Latest News
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India bans imports of Pakistani goods amid tensions over terrorist killings
India announced on Saturday that it has banned the importation of goods from Pakistan or those transiting through Pakistan, and also barred Pakistani vessels as tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbors rise in the wake a deadly terrorist attack in the disputed Kashmir area. In a notice, India's Directorate General of Foreign Trade stated that the ban will take immediate effect. It said that the restriction was imposed to protect national security and public interest. Last week, suspected militants attacked a tourist resort in Pahalgam in the Kashmir valley. At least 26 people were killed. Both India and Pakistan claim the Muslim-majority Himalayan area, which has been at the center of wars, insurgencies, and diplomatic standoffs. India accuses Pakistan of being involved in the attack. Islamabad denies this. Pakistan claims to have "credible intelligence", that India is planning a military strike. Pakistan has taken a number of retaliatory actions, including halting border trade and closing its airspace for Indian carriers. It also expelled Indian diplomats. It also warned that any attempts to stop the flow of water promised in a treaty dating back decades would be considered an attack. India announced on Saturday that ships flying the Pakistani flag will not be allowed into any Indian ports, while Indian-flagged vessels won't be visiting any Pakistani ports. The Directorate General of Shipping issued a statement saying that the order was issued "to ensure safety of Indian assets and cargo, as well as connected infrastructure in the public interest and in interest of Indian shipping". The trade between the two countries has declined over the past few years. (Reporting and editing by Stephen Coates, Kevin Liffey, and Rupam Jain)
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Sources say that I Squared is eyeing a majority stake in the natgas pipeline Matterhorn.
I Squared Capital has been in discussions to purchase a majority stake of the Matterhorn Express Natural Gas Pipeline, according to sources familiar with the situation. The infrastructure-focused investment firm has been speaking with potential investors that would help fund the potential purchase, the people said. I Squared will buy its position from WhiteWater Midstream. WhiteWater owns 67.5% in Matterhorn. However, it is unclear whether I Squared was purchasing WhiteWater's whole position. EnLink Midstream (the other owner of Matterhorn), Devon Energy, and MPLX are also owners. The exact amount of ownership that I Squared acquired from the other owners is unclear. They warned that no deal is guaranteed and spoke under anonymity in order to discuss private details. I Squared, WhiteWater and WhiteWater have not responded to comment requests. ONEOK which owns EnLink Devon and MPLX did not also respond to requests for comment. Bloomberg News reported earlier Friday that I Squared had been in talks with people familiar with the situation to purchase a majority stake, which would value the Matterhorn Express Pipeline for more than $5 billion. This includes debt. The Matterhorn pipeline transports natural gas from Permian Basin to the suburbs of Houston. According to its website, the 580-mile pipe was designed to transport up to 2.5 billion cubic feet of gas per day. David French, New York reporter; David Gregorio, editor
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US Army Corps targeting fall decision for Enbridge Line 5 tunnel
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced on Friday that it will make a decision in the fall about whether or not to approve Enbridge's Great Lakes Tunnel for its Line 5 Oil Pipeline Project. The Army Corps (a federal engineering service) released an updated timeline for permitting the project. This includes a 30-day period of public comments from May 30 until June 3 followed by a decision in the autumn. The Army Corps is responsible for approving all U.S. projects that involve wetlands or waterways. Enbridge's Line 5 Project received an emergency designation last month after President Donald Trump declared that a national energy crisis had occurred in his January executive order. This gave the Army Corps the power to expedite its review of the Enbridge project. In an email sent on Friday, a spokesperson for Enbridge said that the company was encouraged by the new schedule. The spokesperson stated that Enbridge had submitted the project permit application for the Great Lakes Tunnel Project to the state and federal regulatory agencies in April 2020, which is more than five year ago. The project involves building a tunnel of approximately 4 miles (6 km) for Line 5, a 645-mile pipeline that runs through the Straits of Mackinac, in the Great Lakes. The pipeline transports more than 20,000,000 gallons per day of liquid natural gas and oil from Superior, Wisconsin to Sarnia in Ontario. Enbridge has received approval from Michigan regulators to construct the $700 million tunnel to house the Line 5 oil pipeline, which is aging. The project will be completed in 2023. However, the Army Corps must still approve the project. Native American tribes, environmental groups and other opponents of the project who are concerned about the Great Lakes' potential risks have refuted that the tunnel was needed or that there is a national emergency for energy.
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PJM Selects 51 US Projects for Additional Power Generation Capacity
PJM Interconnection announced on Friday that it had selected 51 U.S. project which can be quickly brought online to provide more than 9,300 MW reliable electricity capacity as part of its Reliable Resources Initiative. PJM stated in a release that "the Reliability Resource Initiative is a once-off opportunity for shovel ready resources with short lead times on construction and operation, and which can most effectively contribute reliability." PJM said that the majority of projects will be completed by 2030, while "all" are expected to be complete by 2031. In a press release posted on its website, the grid operator, who operates a wholesale competitive electricity market in 13 U.S. States and the District of Columbia in whole or in part, stated that the projects included 12 new constructions and 31 uprates. PJM said that the 12 new projects - of which half is gas, five batteries, and one nuclear - "would contribute 7,253 MW unforced capability"; and with uprates of 2,108 MW unforced, PJM stated, a combined total addition of capacity is expected to reach 9,361 MW. (Reporting by Ishaan Arora in Bengaluru Editing by Matthew Lewis)
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Portugal's power swaps with Spain are still suspended amid a blackout investigation
The energy minister announced on Friday that Portugal supplies electricity to its clients using its own resources, as the power exchanges between Portugal and Spain are still suspended due to an investigation into the cause of the blackout this week. On Monday, Spain experienced a massive outage of its electricity grid. This also caused a power outage throughout Portugal as it imported cheaper renewable energy from Portugal. After a meeting online with her Spanish counterpart Sara Aagesen, acting Energy Minister Maria da Graca Carvalho said to reporters: "For the time being, we will continue without exchanging electric with Spain, as a precaution. This shows the independence that we currently have." She did not say when the power exchanges would resume, but physical connections between the two countries had already been restored. The Minister said that she had asked European Energy Commissioner Dan Jorgensen for an interim report to be produced "much faster" than the usual six-month period. She stated that the authorities had "no clue" as to what caused the outage. Millions of bits of data still need to be analysed in Portugal, Spain, and Europe by independent experts. Aagesen, in a separate statement, said that the two countries had agreed to identify jointly the causes of this blackout and to take measures to prevent it from happening again. Da Graca Carvalho stated that Portugal will make efforts to improve its electrical system's resilience and speed up recovery from a power outage. The Monday 10 hour delay was "an exemplary response". "Nobody can be protected 100% from this event".
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Stocks rise on positive jobs data and signs of trade tensions easing
Wall Street and European shares surged on Friday, while the dollar fell as investors appetite for risk was revived due to a positive U.S. Employment Report and signs that China is willing to negotiate tariffs. The three main U.S. indexes rose sharply, with the more sensitive sectors of financials, transportations and microchips performing better than the overall market. The S&P 500, Nasdaq and blue-chip Dow are all on course to remain essentially unchanged for the week. According to the Labor Department's report, the U.S. economy created more jobs last month than was expected, and wage inflation was below consensus. This prompted a rise in U.S. Treasury benchmark yields. China's Commerce Ministry announced that Beijing was "evaluating" Washington’s offer to have talks about President Donald Trump’s crippling tariffs. This could signal a possible de-escalation in the market-shaking trade war. Paul Nolte is a senior wealth advisor & Market Strategist at Murphy & Sylvest, located in Elmhurst. He said, "The jobs data was very positive; it shows that the economy's doing well." "There is still discussion about the impact of tariffs but, so far, this data hasn't shown up in many of the numbers." Nolte said, "It is encouraging that China is willing and able to sit down at the table." But for now, this is just talk. "Let's see what happens." The latest quarterly earnings report shows that the lack of clarity surrounding U.S. China trade duties contributed to a marked decline in long-term expectations for U.S. companies. Apple and Amazon.com released their quarterly earnings on Thursday, with disappointing estimates. Apple's tariff costs of $900 million were also included. These reports have taken some of the wind out of the sails for the "magnificent 7" group of megacap stocks related to artificial intelligence, which enjoyed a recovery this week. General Motors has warned that earnings will be hit by $4 to $5 billion and American Airlines has withdrawn its profit forecasts. The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 422.95 points or 1.04% to 41,175.91. The S&P 500 gained 65.11 points or 1.16% to 5,669.25. And the Nasdaq Composite increased 220.24 points or 1.24% to 17,930.98. The European stock market surged on renewed hopes for Sino-U.S. Trade Negotiations. The MSCI index of global stocks rose by 12.43 points or 1.49 percent to 847.58. The pan-European STOXX 600 Index rose 1.68% while Europe's broad FTSEurofirst 300 Index rose 36.24 point, or 1.73%. Emerging market stocks gained 24.83 points or 2.23% to 1,136.80. MSCI's broadest Asia-Pacific share index outside Japan closed up 2.54% at 595.66. Japan's Nikkei gained 378.39, or 1.04% to 36,830.69. Treasury yields increased as investors reduced their bets that the Federal Reserve would cut rates in June due to strong employment numbers. Treasuries were also under pressure because of fears that Japan would use its massive U.S. Debt holdings to negotiate in trade negotiations. The yield on the benchmark U.S. 10 year notes increased 6.6 basis points from late Thursday to 4,297%. The 30-year bond rate rose by 4.4 basis points, from 4.737% to 4.7809% late Thursday. The yield on the 2-year note, which is usually in line with expectations of interest rates for the Fed's, increased by 8.8 basis points, to 3.789% from 3.701%, late Thursday. The dollar's losses continued after the positive U.S. employment report. The dollar index (which measures the greenback in relation to a basket of currencies, including the yen, the euro and others) fell by 0.59%, reaching 99.55. Meanwhile, the euro rose by 0.61%, hitting $1.136. The dollar fell 0.89% against the Japanese yen to 144.13. Crude continued to fall as investors positioned ahead of a decision expected by OPEC+ boosting output. U.S. crude dropped 1.55% to 58.32 per barrel. Brent was down to $61.26 a barrel, a 1.4% drop on the day. The gold price rose, but was headed to a weekly decline amid eased trade tensions. Spot gold increased by 0.34%, to $3.251.24 per ounce. U.S. Gold Futures increased 1.33% to an ounce of $3,252.60.
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Why did the German spy agency classify AfD, the far-right party, as "extremist"?
The German spy agency classified the far right Alternative for Germany (AfD), on Friday, as "extremist". This allowed it to intensify monitoring of the largest opposition party in the country. The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution's (BfV) decision was based on a confidential 1,100-page report prepared by experts. According to the security officials that have seen the report, here are some key findings and evidence: Anti-Migrant Incitement Officials from the parties often refer to citizens with immigrant backgrounds as "passport Germans", and use terms like "population replacement" when describing what they claim is the impact of mass migration. Knife migrants or knifemen were sometimes used to describe migrant species. In October 2023 the party leadership posted on social media that the Greens had a "Population Replacement General Plan", a plan which echoed "General Plan East", a Nazi label for the Nazis' plan to genocide Jews and other ethnicities in Eastern Europe during World War Two. Alice Weidel, the party co-leader in July 2023, described knife crime as being exclusive to people from "a totally alien culture" and violent cultures. It's not in our culture... It is only found in cultures of Africa and Middle East". Hannes Gnauck, a senior party official, said on the 11th of August: "We need to be able again to decide who belongs to our nation and who does not." It's not just about a passport. We're all connected by an invisible thread that we don't need to explain. RACISM The youth wing of the party ran a campaign that included a song and video clip depicting Black men in an "extraordinarily racist" way. ISLAMOPHOBIA Weidel, in 2023, claiming that 761 mass rapes had occurred in Germany in the year prior to this one, said: "What is happening on German streets today is jihad." The German people are being targeted by a religious war. ATTACKING GERMAN DÉMOCRACY Tino Chrupalla, co-leader of AfD, said that the destruction of Nord Stream's gas pipelines by 2022 and the lack immediate response was proof "that this nation can't be sovereignty. It's not the way you respond when you are attacked. He later described mainstream parties as "American vassals". After Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the Nord Stream pipelines that brought Russian gas to Germany under the Baltic Sea were destroyed.
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Asian spot LNG prices drop to new lows of 1 year on weak demand
The price of Asian spot LNG fell to a record low this week due to weak demand. Trade wars also raised concerns about long-term Asian demand. Average LNG price for delivery to North-east Asia in June Industry sources estimate that the price of a million British thermal unit (mmBtu) was $11.00, its lowest since mid-May 20,24. It had been $11.80/mmBtu a week ago. "LNG prices expectations have changed in the past two and a quarter months." The U.S. tariff war will slow down global demand. European gas storage targets have been weakened, and imports to China, the world's largest LNG buyer, have dropped. Froley stated that China's demand for LNG remains subdued. LNG imports in April 2025 will be down 26% compared to April 2020, and imports from January to April this year will be down 23% compared with the previous year. Toby Copson said there is very little demand for spot cargoes in the East, and utilities haven't yet stepped in to cover cooling needs. "Sentiment has a negative tone. I do not see a bottom yet. We might see rates stabilizing if price-sensitive nations begin to offer attractively lower prices. Trade wars can destroy demand, but there are plenty of supplies available," Copson said. According to Florence Schmit, energy strategist at Rabobank, trade tensions are continuing to impact the outlook for LNG consumption this year, especially in Asia. China exported record quantities of LNG last April. Martin Senior, Argus’ head of LNG pricing, stated that South Korean buyers were looking for cargoes in order to replenish low storages. Indian buyers have also increased their demand due to the low prices. In Europe, the north-west European delivered price fell, mainly because new regulations by the German government reduced its own national storage targets for this Winter to 70% from 90%. Senior said that this has led to a reduction in summer demand expectations. Schmit, a Rabobank analyst, said that the weakening of the Asian economy would ease the supply shortages in Europe during the summer injecting season. He also added that U.S. sanctions against Russia's energy industry and EU plans to phase-out Russian gas are still bullish risks on the gas market. S&P Global Commodity Insights estimated its daily North West Europe Gas Marker (NWM), a price benchmark, for cargoes to be delivered in June ex-ship on May 1. This represents a $0.75/mmBtu reduction from the gas price in June at the Dutch TTF Hub. Spark Commodities set the price at $9.969/mmBtu for June delivery, while Argus estimated it at $9.860/mmBtu. According to Spark Commodities analyst Qasim Afghanistan, the U.S. Arbitrage to North-East Asia via Cape of Good Hope is still closed. However, the arbitrage via Panama remains marginally pointing to Asia. Afghan said that on Friday, the LNG market saw a second-week increase in the Atlantic to $40,750/day. Meanwhile, the Pacific rates were unchanged at $22,550/day. (Reporting and editing by Nina Chestney; Marwa Rashad)
Malaysia Prime Minister confident on resolving Petronas-Petros dispute
Malaysia's prime minister said that on Sunday, he is confident in the resolution of a dispute between the energy company Petronas owned by the federal state and Petros owned by Sarawak.
Last week, the long-running dispute between Petronas and Sarawak over rights to distribute gas escalated. Petronas said that its Petronas Carigali division had received notices about its activities in Sarawak from the state government.
Petronas did not provide any further information, but local media reported that Sarawak authorities had told the company’s Miri Crude Oil Terminal it lacked an operating licence.
Sarawak has given Petronas a deadline of 21 days for the company to get the necessary licence, or else face financial penalties under state law.
Anwar Ibrahim, Prime Minister of Malaysia, said that he had spoken to Abang Johari openg the premier of Sarawak about Petronas.
"When the Premier returns from his official London visit, we will immediately continue discussions to finalise this."
He said, "I'm confident this issue will be settled prudently by staying on the path to healthy and meaningful dialogue," on his Facebook page.
Anwar also called on all parties to hold off from any action or statement in the interim.
The negotiations between Petronas, Petros and Petros broke down last year and increased uncertainty about operations and investments within Sarawak's oil industry.
The impasse has raised concern about the possible impact on Petronas revenue, which is a major income source for the federal government. Sarawak is home to more than 60% Malaysia's natural gas reserves. (Reporting and editing by Ashley Tang)
(source: Reuters)