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Interfax reports that Russian Railways will cut managerial jobs due to the slowdown in the economy.
Interfax reported Friday that Russian Railways, the state-owned railway company in Russia, plans to cut management positions as it faces lower freight volumes, and a general slowdown of the Russian economy. The Russian industrial giants - from automakers and railways to producers of metals, coal and cement - are suffering due to a weakening demand at home, low cost Chinese imports, rising interest rates, and shrinking markets. Sources say that Russian Railways (which employs 700,000 people) has already asked its central office staff to take 3 unpaid days per month. Other Russian companies such as carmaker Avtovaz and cement maker Cemros, have reduced their working hours and terminated staff. Interfax reported that the company stated "the optimization of its management structure" aimed to improve efficiency in a context of declining work volume and a challenging economic situation. Russian Railways has not responded to a comment request. Interfax also stated that the first step will be to freeze hiring and eliminate existing vacancies.
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IndiGo, India's largest airline, doubles its widebody order with 30 Airbus A350 Conversions
IndiGo, India's budget carrier, announced on Friday that it had signed a contract confirming the conversion 30 of its 70 A350-900 purchase rights into firm orders. This doubled its widebody order list to 60 from 30, and increased its total number of A350-900s ordered. This move is part of India's strategy to increase its long-haul services and capture more international traffic away from Gulf carriers like Emirates. According to government and industry data, India's international air traffic is expected to grow from 64 million passengers in 2019 to 160 million passengers by 2030. However, the majority of this traffic will still be carried out by foreign airlines. IndiGo has 60% of the Indian domestic market. Double its capacity by the end decade and expand the international network. In April 2024, the Gurugram-based carrier placed its initial order for 30 Airbus A350 900 aircraft. This was their first widebody purchase. IndiGo also retained the right to purchase an additional 70 Airbus A350 aircraft in case of future requirements. IndiGo will still have the right to purchase 40 additional wide-body aircraft after conversion. (Reporting and editing by Tasim Zaid in Bengaluru, Ananta Aggarwal)
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Sources say that U.S. Navy warship holds survivors of Caribbean vessel strike, after sources.
Three sources with knowledge of the situation said that the U.S. Military is currently holding two survivors on a Navy Ship after they rescued them from a suspected drugs vessel in the Caribbean which was hit by an American strike, which killed two other people. The revelation, which was not previously reported, could mean that the survivors of the strike on Thursday are the first prisoners in the conflict declared by Donald Trump to combat a "narco-terrorist" threat, which he claims is coming from Venezuela. The Pentagon didn't immediately respond to an inquiry for comment. One source said that the vessel which was struck on Thursday had moved under the water. It could have been a semisubmersible. This is a vessel similar to a submarine used by drug traffickers in order to avoid detection. Before Thursday's operation U.S. military attacks against suspected drug ships off Venezuela had left no survivors known and videos shown by the Trump administration show vessels being destroyed. Legal experts and Democratic legislators who are concerned about whether the strikes were in accordance with the laws of war have raised alarms. The attacks come as Trump escalates his standoff with Venezuela's government. This includes a U.S. buildup of military forces in the Caribbean, including F-35 fighter planes, nuclear submarines and guided missile destroyers. Trump revealed on Wednesday that he had given the Central Intelligence Agency permission to conduct covert missions inside Venezuela. This has added to the speculation in Caracas about the United States' attempt to overthrow Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. (Reporting and editing by Alistair Bell, Idrees Ali, Phil Stewart)
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Portugal's CP purchases 114 electric railcars for $871 Million
Portugal's state owned railway operator CP announced on Friday that it would purchase 117 electric self-propelled railcars for EUR746m ($871m) from the French/Portuguese consortium Alstom/DST, in its largest ever acquisition. In a separate press release, Infrastructure Minister Miguel Pinto Luz stated that the government "bets on the railroad" and that the purchase will address the long-standing delays of modernising CP’s fleet and improve service quality for the growing number of passengers. CP stated that the deal included 118 million euro in co-financing by European funds and 212.5 millions euros from the Portuguese Environment Fund. The first units are scheduled to be delivered in 2029. This will allow "the renewal and upgrade of a part of CP’s fleet as well as the strengthening of its supply capability," the company added. The contract includes also the construction of an rolling stock maintenance shop in the north Portuguese city of Matosinhos.
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Asian spot prices slightly rise on cold weather, despite large inventories
The Asian spot price of liquefied gas (LNG), despite high storage inventories, rose this week due to colder weather forecasts for north-east China. Average LNG price for delivery to North-east Asia in December Industry sources estimate that the price per million British Thermal Units (mmBtu) was $11.10, up from $11.00/mmBtu in the previous week. Klaas Dozeman is a market analyst for Brainchild Commodity Intelligence. He said that Asian consumers were showing some interest in buying commodities due to the arrival of the first heating demand and confirmation of La Nina. La Nina - the cooling of temperatures over the Pacific Ocean in the middle and east - could lead to an increase in winter heating needs, but it is unlikely to last long or be very strong, according the expert. Dozeman stated that while Chinese trade data showed modest gains in exports and imports, the underlying economic weakening persists due to falling producer prices. The markets are braced ahead of an upcoming deadline of Nov. 10, for U.S. China trade. Martin Senior, Argus' head of LNG pricing, says that there have been a few spot tenders for spot cargoes, from price-sensitive buyers. However, South Korean demand is particularly weak, as high inventories due to the strong coal burning in recent months has led to import levels of 8-year lows for the first half October. Gas prices in Europe fell on Friday, as wind farms' strong output curbed the demand for gas and supplies were stable. Alex Froley is a senior LNG analyst with data intelligence firm ICIS. He said that spot gas prices have remained relatively stable over the past week. The market, in general, has been on a slight downtrend on the long-term. The weather is a major risk factor for Europe. According to Florence Schmit of Rabobank, the market appears to be repositioning ahead of winter. With EU storage levels below the average for five years and a greater potential to increase gas demand from Ukraine, some upside risks are reintroduced. Seb Kennedy, an independent gas analyst, explained that in anticipation of higher winter prices hedge funds reversed their recent sales in TTF Futures by opening up new long positions. Commercial players, on the other hand, opened new short bets against TTF Futures to lock in future profits from physical inventory. S&P Global Commodity Insights estimated its daily North West Europe LNG Marker price benchmark (NWM) for cargoes to be delivered in December ex-ship on October 16. This represents a $0.53/mmBtu reduction from the December futures prices at the TTF Hub. Spark Commodities rated the October price as $10.440/mmBtu. Argus rated the price at $10.550/mmBtu. Qasim Afghanistan, analyst at Spark Commodities, says that the U.S. arbitrage for north-east Asia through Cape of Good Hope currently points to Europe. The Atlantic region saw the biggest week-on-week rise in LNG rates since June, at $29 500/day. Pacific rates dropped for the eighth consecutive week to $23,500/day. (Reporting and editing by Alexander Smith; Marwa Rashad)
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Sources say that high prices and poor quality are causing Ivory Coast cocoa sales to be slowed down.
Cocoa sales in Ivory Coast halted at the beginning of the 2025/26 harvest season due to a record farmgate prices and low-quality stocks, according to industry sources. On October 1, the top cocoa producer in the world raised its guaranteed price by state to 5,05 CFA francs per kilogram. This was a level that traders said was unusually high. Sources said that the increase in exporters' costs has led them to stop providing funds to buyers for purchases. A Lebanese customer based at the port of San Pedro in the southwest said, "This year no funding was provided as it usually is in August and Septembre." He said that banks also were reluctant to offer financing due to the high risk in the event of an emergency. A LIQUIDITY CRUSH HITS EXPORTERS The commercial director of a firm that exports cocoa in Abidjan told AFP that the cost of a truck transporting 35-40 tons of cocoa is between 98 and 112 CFA francs. This is about $175,156 to $200,179. He said that "nobody has the money at the moment to pay for five to ten trailer trucks per day, especially if the quality of the bean is poor," adding that the company had reduced operations in order to improve quality and preserve liquidity. According to buyers and cooperatives, around 50,000 tonnes of cocoa beans had been stored in anticipation of a price increase. Grinders reject the beans because of their small size, low content of fat and high acidity. A Lebanese independent buyer in San Pedro said, "We did not receive any pre-financing for this year. I wanted to sell the cocoa that I had in my warehouse to get cash to buy new cocoa. But no one was interested." "I have 3,000 tonnes available and until I sell them, I cannot buy anything," said the man. A second Lebanese purchaser based in San Pedro expressed confidence that they would find a way to lower the price or mix old beans with new ones. He has sold 700 tons of cocoa since the beginning of the season, and currently owns 900 tons. Exporters and pod counters said that this year's main crop output is expected to be similar with the season of 2024/2025. They also added that the first harvest will be lower because of unpredictable and mixed weather conditions.
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Bolt CEO: EU must focus more on self-driving cars to keep up with competitors
Bolt, a ride-hailing company and food delivery service in Estonia, said that Europe must pay as much attention as it does to the development of self-driving vehicles to be able to participate in the technology of the future. Europe's automakers are struggling to keep pace with the technology developed by other countries, notably China and the United States. Markus Villig told a group of journalists that "there's so much focus on EVs, but we've missed the point on autonomous driving." It will be the core. The U.S. is a leader in autonomous driving, with companies like Tesla and Alphabet's Waymo, as well as Chinese rivals Baidu, WeRide, and Pony.ai. Waymo has plans to introduce autonomous ride-hailing services in London, next year. Bolt will benefit from the launch "robotaxis", however, Villig said that the European Union must recognize this technology as a strategic one, with implications for security, and should not rely solely on imports. Villig said that the EU spent tens and tens billions on different parts of the EV chain but not on software for self-driving cars. The traditional carmakers may invest some money, but they do not appear to be planning on building their own self driving systems. The EU wants to increase its digital sovereignty by reducing Europe’s reliance on U.S. Big Tech for cloud, network and artificial intelligence services. Villig added that the EU should also avoid allowing foreign companies to enter and crush smaller competitors in their own countries, as has happened in other tech fields. He suggested that upcoming EU players be given subsidies or exclusive licenses to operate robotaxis for a period of time in certain cities or regions to help them build scale. (Reporting and editing by Emelia Sithole Matarise; Reporting by Philip Blenkinsop)
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The Dutch Supreme Court rejects Russia's appeal over Yukos 50 billion payout
The Dutch Supreme Court denied on Friday an appeal from Russia against the $50 billion arbitral award that it was ordered to make to former shareholders of Yukos, now defunct, in 2014. This ruling comes after years of legal disputes in Dutch courts, following the initial arbitration tribunal ruling that found Moscow had violated international obligations by taking measures designed to bankrupt Yukos - formerly Russia's biggest oil company. Yukos was seized in 2006 by the Russian state after the oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky had a falling out with Vladimir Putin. The government demanded billions in back taxes, which led to Yukos' collapse. In 2016, a lower Dutch court ruled against the penalty, only to have it reinstated on appeal. The Supreme Court then referred the case back to the lower court in 2021 to determine whether Russia's claim of false evidence provided by shareholders was incorrectly rejected. Last year, the Amsterdam appellate court dismissed this claim because Russia brought it too late. The Supreme Court said on Friday that it did not see any reason to reverse the ruling of the appeals court. (Reporting and editing by Barbara Lewis and Kirsty Donovan; Bart Meijer, Alban Kacher)
Singapore asks UN to defer vote on carbon shipping price as US opposes the measure
LONDON, October 17 -
Singapore called on the U.N. Shipping Agency to delay the adoption of a price for carbon on ships to allow time to reach a consensus. This was after the United States, Saudi Arabia and other countries were unable to agree on a deal at the London talks due to strong opposition.
Washington and Riyadh - the two world's largest oil producers - have both strongly opposed a price on carbon emissions for shipping in discussions at the International Maritime Organization. The European Union, however, has continued to back the idea. Singapore voted for the carbon tax in the IMO vote in April.
EU countries and Brazil asked for a vote to be held on Friday morning. In order to adopt a carbon tax in a vote, two-thirds must agree.
Donald Trump, the U.S. president, called on IMO members to vote against it on Thursday, stating on his Truth Social platform, that Washington "will not stand for this new global green scam tax on shipping, and will not adhere to its in any shape, form, or manner."
In a note to investors, Jefferies analyst Omar Nokta said that the IMO meeting this week in London "appears on the brink of collapse." Reporting by Enes Tunagur and Jonathan Saul, Editing by Peter Graff
(source: Reuters)