric-ton cargo of petrol from Nigeria's Dangote Refinery will be exported for the first and headed for Asia. Since last year when the refinery began exporting gasoline at a rate of 650,000 barrels per day, the cargoes remained in west Africa. Sources close to the deal have confirmed that Mercuria will load the cargo by June 22. Mercuria's spokesperson did not respond immediately to a comment request. "We only sell to those willing to pay the most money for our products." A spokesperson for the Dangote Refinery stated that the buyer has the right to send the product to the destination of his choice. Analysts believe that this new route is a sign of the company's willingness to provide motor fuel worldwide. Clementine Wallop, director of political risk consultancy Horizon Engage, said: "This development shows Dangote's growing importance as a global gasoline supplier and the company’s confidence that its production is stable enough to meet Nigeria’s domestic needs." Reporting by Julia Payne, Isaac Anyaogu, and Robert Harvey, in Lagos; editing by Barbara Lewis, David Evans, and David Evans.
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Ukraine farm export revenues rise despite smaller volumes, traders say
The UGA, the traders' union, said that Ukraine had slightly increased its agricultural export revenues in the first eleven months of the July-June 2024/25 season, despite a decrease in shipment volumes, due mainly to wheat, soybeans and rapeseed. Ukraine is the world's largest producer and exporter for grains, oilseeds, and vegetable oils. However its exports and harvests have declined since 2022 when Russia invaded. Ukraine's agricultural exports make up more than half the total country's exports. UGA stated in a press release that the total revenues from agricultural exports were $16,95 billion for 2024/25 compared to $16.56 billion during the same period of 2023/24. Export revenues of wheat increased from $2.87 to $2.97, while corn exports fell from $4.23 to $4.16, and sales of sunflower oil decreased from $4.77 to $4.65. According to data from the Ministry of Agriculture, Ukraine has reduced its corn exports this season by 21.5 million metric tonnes compared to 28.4 millions tons in 2023/24. Exports of wheat also dropped to 15.5 millions tons from 18.1 million. According to Vitaliy Kval, the Minister of Agriculture in Ukraine, Ukraine's harvest in 2025 could be reduced to 51 millions tons due to adverse weather conditions. Taras Vysotskiy told his first deputy that the grain exports in 2025/26 could range between 35 and forty million tons. As of June 18, Ukraine exported 39.9 millions tons of grain, two weeks before the season's end. Ed Osmond, Ed Polityuk and Pavel Polityuk report.
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Environmental violations found in Morowali Nickel Hub
The environment ministry has ordered a nickel processing hub run by PT Indonesia Morowali Industrial Park to correct a number of "serious environmental violations", including the construction on land that was not approved. The ministry released a statement saying that PT IMIP had built plants and carried out other activities on land measuring 1,800 hectares (4,547.9 acres), which was not included in IMIP’s original environmental assessment report. According to the ministry, air pollution levels in the region also exceeded permitted parameters. Hanif Faisol Nurofiq, Environment Minister, said: "PT IMIP should stop any activities that do not fall under its environmental approval." The company did respond immediately to a comment request. The company stated on its website that it was committed to sustainable and environmentally-friendly operations. IMIP, the largest nickel-processing hub in Indonesia's resource-rich country, covers 4,000 hectares. It has more than 50 tenants who are mainly manufacturers of nickel products used for stainless steel, EV batteries and other materials. IMIP has a total industrial area of 2,000 hectares, according to the minister. IMIP is owned by the giant Chinese steelmaker Tsingshan Holding Group. The ministry announced that it would impose fines against the company. Police will also conduct an investigation on the management of toxic and hazardous tailings. "We will order a full environmental audit of the IMIP industrial zone." We will take criminal and civil action if we find hazardous waste tailings," said Rizal Irawan. (Reporting and editing by John Mair, David Stanway, and Fransiska Nanangoy)
UAE claims navigational error led to oil tanker collision in Strait of Hormuz
According to the UAE's Energy Ministry, a collision between oil tankers near Strait of Hormuz may have been caused by an error in navigation by one of those vessels.
In a Wednesday statement, the ministry cited preliminary data and denied any connection with an increase in electronic interference during conflict between Iran and Israel.
Two oil tankers, Front Eagle and Adalynn, collided on Tuesday and caught fire 24 nautical miles from the coast of UAE in the Sea of Oman. There were no injuries reported to the crew, and there was no spillage.
Interference has caused navigation systems to be disrupted near the Strait of Hormuz. This waterway, which connects Iran and Oman, is responsible for about a fifth of all oil transported by sea.
Tehran has not yet commented on the collision that occurred Tuesday or the reports of interference. Reporting by Ahmed Elimam, Maha El Dahan and Barbara Lewis. Editing by Tomasz and Barbara Lewis.
(source: Reuters)