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Dollar weakness and resilient Chinese demand boost iron ore prices
Iron ore prices recovered on Monday as a result of a weaker dollar and near-term demand for ore. However, ongoing trade tensions with China, the top consumer, limited gains. As of 0244 GMT, the most traded May iron ore contract at China's Dalian Commodity Exchange was trading 0.78% higher. It was 712 yuan (US$97.70) per metric ton. The benchmark iron ore for May on the Singapore Exchange rose 1.23% to $98.7 per ton. In a recent note, Hexun Futures said that the hot metal demand was strong and production at an all-time high. Iron ore demand is usually gauged by the hot metal production. Mysteel, a consultancy, said in a report that "production among China's independent EAF steelmakers has increased for 10 straight weeks." A weaker dollar also helped to support prices. The U.S. currency fell to a 3-year low on Monday, 98.623, against a basket. Dollar-denominated goods are cheaper for holders of currencies other than the dollar. Last week, U.S. president Donald Trump expressed optimism that both countries could come to an agreement. Xie feng, China's ambassador in the United States, urged Washington to find common ground with Beijing on Saturday, warning that China was ready to retaliate if the trade war escalated. Galaxy Futures said that while there are signs that tariff policies are being eased, concerns about tariffs are still affecting the outlook of Chinese steel exports on a medium-term basis. Coking coal and coke, which are used to make steel, have both gained in value, up by 0.95% each and 0.42% respectively. The benchmarks for steel on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were flat. Hot-rolled coil and rebar were up around 0.5%, whereas wire rod was down about 0.27% and stainless steel fell by 0.47%.
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China's ENN and Zhenhua Oil sign LNG deals with ADNOC
China's privately-controlled ENN Natural Gas, and the state-run Zhenhua Oil each signed a contract to purchase liquefied gas from Abu Dhabi National Oil Company. ENN Natural Gas announced on its WeChat official account on Saturday the contract covers annual supplies of around one million metric tonnes for 15 years. This is ADNOC’s largest LNG deal with a Chinese customer. ENN stated that the deal was a major step towards stabilizing and diversifying energy supplies. Shanghai-listed ENN Natural Gas is offering to buy the remaining shares of Hong Kong-listed ENN Energy for approximately $7.65 billion. A Chinese source familiar with the deal said that Zhenhua Oil, a state-owned oil and gas trading company, had also agreed to a five-year contract with ADNOC, starting in 2026, for up 12 cargoes per year. The source declined to give his name as he was not authorized to speak in the media. Zhenhua Oil is building its LNG terminal in Rudong. It will be operational in the first quarter 2026. ADNOC CEO Sultan Al Jaber was present at the opening ceremony of the new Beijing office, according to a source in the industry who was there, as well as a report from Dubai's China-Arab TV. The report did not give any further details but said that ADNOC signed three LNG deals with Chinese partners on Al Jaber's trip. Zhenhua Oil & ADNOC did not respond to requests for comment on the weekend.
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DHL suspends global shipments above $800 for US consumers
DHL Express is a division within Germany's Deutsche Post. It has announced that it will suspend all global business-to consumer shipments of over $800 in value to individual customers in the United States as of April 21. This is due to changes made by U.S. Customs regulations which have increased clearance time. The notice posted on the website of the company was not dated but metadata indicated that it was created on Saturday. DHL attributed the stoppage to new U.S. Customs rules that require formal entry processing for all shipments over $800. Prior to April 5, the minimum was $2,500. DHL stated that business-to-business shipping would not be suspended, but may face delays. Changes to DHL's policy do not affect shipments under $800, whether they are sent by businesses or consumers. In a statement, the company stated that this is a temporary move. DHL responded to questions last week by saying that it will continue to process shipments to the United States from Hong Kong "in accordance to the applicable customs regulations and rules" and that they would "work closely with our customers in order to help them adapt to the planned changes for May 2. This came after Hongkong Post announced last week that it had suspended its mail service for goods shipped by sea to the United States. It accused the U.S. Reporting by Amy Lv in Beijing and Lewis Jackson; editing by Saad sayeed
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Boeing jet from China returns to the US, a victim in Trump's tariff war
The Boeing jet, intended for a Chinese carrier, was returned to the U.S. production center of the planemaker on Sunday. It is a victim the bilateral tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump as part of his global trade offensive. A witness said that the 737 MAX was intended for China's Xiamen Airlines and landed on Boeing Field in Seattle at 6:11 p.m. (0111 GMT). The Xiamen livery was on the aircraft. The jet was among several 737 MAX aircraft waiting for completion at Boeing's Zhoushan center before being delivered to a Chinese airline. This month, Trump raised the baseline tariffs for Chinese imports from 125% to 145%. China has responded by imposing a 125% duty on U.S. products. The tariffs could cripple a Chinese airline that takes delivery of a Boeing jet, as a new 737 MAX is valued at around $55million, according to IBA Aviation Consultancy. Boeing didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. Xiamen has not responded to a request for comment. Boeing's top-selling 737 MAX is back, the latest disruption in new aircraft deliveries caused by the breakdown of decades-old duty free status for the aerospace industry. Boeing is recovering from a five-year-old import ban on the 737 MAX and previous trade tensions. Analysts say that confusion over tariff changes could cause many aircraft deliveries to be delayed. Some airline CEOs have said they will defer plane delivery rather than pay duty. (Reporting from Dan Catchpole in Seattle, Lisa Barrington in Seoul and William Mallard and Joe Brock)
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China's ENN and Zhenhua Oil sign LNG deals with ADNOC
China's privately-controlled ENN Natural Gas, and the state-run Zhenhua Oil each signed a contract to purchase liquefied gas from Abu Dhabi National Oil Company. ENN Natural Gas announced on its WeChat official account on Saturday the contract covers annual supplies of around one million metric tonnes for 15 years. This is ADNOC’s largest LNG deal with a Chinese customer. ENN stated that the deal was a major step towards stabilizing and diversifying energy supplies. Shanghai-listed ENN Natural Gas is offering to buy the remaining shares of Hong Kong-listed ENN Energy for approximately $7.65 billion. A Chinese source familiar with the deal said that Zhenhua Oil, a state-owned oil and gas trading company, had also agreed to a five-year contract with ADNOC, starting in 2026, for up 12 cargoes per year. The source declined to give his name as he was not authorized to speak in the media. Zhenhua Oil is building a LNG terminal in Rudong. The first LNG terminal will be operational in the first quarter 2026. ADNOC CEO Sultan Al Jaber was present at the opening ceremony of the new Beijing office, according to a source in the industry who attended, as well as a report from Dubai's China-Arab TV. The report did not give any further details but said that ADNOC signed three LNG deals with Chinese partners on Al Jaber's trip. Zhenhua Oil & ADNOC did not respond to requests for comment on the weekend.
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China Shipbuilders Criticize Trump's "short-sighted" US Port Fees
China's Shipbuilders on Sunday blasted the U.S. Port Fees announced by Donald Trump's Administration on China-linked vessels as "shortsighted". The measure was aimed at China's shipbuilding sector. Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday to revive U.S. shipbuilding while reducing China's hold on the global shipping market. The next day, his government diluted the measures by protecting domestic exporters and vessel owner serving the Great Lakes region, Caribbean and U.S. territory. The dispute over ocean shipping, which carries 80% of all global trade, is just the latest in a trade war that has intensified between China and the U.S., pushing levies against each other's imported goods beyond 100%. China Association of the National Shipbuilding Industry has expressed "extreme anger and resolute resistance" against the U.S. measures, joining the protests of the government and the country's owners of ships. The shipbuilders stated that the decline of the U.S. industry of shipbuilding is due to its protectionist policies and has nothing whatsoever to do with China. It warned that the U.S. restriction would disrupt the global shipping system, cause a rise in shipping costs and increase U.S. prices, as well as harming the interests of the U.S. public. The industry group said that it expected the Chinese authorities to take strong measures to counteract the shortsighted U.S. behavior. On Friday, the government condemned "discriminatory steps" and urged Washington to "correct any wrongdoings." In a press release, the Ministry of Commerce pledged to "resolutely" take the necessary measures to protect our interests, saying that the fees "fully reveal its unilateralist and protective policies and are typical non-market practices". (Reporting and editing by Beijing Newsroom)
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At least 148 people die after boat catches fire in Congo, media reports say
Local officials cited in media reported that at least 148 bodies were discovered after a motorised wood boat capsized and caught fire. According to reports, the boat carried up to 500 passengers including women and kids when it sank in the Congo River, located in the northwest region of the country, on Tuesday. In Congo, boating accidents are common, as old wooden boats are used to transport people between villages, and they are often overloaded. The reports also stated that officials estimate hundreds of missing people. The previous estimate of 50 dead people was revised upwards. The boat, named HB Kongolo caught fire near Mbandaka after leaving the port of Matankumu to the Bolomba Territory. Sky News reported that about 100 survivors were transported to an improvised refuge at the town hall. Those with burn injuries were then taken to local hospitals. According to Competent Loyoko of the Associated Press, the incident happened when a fire broke out while a woman was cooking aboard the vessel. The report said that several passengers, including children and women, died when they jumped into the water, despite not being able swim. In 2024, a boat carrying 278 passengers capsized on Lake Kivu in eastern Congo, and at least 78 drowned. In a separate event, At least 22 people have died After a riverboat sank in December, in western Congo. (Reporting and editing by Chris Reese in Bengaluru, Mrinmay dey from Bengaluru)
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At least 148 people die after boat catches fire in Congo, media reports say
Local officials cited in media reported that at least 148 bodies were discovered after a motorised wood boat caught fire and capsized. According to reports, the boat carried up to 500 passengers including women and kids when it sank in the Congo River, located in the northwest region of the country, on Tuesday. In Congo, boating accidents are common, as old wooden boats are used to transport people between villages, and they are often overloaded. The reports also stated that officials estimate hundreds of missing people. Previous estimates put the number of deaths at 50. The boat, named HB Kongolo caught fire near Mbandaka after leaving the port of Matankumu to the Bolomba Territory. Sky News reported that about 100 survivors were transported to a temporary shelter set up at the town hall. Those with burn injuries were then taken to hospitals in the area. According to Competent Loyoko of the Associated Press, the incident happened when a woman cooking aboard the vessel started a fire. The report said that several passengers, including children and women, died when they jumped into the water, despite not being able swim. In 2024, a boat carrying 278 passengers capsized on Lake Kivu in eastern Congo, and at least 78 drowned. In a separate event, At least 22 people have died After a riverboat sank in western Congo in December, (Reporting and editing by Chris Reese in Bengaluru, Mrinmay dey from Bengaluru)
INSIGHT-Airline pilots, crews voice issues about Middle East paths
In late September, an experienced pilot at lowcost European airline Wizz Air felt anxious after discovering his airplane would fly over Iraq in the evening amidst mounting tensions in between nearby Iran and Israel.
He decided to query the decision given that simply a week previously the airline company had deemed the route risky. In action, Wizz Air's. flight operations team told him the respiratory tract was now. thought about safe and secure and he had to fly it, without giving further. explanation, the pilot said.
I wasn't really delighted with it, the pilot, who requested. privacy from worry he might lose his job, told Reuters. Days. later on, Iraq closed its airspace when Iran fired missiles on Oct. 1 at Israel. It confirmed my suspicion that it wasn't safe.
In response to Reuters' questions, Wizz Air stated security of. team and guests was its utmost top priority and would not be. jeopardized in any situations, adding its choices on. where to fly are based upon rigid threat assessments in. partnership with third party intelligence experts.
Our aircraft and crews will only fly in airspace that. has been considered safe and we would never ever take any dangers in this. regard, Wizz Air likewise stated in a statement.
Reuters spoke with four pilots, 3 cabin team members,. 3 flight security specialists and 2 airline executives about. growing safety concerns in the European air market due to. intensifying tensions in the Middle East following Hamas' attack. on Israel in October 2023, that triggered the war in Gaza.
The Middle East is a key air corridor for airplanes heading to. India, South-East Asia and Australia and in 2015 was. criss-crossed day-to-day by 1,400 flights to and from Europe,. Eurocontrol data reveal.
The safety debate about flying over the region is playing. out in Europe mostly since pilots there are safeguarded by. unions, unlike other parts of the world.
Reuters evaluated 9 unpublished letters from four European. unions representing pilots and crews that revealed worries. about air safety over Middle Eastern countries. The letters were. sent out to Wizz Air, Ryanair, airBaltic, the European. Commission and the European Union Air Travel Safety Firm (EASA). in between June and August.
No one should be required to operate in such a harmful. environment and no business interests ought to surpass the. safety and well-being of those on board, checked out a letter,. resolved to EASA and the European Commission from Romanian. flight team union FPU Romania, dated Aug. 26.
In other letters, staff gotten in touch with airline companies to be more. transparent about their decisions on routes and demanded the. right to refuse to fly an unsafe route.
There have actually been no casualties or accidents impacting. industrial aviation connected to the escalation of stress in the. Middle East considering that the war in Gaza erupted last year.
Air France opened an internal examination after one of its. business aircrafts flew over Iraq on Oct. 1 during Tehran's. rocket attack on Israel. On that event, airline companies scrambled. to divert lots of aircrafts heading towards the affected locations in. the Middle East.
The ongoing stress between Israel and Iran and the abrupt. ousting of President Bashar al-Assad by Syrian rebels at the. weekend have actually raised issues of additional insecurity in the. region.
The use of missiles in the region has actually revived memories of. the downing of Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17 over eastern. Ukraine in 2014 and of Ukraine International Airlines flight. PS752 en route from Tehran in 2020.
Being accidentally shot-down in the chaos of war is the top. worry, three pilots and two air travel security professionals informed. Reuters, together with the threat of an emergency landing.
While airline companies consisting of Lufthansa and KLM. no longer fly over Iran, carriers including Etihad,. flydubai, Aeroflot and Wizz Air were still crossing. the country's airspace as recently as Dec. 2, information from tracking. service FlightRadar24 show.
Some European airlines including Lufthansa and KLM permit. crew to opt-out of paths they do not feel are safe, but others. such as Wizz Air, Ryanair and airBaltic do not.
AirBaltic CEO Martin Gauss stated his airline meets an. worldwide safety standard that does not require to be changed.
If we begin a right of rejection, then where do we stop? the next person feels dissatisfied overflying Iraqi airspace. since there's stress there? he informed Reuters on Dec. 2 in. response to queries about airBaltic flight security talks with. unions.
Ryanair, which intermittently flew to Jordan and Israel. until September, stated it makes security choices based on EASA. guidance.
If EASA says it's safe, then, honestly, thank you, we're not. thinking about what the unions or some pilot think, Ryanair CEO. Michael O'Leary told Reuters in October, when asked about staff. security concerns.
EASA stated it has actually been involved in a number of exchanges with. pilots and airline companies on route security in current months worrying. the Middle East, including that disciplining staff for raising. security issues would run counter to a simply culture where. staff members can voice concerns.
INSUFFICIENT REASSURANCES
One Abu Dhabi-based Wizz Air pilot told Reuters he was. comfy flying over the conflict-torn area as he thinks. the market has a really high safety requirement.
However for some pilots and crew members operating at budget plan. airlines, the peace of minds of the companies are insufficient.
They informed Reuters pilots should have more option in refusing. flights over potentially hazardous airspace and requested more. information about airline security evaluations.
The reality that Wizz Air sends out emails asserting that it's. safe is unimportant to commercial employees, checked out a letter from. FPU Romania to Chief Operating Officer Diarmuid O'Conghaile,. dated Aug. 12. Flights into these conflict locations, even if they. are rescue missions, ought to be performed by military workers. and airplane, not by industrial crews.
Mircea Constantin, a previous cabin team member who represents. FPU Romania, stated Wizz Air never provided a formal action to this. letter and similar ones sent out earlier this year, however did send out. security assistance and updates to staff.
A pilot and a cabin crew member, who decreased to be named. for worry of vindictive action, stated they got warnings from. their companies for declining to fly on Middle Eastern paths or. hiring ill.
CONGESTED SKIES
Last month, 165 rockets were launched in Middle Eastern. dispute zones versus just 33 in November 2023, according to the. latest readily available information from Osprey Flight Solutions.
However airspace can just be enforcably limited if a nation. picks to shut it down, as in the case of Ukraine after. Russia's major intrusion in 2022.
Several airline companies have decided to briefly suspend flights to. locations like Israel when stress increases. Lufthansa and British. Airways did so after Iran bombarded Israel on April 13.
But this limits the airspace in use in the currently crowded. Middle Eastern skies.
Selecting to fly over Central Asia or Egypt and Saudi Arabia. to prevent Middle Eastern locations is likewise more expensive as planes. burn more fuel and some nations charge greater overflight costs.
Flying an industrial aircraft from Singapore to London-Heathrow. through Afghanistan and Central Asia, for example, cost an. airline $4,760 in overflight charges, about 50% more than a route. through the Middle East, according to two Aug. 31 flight plans. examined .
Reuters might not call the airline company as the flight plans are. not public.
Some private jets are avoiding the most important areas.
At the minute, my no-go areas would be the hotspot points:. Libya, Israel, Iran, just because they're sort of captured up in. it all, stated Andy Spencer, a Singapore-based pilot who flies. personal jets and who previously worked as an airline pilot.
Spencer, who has two decades of experience and flies through. the Middle East routinely, stated that on a current flight from. Manila to Cuba, he flew from Dubai over Egypt and north through. Malta before refuelling in Morocco to circumvent Libyan and. Israeli airspace.
EASA, concerned by industry experts as the strictest local. security regulator, issues public bulletins on how to fly safely. over dispute zones.
However these aren't necessary and every airline chooses where. to take a trip based on a patchwork of government notifications,. third-party security consultants, in-house security groups and. info sharing in between carriers, leading to divergent. policies.
Such intelligence is not usually shared with staff.
The opacity has sown fear and skepticism amongst pilots, cabin. team and travelers as they question whether their airline company has. missed something providers in other countries understand, stated. Otjan de Bruijn, a former head of European pilots union the. European Cockpit Association and a pilot for KLM.
The more information you offer to pilots, the more. informed a decision they can make, said Spencer, who is likewise an. operations expert at flight advisory body OPSGROUP, which. deals independent functional guidance to the air travel industry.
When Gulf players like Etihad, Emirates or flydubai all of a sudden. stop flying over Iran or Iraq, the industry sees it as a. reliable indication of danger, pilots and security sources stated, as. these airlines can have access to detailed intelligence from. their federal governments.
Flydubai told Reuters it operates within airspace and. air passages in the area that are approved by Dubai's General Civil. Air travel Authority. Emirates stated it continuously monitors all. routings, changing as required and would never ever run a flight. unless it was safe to do so. Etihad stated it only operates. through approved airspace.
Passenger rights groups are also asking for tourists to. get more details.
If guests decrease to take flights over conflict zones,. airline companies would be disinclined to continue such flights, said. Paul Hudson, the head of U.S.-based passenger group Flyers. Rights. And guests who take such flights would do so. informed of the threats.
(source: Reuters)