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Lilly gains from weight loss pill data to consider a faster approval in the US
Eli Lilly’s bid to get approval for a weight-loss experiment got a boost Wednesday thanks to new clinical trial results. The company also reaffirmed it is too early to assume that the drug will become part of the new U.S. rapid review program. Lilly's stock rose by about half a percent on Wednesday. Orforglipron is a pill that mimics the GLP-1 hormone, which suppresses appetite, and targets the blockbuster tirzepatide injection, sold under brand names Mounjaro or Zepbound. Lilly of Indianapolis has been trying hard to increase its lead over Danish competitor Novo Nordisk in the rapidly growing market for GLP-1 medications. Novo Nordisk was the first to market with GLP-1 drugs Ozempic and Wegovy, both for diabetes. This year it fired its CEO and saw its share price drop by 40% due to increased competition from Lilly. Lilly reported that in a comparison of Novo's Rybelsus, an older GLP-1 drug, orforglipron reduced average blood sugar levels and weight better than Novo Rybelsus. Daniel Barasa said, "The data reinforces our conviction that Eli Lilly will maintain its leadership in the GLP-1 Market." He said that orforglipron, in addition to being superior in terms of efficacy, also offers advantages in terms of dosing convenience. Lilly announced on Tuesday that the full data from another late-stage study of orforglipron showed it helped overweight people to lose about 12 percent of their bodyweight, with a similar safety profile as injected drugs. Evan Seigerman, BMO Capital Markets' analyst, said that the new data gave him "increased confidence" in orforglipron's competitive profile. Lilly, the most valuable drugmaker in the world by market value is expanding its U.S. manufacturing capacity and expanding it internationally to meet the soaring demand of GLP-1 treatments. It's also racing with Novo for an oral version for weight loss. Novo anticipates that the U.S. will make a regulatory decision about its oral obesity drug candidate in later this year. Wall Street analysts suggested that orforglipron might be a good candidate for the new priority voucher of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which shortens review times for therapies that are addressing major public health issues. However, executives at Lilly expressed caution. There is very little information about the national priority voucher available today. "I would not expect that we will submit a national priorit voucher because we don't fully understand what it includes," Patrik Jönsson, the president of Lilly International said in an interview Wednesday. Kenneth Custer is the president of Lilly Cardiometabolic Health. He reiterated the statement made by the company earlier that it was too early to tell how the program could apply to Lilly’s pipeline. Lilly plans to file for orforglipron approval as a treatment for diabetes next year. The drug will be approved for weight loss this year. Jonsson stated that Lilly will file applications for orforglipron approval with regulatory agencies in the United States of America, Britain, European Union (EU), Japan, and China within "weeks" of one another. He refused to disclose the exact location of manufacturing for pills outside the U.S. but confirmed that non-U.S. manufacture is planned. Analysts predict that the drug will generate sales of up to $10 billion in its peak year. Reporting by Maggie Fick and Sriparna Roy. Additional reporting by Deena B. Beasley, Los Angeles. Mark Potter, Sharon Singleton and David Gregorio edited the story.
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Urals diffs unchanged, loading plans revision awaited
The differential between Brent and Urals crudes dated on Wednesday remained unchanged, as traders awaited any changes to the grade's September export plans. This is because Russian ports and refineries are still repairing after recent drone attacks in Ukraine. Traders said that oil loadings at Baltic Primorsk continued, but they were delayed several days. Some volumes may be diverted to another port. Kazmunaygaz, the state energy company, announced on Wednesday that Kazakhstan will resume oil supply via the Baku - Tbilisi - Ceyhan pipeline by September 13. PLATTS WINDOW On Wednesday, there were no bids or offers made on Urals, Azeri BTC Blend or CPC blend in the Platts Window. Poland's Energy Minister Milosz Motyka announced on Wednesday that it will help member states of the European Union that still import Russian energy by 2026. RIA reported that Sergei Ryabkov, the Russian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, said on Wednesday, Moscow is ready to intensify discussions with the U.S. about energy cooperation, which includes the Sakhalin 1 Project. (Reporting and Editing by Kirsten Doovan)
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Poland calls on the EU to stop Russian oil imports before 2026, citing risks geopolitical
Poland's Energy Minister Milosz Motyka stated on Wednesday that Poland will help member states of the European Union who are still importing Russian energy by 2026. The Druzhba pipeline transports Russian oil to Hungary, Slovakia and other EU countries that have cut off ties with Russia following the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine 2022. After a phone call with U.S. president Donald Trump, EU executive director Ursula von der Leyen announced on Tuesday that the European Commission would propose a faster phase-out of Russian fossil fuel imports. The bloc had planned to stop buying Russian oil and gas on January 1, 2028. The Polish Minister said that this should have happened two years earlier. This is especially true in light of recent events, such as the Russian drone incursion last week on Polish territory. Motyka's letter to the EU energy ministers urged them to reach a consensus on a goal to eliminate all imports of Russian crude by 2026. This decision would demonstrate our commitment to becoming independent of oil supplies that pose political and strategic risk. Due to the opposition of Slovakia and Hungary who receive Russian pipeline supplies, and maintain close ties with Moscow, the EU has imposed sanctions against most Russian oil imports. Slovakia and Hungary have defended the purchases they made, stating that alternatives were more expensive, such as transit fees when oil is transported via Croatia. Denisa Sakova, the Slovak Economy minister, said that she discussed with U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright on Wednesday her call to stop Russian supplies and explained how Slovakia needs conditions for diversification so as not to cut off its industry or economy. "We diversify gas supplies, and we want to diversify further in the future." We have to rely upon the transmission capacity of other routes", she added, adding that the situation with oil was similar and left Slovakia at the mercy of other countries. Wojciech Wrochna, deputy to Motyka and Poland's chief energy security official, said that U.S. gas liquefied via Poland can help eliminate Russian gas in Europe. Wrochna, a reporter, said: "I had an excellent meeting yesterday with U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright. U.S. Gas flowing south via Poland can help eliminate Russian gas." Orlen, a Polish company, began shipping U.S. Gas to Ukraine in the spring of this year to replenish Kyiv's stores before winter. Slovakia is still reliant upon Russian imports, and has not taken advantage of a gas connection with Poland to secure alternate supplies. (Reporting by Marek Strzelecki. Writing by Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk. Mark Potter, Ed Osmond and Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk edited the book.
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Italy's privacy watchdog stops facial recognition at Milan Airport
Documents revealed on Wednesday that the privacy watchdog in Italy has temporarily suspended facial recognition technology from being used at Milan's Linate Airport pending the completion of a lengthy data protection investigation. Concerns about possible misuse of passenger data have been raised by airport facial recognition screenings. The Privacy Watchdog in Italy (known as Garante) justified the suspension of the facial recognition system by stating that there were not enough safeguards in place at Linate in order to prevent the use of the technology on passengers who hadn't signed up for it. The decision, dated 11 September, was made public by the government on Wednesday. The website of Milan airports operator SEA claims that its "Faceboarding technology" is "safe, easy and fast". It allows passengers to pass through security checks without having to show their passports or ID cards. SEA responded to Garante’s action on Wednesday by stating that it complies to current regulations, and is working with the watchdog in order to clarify every aspect of data processing. The company said that it would like to restart the facial recognition service as soon as it can, but only for adult passengers. It added that it improves airport security, and speeds up procedures.
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UN Aviation Assembly: Global emissions deal is a top priority for airlines
The head of the trade association IATA told journalists on Wednesday that a global emissions agreement is crucial for airlines before a U.N. Aviation gathering next week. Despite skepticism about the industry's ability to meet its own environmental goals, the chief of the trade body IATA said. In 2016, the U.N. CORSIA agreement was signed to limit rising emissions on international flights by requiring airlines to purchase carbon credits and using green jet fuel. IATA, however, has questioned the U.N.'s goal to achieve a 5% decrease in industry emissions by 2020 due to a lack of credits and fuel made from used cooking oil. Even though the Trump administration does not prioritize environmental protection, reducing plane pollution remains a goal. Willie Walsh, director general of the International Air Transport Association, said: "I believe that changing geopolitical environments may have a short-term effect on how people perceive these issues." The vast majority of industry players have consistently told us that they understand that the industry has a role to play. The triennial meeting of the International Civil Aviation Organization, which takes place from September 23 to October 3 this year, will see regulators from 193 nations discuss topics such as the environment, the raising of the retirement age for pilots from 65 to 67, and safety concerns regarding radio frequency interference from the Global Navigation Satellite System in certain parts Europe. The countries will decide if Russia receives enough votes to be re-elected to the 36-member ICAO council in 2022 after it failed to gain enough support following its invasion of Ukraine. Walsh said that the Trump administration was "quite correct" in dropping a proposal by former president Joe Biden, which would have required airlines to compensate passengers for flight disruptions caused by them. He said that the recent Trump Administration order to terminate a joint venture between Delta Air Lines, Aeromexico, and United States concerns about Mexico's violation of bilateral air agreements was "a natural progression of geopolitical matters." The Department of Transportation claims that Mexico has violated an air agreement bilaterally by cutting slots for passenger flights, and forcing all cargo carriers to relocate their operations. Walsh warned that joint ventures between airlines, which allow them to coordinate pricing, scheduling and capacity decisions, can improve service for consumers. He said, "I believe we have to separate the consumer impact from the political impact" of these joint ventures.
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Oil prices drop on US demand fears ahead of Fed rate decision
The oil prices fell on Wednesday as data revealed an increase in U.S. Diesel stockpiles. This stoked concerns about demand while investors awaited the U.S. Federal Reserve decision on interest rate. Brent crude futures fell 44 cents or 0.64% to $68.03 per barrel at 11:29 am EDT (1529 GMT), while U.S. West Texas intermediate crude futures also dropped 44 cents or 0.68% to $64.08. The Energy Information Administration reported on Wednesday that U.S. crude stocks fell dramatically last week due to a spike in exports and sharp drops in imports. Analysts said that a surge in distillate stocks fueled demand concerns, and held prices down. The markets seem to be responding on diesel which is the underbelly of this entire complex, said Phil Flynn a senior analyst with Price Futures Group. Investors also awaited the outcome of U.S. Federal Reserve’s meeting on September 16-17. Later on Wednesday, the Fed is expected cut interest rates by quarter of a percent. After Ukraine intensified its attacks on Russia's infrastructure, the risks to Russian oil supply were also brought into focus. Three industry sources said that Transneft, the Russian oil pipeline monopoly, warned producers on Tuesday that they may have to reduce production after Ukraine's drone strikes on key export ports and refineries. Kazmunaygaz, the state energy company, announced on Wednesday that Kazakhstan has resumed oil supply through the Baku-Tbilisi Ceyhan pipeline as of September 13. Last month, supplies were suspended due to contamination concerns. Reporting by Nicole Jao, Seher Dareen, and Enes Tugagur in London; Jeslyne Lerh and David Goodman in Singapore.
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Embraer confirms that Brazil's plants are operating normally despite metalworkers' strike.
Planemaker Embraer announced on Wednesday that their plants in Brazil are operating normally, after a union representing the metalworkers called a strike indefinitely to demand higher salaries. The union of metalworkers from Sao Jose dos Campos where Embraer headquarters and the main production lines for commercial aircraft are located said they had gone on strike earlier due to "the refusal to apply a true increase in wages" by the firm. This move is made at a time that the company wants to increase production in order to reach its annual targets, since the second half of the year is typically busier for aircraft manufacturers. Embraer delivered 26 commercial jets before the end of June, compared to a target for the full year of 77-85. The company played down the effects of the move by saying that its operations in Brazil weren't disrupted. In Sao Paulo, shares of the planemaker fell 1.3% while the benchmark Bovespa index rose 0.8%. Fiesp, the entity that represents the aerospace industry, according to the Sindmetal Union, proposed during negotiations an adjustment in salary based only on inflation. They also suggested a reduction of job stability for those who are injured or have occupational diseases. The union stated in a press release that this proposal was rejected and a strike was approved. It added that the offer for an increase of 5.05% was turned down, while the workers wanted an 11% hike. Embraer released a statement in which it expressed surprise at the union's actions, as negotiations were ongoing. The union had not yet made its latest proposal, it stated. Fiesp offered a salary adjustment of 5.5% on Tuesday. The third largest planemaker in the world, with shares that reached an all-time high Earlier this year, the tailwinds have been on the back of robust demand For its jets. The factory has broken records for profitability, revenue, and order backlog. Herbert Claros, union director, said that it was time to share the results with workers on the production lines. Reporting by Gabriel Araujo, Alberto Alerigi Jr., Isabel Teles and Mark Potter; Editing by Aida Pelaez-Fernandez and Ed Osmond.
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Italian island Pantelleria plans to rename its airport in honour of Giorgio Armani
Pantelleria, a small island in Italy, plans to rename their airport after the late fashion designer Giorgio Armani. Armani often spent his holidays at his estate on this island. Armani, who passed away earlier this month at the age of 91, owned a large property on the Mediterranean island that lies between Tunisia and Sicily. He would retreat there with his family and friends during August when he was taking a rare vacation from work. Armani's home was a collection of seven "dammusi", rural traditional buildings made from white lava stones with a dome roof and surrounded by over 150 palm trees. Italian civil aviation group ENAC announced on Wednesday it supported the proposal for a name change, which was made by the local council. Matteo Salvini, the Transport Minister also endorsed the plan. ENAC President Pierluigi Di Palma stated that the renaming was in line with the company's plans to improve and promote tourism on the island, which is accessible via flights to Rome or Sicilian Airports such as Palermo. (Reporting and editing by Alvise Armellini and Richard Chang; Reporting by Keith Weir)
Canada's Trans Mountain bets on last-minute oil carriers on high-cost pipeline
Canada's Trans Mountain oil pipeline will rely heavily on lastminute carriers to make a profit, the corporation's financial projections show, clouding Ottawa's. efforts to sell the pipeline now that its C$ 34.2 billion ($ 25.04. billion) expansion is ended up after years of delays. Documents filed by Trans Mountain as part of a regulatory. disagreement over its tolls reveal it could use up to eight years to. generate income unless the pipeline fills countless barrels a day. of uncommitted shipping space. Trans Mountain said it expects the pipeline will be extremely. used as Canadian production grows, however some traders and. experts alert that will be difficult provided greater tolls and. logistical restraints at the Port of Vancouver, where the. pipeline ends. The 890,000 barrelperday (bpd) pipeline started service in May. and reserves 20% of its space for uncommitted, or spot,. consumers, who pay higher tolls than shippers with longterm. contracts. Documents submitted with Canadian regulators in April show different. usage situations for that 178,000 bpd of spot capability. In a situation with absolutely no area shipments, the pipeline would not. produce favorable equity return profits after devaluation,. interest and taxes are deducted till 2031. If, as Trans. Mountain projections, the pipe runs 96% complete from next year,. equity return turns positive in 2026. This month, a Trans Mountain executive told a little. bit of area capability is being used. Mark Maki, Trans Mountain's. chief monetary officer, stated area capability was necessary to the. company's overall economics and he expected volumes to increase late. in the year.
However spot-shipping demand is difficult to anticipate since it. counts on the rising and falling cost of Canadian oil versus other. heavy crudes in the U.S. and Asian markets, stated Morningstar. expert Stephen Ellis.
He described Trans Mountain's long-term projection for 96%. usage as aggressive.
One of their biggest Achilles' heels is the reliance on. area, said Robyn Allan, an independent financial expert who has. studied Trans Mountain's financial resources. Whatever is based upon a. very optimistic set of projections for the next 20 years.. The rival Enbridge Mainline, which takes crude to the. U.S. Midwest and eastern Canada, provides 100% spot capacity but. tolls are approximately half Trans Mountain's rate. TC Energy's. Keystone pipeline to the U.S. reserves around 10% area. capacity.
One Canadian unrefined trader stated area demand for Trans. Mountain would depend upon how full rival pipelines are. Canada Development Investment Corporation (CDEV), the federal government. corporation that owns Trans Mountain, noted in May 2023 that. greater tolls might prevent customers.
Projection tolls for pipeline transport are greater due. to (the expansion's) expense escalation and have decreased. competitive advantages, CDEV said. Costs rose throughout building to almost 5 times the 2017. budget and stimulated a backlash from devoted carriers including. Suncor Energy and Canadian Natural Resources,. who deal with higher-than-expected tolls as an outcome. One mountainous segment soared from an estimated C$ 377 million. in 2017 to C$ 4.6 billion in 2023 after striking technical. difficulties. Other sections travelling through Metro Vancouver. leapt from C$ 310 million to C$ 1.7 billion over the exact same. duration.
NO RUSH TO SELL. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government bought Trans Mountain. in 2018 to guarantee the expansion, which has nearly tripled. shipping capability from Alberta to the Pacific coast, continued. However Ottawa never ever intended to be the long-term owner and. Canada's Financing Ministry stated it is planning a sales procedure. Spokeswoman Katherine Cuplinskas said the expansion was an. crucial economic investment, creating revenues and well-paying. tasks. Maki urged Ottawa not to rush the sale provided unpredictabilities over. spot need, the tolling disagreement, and Ottawa's plan to offer a. stake to Indigenous neighborhoods. If you're attempting to offer something, and you have unpredictabilities,. it's going to affect the worth somebody's going to spend for it,. Maki stated. Trans Mountain has actually borrowed C$ 17 billion from the Canadian. federal government and has a C$ 19-billion syndicated loan center from. commercial banks. The April monetary projections reveal it could. pay more than C$ 1 billion in interest every year till 2032,. although that will depend upon rates of interest and the. corporation's future capital structure.
Morningstar's Ellis said even Trans Mountain's best-case. projections reveal the pipeline will only produce around 8%. return on equity by 2034, which he described as the minimum. acceptable level for a quality Canadian midstream asset. Trans Mountain's debt-to-EBITDA ratio, a measure of how well a. business can cover its financial obligations, starts at 11.6 in 2025 and stays. above the common level of 3.5 for a midstream company until 2040,. he said.
If this was not a government-owned entity the market would. have a truly tough time supporting it. Those leverage ratios are. like scrap, Ellis said. Trans Mountain said interest payments will likely be decreased if. the corporation is recapitalized, and it is working with the. federal government on optimizing its funding strategy. Numerous experts state Ottawa will need to take a discount rate on its. financial investment to make Trans Mountain appealing. Pembina Pipeline Corp, the only listed company to. openly reveal interest in buying Trans Mountain, recently. said there was still too much uncertainty. Native groups are. also waiting for more clearness.
Till the tolls are fixed, it will undoubtedly be challenging. to move on with the sale of the pipeline, stated Stephen. Mason, CEO of Project Reconciliation, an Indigenous-led group. that wishes to bid for a stake in Trans Mountain.
(source: Reuters)