Latest News
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BHP faces a weekend strike as wage negotiations drag on.
A union spokesperson revealed on Tuesday that the BHP 'Port Hedland' operations in Western Australia had 'not reached a wage agreement' with BHP. This set the stage for the two-day strike to be held at the world's largest iron ore export hub this weekend. In a'statement, a spokesperson from Combined Ports Unions stated that the'meeting was productive and, while substantive issues remain to be resolved, all parties have agreed on a 'path forward, which we will follow in the coming weeks. The union has confirmed that industrial action will continue on August 8 and 9 as indicated previously. BHP operations are not expected to be affected by the action. BHP announced in a statement that it will update its proposal at the next meeting, which is scheduled for August 18. The statement said: "With another scheduled meeting and a new proposal coming, we've?made significant advances with the?Commission's help and there's no need for unions to continue their planned industrial action. Reporting by Sneha Mukherjee and Rajasik Mukherjee from Bengaluru and Melanie Burton from Melbourne. Editing by Tom Hogue.
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Qantas, Australia's airline, will buy back shares worth $52 million from Jetstar Japan.
Qantas Airways announced on Tuesday that Jetstar Japan would purchase its 33.32% share in the budget airline?in a deal worth 8.2 'billion yen (US $52.11 million). This will allow it to become a Japanese company and be rebranded under a different name. In the agreement signed by Qantas and Japan Airlines, Jetstar Japan will purchase the minority share of Qantas while the Development Bank of Japan becomes a new shareholder. Japan Airlines and Tokyo Century will keep their respective stakes. Jetstar Japan, after Qantas divestment from the airline market in Japan, will rebrand and?drop its "Jetstar' brand to strengthen their?position. Qantas says the move will allow it to redirect its capital towards Qantas' and Jetstar’s operations in Australia as well as across its international network. Qantas expects to gain an estimated A$115.49million (80.49million) in items other than underlying earnings from the share buyback, primarily in 2027. Qantas has said that it will 'continue to recognize its share of Jetstar Japan’s profits or losses' until the transaction is complete, which should be by June 2027. Jetstar Japan is a joint venture between Qantas Airlines, Japan Airlines and Mitsubishi Corp. The airline began to operate as a low cost carrier at the end of 2012?from Narita Airport, near Tokyo. The?announcement on Tuesday follows a non binding?memorandum between the parties that was revealed in February 2026.
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Williams buys Momentum for $5.5 Billion, but misses quarter estimates
Williams Pipeline Company announced on Monday that it will buy Momentum Midstream. The company is betting on the growing demand for LNG export facilities and power generation along with industrial users in the U.S. Gulf Coast. The deal, which includes approximately $3.5 billion cash, assumed debt, and about $2 billion of?Williams shares, will increase Williams' presence in the Haynesville Shale Basin, a major supplier of natural gas to Gulf Coast LNG Terminals. U.S. Pipeline companies benefit from the booming oil and natural gas production in?the Permian basin and from rising natural gas demand due to record LNG exports. They also use more electricity for AI operations, cryptocurrency mining, and data centers. Williams stated that the deal would add over 4,000 miles (over 1 million acres) of pipelines and gather, process and transport assets, with a combined daily capacity of approximately 6 billion cubic feet. Williams announced the $1.5 billion Delta Access pipeline project, a 2,25 bcfd project scheduled for early 2029. The 750 mmcfd Shelby Trough connector is also expected to be operational in mid-2028. In extended trading, shares of the Tulsa-based Oklahoma company rose by?about 2 percent? Total costs and expenditures rose to $1.87billion for the quarter ending June 30th from $1.84billion a year ago. Interest expenses for the quarter ended June 30 increased by about 6%, to $371m from $350m a year ago. Interest rates that are higher for longer increases the borrowing costs of power companies. These companies need to borrow more money for their expenses, such as upgrading and maintaining the electric grid. According to LSEG data, the?company's adjusted profit for the second quarter of $0.50 per share fell short of analysts' average estimates, which were $0.51. This was due to higher interest and operation expenses. Reporting by Khusbu Jennifer in Bengaluru, editing by Shreya Biwas
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Williams to purchase Momentum Midstream at $5.5 billion
Williams announced on Monday that it would buy Momentum Midstream, for $5.5 billion. It also said that its profit outlook for the full year was to be raised. The company will expand its natural gas network within the Haynesville Shale in order to meet growing Gulf Coast demand for liquefied gas and electricity. The deal, according to the pipeline operator, is valued up to $5.5 Billion. This includes $3.5 Billion in cash and debt as well as approximately $2 Billion in Williams equity. Williams now has more than 4,000 miles of pipe in the Haynesville area, and 1 million acres dedicated to it. The Haynesville region can gather 6 billion cubic feet of gas per day. Three take-or pay pipelines are able move 4,05 billion cfd. The company stated that the assets would?strengthen its position in an important supply basin for Gulf Coast LNG export plants, power generating stations and industrial users. The company has 'lifted their 2026 adjusted EBITDA estimate to $8.3 to $8.5 billion, up from the previous midpoint of $8.2 billion. The company reported second-quarter EBITDA of $1.921 bn, up from $1.808 bn a year ago. The net income for the quarter rose to $827 million or $0.68 per share from $546 millions or $0.45 a year earlier. Reporting by Khusbu?Jena in Bengaluru, editing by Shreya Biwas
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Venezuelan oil exports dropped slightly in July but cargoes to the US increased
Venezuela's oil exports dropped to 1.16m barrels per day from 1.2m bpd in July as the country drained less inventories. However, exports to the U.S. rose to 786,000 bpd - the highest level since early 2019. Shipping data revealed on Monday. Exports of the OPEC nation have rebounded rapidly from lows never seen before, due to?U.S. The Trump administration imposed sanctions and a navy blockade to remove President Nicolas Maduro. Washington signed a key oil supply agreement with interim president Delcy Rodriquez in January. This allowed Venezuelan oil to be returned mainly through trading houses, but also directly via the U.S. and Europe. The export volume in July was a'second consecutive month' of decline, after reaching a high of 1,24 million bpd during May. This was due to fewer exports of fuel and crude oil from both onshore and float storage. The data showed that shipments to the U.S. increased from 284,000 bpd per day in January. Venezuelan oil exports fell from 277,000 to 178,000 barrels per day (bpd), while the cargoes bound for Europe dropped to 82,200 from 99,000 in the previous month. The exports of the main U.S. Chevron joint?venture partner for PDVSA, U.S. Chevron remained virtually unchanged at around 293,000 bpd. Meanwhile, trading?firms such as Vitol?Trafigura, and Novum Energy shipped about 604,000 bpd during July, down from 775,000 bpd recorded in June. The data and documents show that PDVSA resumed direct 'crude' deliveries last month to partner Repsol in order to settle a pending debt. It also plans to deliver a cargo of the same nature to Maurel & Prom later this month. According to data, Venezuela exported 324,000 metric tons of oil products and petrochemicals in July, up from 224,000 tons in June. It also imported 81,000 bpds of heavy naphtha, to dilute the heavy crude grades.
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Grenada cancels its production-sharing agreement with Russian firm
The government of Grenada canceled on Monday its 'production-sharing agreement with Global Petroleum Group. Dickon Mitchell, the island's premier, accused the company in a post on Facebook of failing to?meet the terms of contract? after holding the acreage? for 18 years. The prime minister stated that "Following an extensive review of the Global Petroleum Group’s failure to fulfill its obligations, the government of Grenada terminated their agreements with the company in a lawful manner." GPG announced in 2017 that it had made a discovery at Nutmeg 2 but never assessed the amount of gas discovered or whether commercial production would be viable. GPG drilled a well near the Trinidad and Venezuela border and it is located close to Shell's North Coast Marine Area. Trinidad and Tobago and Grenada signed a "memorandum" of understanding for Grenada's natural gas to be processed by Trinidad's Atlantic LNG and petrochemical facilities. GPG was not available to comment immediately. Curtis Williams reported from Houston, and Nathan Crooks edited the story.
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Trump says Iran faces 'decapitation' if it doesn't strike deal
Donald Trump, the U.S. President on Monday, said that if Iran did not agree to a pact ending the conflict between two nations it would face "decapitation". He added that Tehran had a last chance to reach a deal. "I believe we will'maybe' get something but I want them to have every chance to strike a deal before they are decapitated," he said. He repeated a threat to launch a major attack against?Iran. Trump had criticized Iran's "unbelievably devious" leadership earlier on Monday after Iran announced that no talks were underway. When asked by reporters about the'status of the negotiations', Trump replied that they were "going on right now," and added that both sides were negotiating at the request of Iran as well as Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and Qatar. He said that Iran had one last chance to sign a "good document". (Reporting and writing by Nandita BOSE; editing by Michelle Nichols).
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Boeing 737 MAX 7 certified by US FAA in win for planemaker
The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration approved the Boeing 737 MAX 7 on Monday, marking a major milestone for the American planemaker who has been waiting years to sell its smallest version. Certification of the jetliner was several years behind schedule. Boeing once said that it expected to have the plane approved by the end of 2022. Boeing announced last month that the engine anti-ice fix for its 737 MAX was 'in the final stages' of regulatory certification. FAA Deputy Director Chris Rocheleau said last month that the MAX 10 was "right behind" the MAX 7 in terms of approval. Cirium, a firm that provides aviation analysis, reports that Boeing has already built 30 MAX 7s as well as nine MAX 10s. These aircraft are waiting for delivery. At least 28% out of all outstanding MAX orders are MAX 10. Boeing's production systems and quality control have been scrutinized after an Alaska Airlines MAX 9 cabin panel blew out in mid-air on January 2024. FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said in July that the FAA and Boeing had improved their?work regarding the certification of new planes. Boeing had until 2022 to meet a Congress-imposed deadline to "win certification" of both variants?of the MAX, before the new safety standard for cockpit alerts would take effect. Congress agreed to waive this requirement. (Reporting and editing by Mark Porter, Will Dunham and David Shepardson)
Romanian far-right governmental prospect leads in surveys ahead of May vote
Romanian farright proRussian governmental candidate Calin Georgescu stayed voters' top choice ahead of a rerun of a governmental election in May, a viewpoint study showed late on Monday.
The study comes one month after the European Union state's. leading court annulled the governmental election in which Georgescu. was the frontrunner 2 days before the second round, mentioning. claims of Russian disturbance in his favour.
The cancellation came after state documents revealed. Georgescu, a critic of NATO who has actually praised Romania's 1930s. fascist leaders, had actually taken advantage of an unfair social media. campaign likely to have been managed by Russia, accusations. Moscow has actually rejected.
Carried out by pollster Avangarde and pointed out by online news. website hotnews.ro, the study showed Georgescu acquiring 38% of. the vote in the first round on May 4.
Crin Antonescu, the proposed single candidate of the. pro-European coalition government would get 25% of the vote,. followed by Bucharest Mayor Nicusor Dan, who stated he might run. as an independent, who would get 17%.
Elena Lasconi, the leader of opposition centrist Save. Romania Union, who had actually made it into the now-voided 2nd round. with Georgescu, would get 6%.
The survey surveyed 1,354 individuals in between Jan. 10-16 and has a. margin of mistake of 2.6%.
The re-run election will take place on May 4, with a. second round on May 18.
It stays unclear whether Georgescu, who opposes Romanian. assistance for Ukraine versus Russia's intrusion, will be enabled. to run for president again. In October of in 2015, the top. court banned another reactionary political leader from running in a relocation. critics said violated court powers.
Romania has the longest land border with Ukraine of any. European Union and NATO member state. It has actually helped export. millions of tons of Ukrainian grain through its Black Sea port. of Constanta, qualified Ukrainian fighter pilots and donated a. Patriot air defence battery to Kyiv.
(source: Reuters)