Latest News
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Public Storage raises its profit forecast for 2025 on the strength of property income and acquisitions
Public Storage, the operator of self-storage facilities, raised its forecast for 2025's funds from operations to include a lower end. The company cited higher property incomes, a solid acquisition program, and an improved profit. The Glendale-based company expects to generate annual core FFO between $16.70 and $17 for each share. This is a significant increase from the previous expectation of $16.45 to 17% per share. Joe Russell, CEO, said: "We have raised our outlook for 2025 for the second quarter in a row based on superior performance in NOI growth and acquisition activity as well as Core FFO per Share growth." According to data compiled and analyzed by LSEG, the company, which rents out storage space on a monthly base for personal or business use, posted core FFO at $4.31 per share in the third quarter that ended September 30. This compares with analyst estimates of $4.24. As of September 30th, 2025, it will own and operate 3,491 self storage facilities in 40 states across the U.S. This makes it the nation's largest operator of self-storage. The third-quarter revenue was $948.9 millions, which is lower than the Wall Street estimate of $1.21billion. (Reporting and editing by Anil D’Silva in Bengaluru, Abhinav parmar from Bengaluru)
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C.H. Robinson's quarterly profits beat estimates as cost reductions ease weak demand. Shares jump
Global freight forwarder C.H. Robinson, a global freight forwarder, posted a third-quarter profit that was above Wall Street expectations on Wednesday. Cost-cutting initiatives helped Robinson offset the weak freight demand. The Minnesota-based firm has simplified operations by exiting its European Surface Transportation division and reducing staff. It is working to control costs and protect profits amid the continued decline in surface and ocean cargo rates. Operating expenses for the company fell by 12.6% and its average headcount decreased by 10.8% compared to the same quarter a year earlier. C.H. Robinson reported an adjusted profit per share of $1.40 for the quarter ending September 30 compared to analysts' average estimates of $1.30. Ocean services, the company's unit that manages freight costs and optimizes shipping routes, and oversees international compliance, suffered from weaker pricing and volume during the quarter. This led to a decline of 32.5% in its adjusted gross profits. "Global trade policies have affected international freight, which has caused front-loading in the past, dislocations of shipments, and a softening than normal peak season. This, combined with excess vessel capacities, caused ocean rates decline significantly," CEO Dave Bozeman stated. The North American Surface Transportation segment of the company saw a 1.1% increase in revenue due to higher volumes for both truckloads and less-than trucksloads. Bozeman said that despite a steady decline in trucking capacity during the last three years, spot truckload rates are still bouncing around the bottom because of low demand. C.H. Robinson's revenue total decreased 10.9% in the third quarter to $4.14 billion, falling short of expectations of $4.23 million. (Reporting and editing by Alan Barona in Bengaluru, with Abhinav Paramar reporting from Bengaluru)
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US Coast Guard responds near Galveston to an oil spill
The U.S. Coast Guard announced on Wednesday that it was responding to a Tuesday oil spill near Galveston in Texas. The Coast Guard released a statement that said, "Coast Guard Houston-Galveston Watchstanders received an approximately 9:50 pm call reporting a discharge of oil by a ship near Pier 32 in the Port of Galveston after an collision with the pier." It added that the source of the spill had been identified and that the Galveston Ship Channel was closed from Gulf Copper Bridge to Pelican Islands Bridge in order to minimize the impact. The Coast Guard stated that the Texas General Land Office, Forestwave Navigation BV and the responsible party are jointly managing the incident, with personnel on the scene. Coast Guard officials said that the Coast Guard is still investigating the volume of the spill and has not yet received any reports of injury or animal impact.
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Powell's chilling of December rate cuts has caused stocks to fall and the US dollar to strengthen.
The global stock market reversed its course on Wednesday and was on track to end a four session streak of gains, while the U.S. Dollar extended gains following the Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's dampening of expectations for a further U.S. central bank interest rate cut in December. The Fed reduced rates by 25 basis point, citing the limited data visibility caused by the U.S. shutdown. It also announced that it would stop the quantitative tightening of its $6.6 trillion (also known as QT) balance sheet due to evidence that liquidity in the money markets has tightened and bank reserves are falling. The stock market initially gained after the announcement, but then fell after Powell stated that "a further decrease in the policy rate is not predetermined at the December meeting." The policy isn't set in stone. The dollar and U.S. Treasury yields rose as a result. Tony Welch is the chief investment officer of SignatureFD, an Atlanta-based firm. "We think that the inflation risk in 2026 will be higher, and I believe that December may end up being the final cut in this cycle." Markets are expecting three rate cuts in 2019. The market could be disappointed. According to CME's FedWatch Tool, the market had been pricing in an 85% probability of a December rate cut. This dropped to 65% after Powell's remarks. Wall Street saw U.S. stock prices finish off their previous highs. The S&P ended the session almost flat. U.S. stock prices have risen to record highs recently, thanks to a cooling of U.S.-China tensions in trade, the expectation that the Fed will cut rates, the outsized expenditures related to artificial intelligent, and the solid start to corporate earnings season. Nvidia was the first company on Wednesday to surpass the $5 trillion valuation. The shares rose 3% after a 5% jump the day before, when CEO Jensen Huang announced that the AI chip maker will build seven supercomputers for U.S. Department of Energy and has booked $500 billion for its chips. Microsoft lost about 3% after the closing bell. Alphabet gained almost 4%, and Meta fell more than 6%. Each of the megacaps companies reported quarterly results. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 74.37, or 0.16 %, to 47.632.00. The S&P 500 fell 0.30, or zero percent, to 6,890.59, and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 130.98, or 0.55 %, to 23958.47. The MSCI index of global stocks fell 0.61 points or 0.06% to 1,012.99, after reaching an intraday high of 1,017.24. Meanwhile, the pan-European STOXX 600 closed at 0.06%. Bank of Japan policy announcements and European Central Bank policy announcements are expected later this week. After Powell's remarks, the dollar index, which measures greenbacks against a basket currencies, extended gains and was last up by 0.54% at 99.21. The euro, on the other hand, was down by 0.47% to $1.1594. The dollar gained 0.47% against the Japanese yen to reach 152.82, but sterling fell 0.67%, to $1.318, The Canadian dollar fell 0.04% against the dollar to C$1.395. The Canadian dollar initially strengthened following the Bank of Canada's Wednesday reduction of its overnight key interest rate from 2.25% to 2.25%, as was widely expected. It also signaled that this could be the end of its cutting cycle, unless the outlook of inflation and the economic changes. At a recent summit in South Korea between U.S. president Donald Trump and South Korean president Lee Jae Myung, the two leaders finalized their tense trade agreement. Trump was also optimistic about a upcoming meeting with China's Xi Jinping. The yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury notes continued to rise after the Fed's policy announcement and chair's remarks. It was last up 9.5 points at 4,0785, which is its largest one-day increase since June 6. The yield on the 2-year note, which is usually in line with Fed rate expectations, jumped 10.8 basis points, to 3.602%. This was also the largest increase since June 6. U.S. crude oil settled at $60.48 per barrel, a 0.55% increase. Brent was $64.92, a 0.81% rise on the day. This is due to a drop in U.S. stocks and optimism regarding trade policies.
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HF Sinclair is considering pipeline expansions for West Coast fuel supply
The U.S. refiner HF Sinclair announced on Wednesday that it is looking at expanding its footprint in midstream refined product areas across the Rocky Mountain region and West Coast. HF Sinclair aims at addressing the growing imbalance between supply and demand in western markets. This is especially true in Nevada and California. Following a series of refinery closings, regulators are scrambling for alternative sources of supply. HF Sinclair stated that "(our) geographic footprint and infrastructure provides an advantaged position for quickly and effectively delivering refined products to where the market demands are greatest." About 20% of California fuel needs will be met by closing the refineries of Valero Energy in Benicia and Phillips 66 Los Angeles at the end of this year. HF Sinclair's expansion plan, which is currently being reviewed, could result in an additional 150,000 barrels per day of product entering various markets. The first phase would see a capacity increase of 35,000 barrels a day, allowing the company to shift production from its Rockies region to Nevada. This is expected to happen in 2028. The refiner also reviews its Medicine Bow Pioneer and UNEV pipes for possible expansion. (Reporting and editing by Alan Barona in Bengaluru, Vallari Srivastava from Bengaluru)
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The exchange rate for uranium remains unchanged and western exports are steady in October, despite sanctions
In a low-volume trading environment, the differential between Brent and Urals crude remained stable on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Russia's oil exports to western countries in October were in line with their initial plan despite new Western sanctions. LSEG data indicate that despite weather-related restrictions and sanctions pressure, October's exports from the western ports of Primorsk and Ust-Luga, and Novorossiisk, are expected to be around 2.33 million barrels a day. This is in line with Russia’s revised monthly program. Last week, Britain, the U.S. and the European Union imposed sanctions on Russia, including the two largest oil producers, Lukoil, and Rosneft. The U.S. gave companies until November 21, 2011 to end their transactions with Russian oil producers. PLATTS WINDOW There were no bids or offers reported for Urals, Azeri BTC Blend or CPC blend crude in the Platts window. Sources with direct knowledge on the matter say that Indian Oil is planning to sign a joint-venture agreement with Vitol early next year in order to increase its presence in the international crude and fuel trade. (Reporting and Editing by Lisa Shumaker).
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After fatal accident, NTSB advises Learjet owners to check the main landing gear of their aircraft.
The National Transportation Safety Board issued an urgent warning to 10 Bombardier Learjet aircraft models on Wednesday to ensure that the main landing gear was attached correctly. The Federal Aviation Administration's recommendation that landing gear manufacturer service bulletins be followed would apply to 1,883 aircraft currently in operation. The recommendation is based on an investigation into a fatal runway incident that occurred in Scottsdale, Arizona in February involving a Learjet 35A. It also stems from three previous incidents in which Learjet's landing gear detached from the airframe due to a retaining pin not being engaged. In February, the Learjet 35A skidded of the runway and hit a Gulfstream 200, killing the captain. Three others aboard and an occupant in the parked plane sustained serious injuries. Bombardier did not comment immediately, but in 2022, the production of Learjet aircraft was stopped. FAA did not comment immediately either. The NTSB cited accidents in 1995, 2001, and 2008 in Oklahoma City (Oklahoma), Florida, and Recife (Brazil). Bombardier's service bulletin, issued in the wake of the Scottsdale accident, asked operators to check that landing gear was attached correctly. However, only 12% had been checked, according to Bombardier. The NTSB called on the FAA also to require Bombardier revise its procedures so that a visual inspection of the pin and retaining screw is performed after maintenance. This is because a mechanic may inadvertently install a retaining screw without passing it through the pin.
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Alaska Airlines website and app are down due to global Azure outage
Alaska Airlines reported that its website and mobile app were unavailable on Wednesday. This comes days after an outage in technology grounded the airline's flights across America. The airline stated that the latest disruption was caused by a global outage of Microsoft's Azure Platform, which affected key systems including its websites. As a response to customers experiencing problems accessing the website, the carrier told X that the issue is being investigated. JetBlue Airways warned Wednesday that passengers flying through Orlando International Airport may have to wait longer than usual for their check-in due to a computer issue. Last week's technical outage caused the ground stop, which forced the carrier cancel more than 400 flights. This resulted in travel disruptions for over 49,000 passengers. Alaska Airlines shares fell 2.2% during afternoon trading. JetBlue fell 1.3%. (Reporting and editing by Leroy Leo and Shakesh Kuber in Bengaluru, and AnshumanTripathy and Nathan Gomes in Bengaluru)
Italy's auditors reject plans for a Sicily bridge, but the government vows to fight it back
The Italian Court of Auditors refused on Wednesday to approve a government plan for a bridge linking Sicily with the mainland. This casts serious doubt on whether the $15.7 billion project, which is estimated to cost 13.5 billion euros, will be viable.
Salvini, the Deputy Italian Premier, denounced this ruling as "a serious blow" for the country. He called it a decision made on a more political basis than a technical one. However, he vowed to use all means possible to bring the decades-old project to fruition.
After an earlier hearing, the court issued a short statement announcing its decision. It added that its reasoning would be published within 30 days.
The rejection does not necessarily mean that the project is over, but it casts a shadow on its future. Salvini may seek cabinet approval to override court objections, but this could open the project up to legal action.
Salvini, who is the leader of the conservative bloc headed by Giorgia Meoni, has been championing the project ever since 2022 when the coalition led by Meloni came to power. He says it's vital for Italy’s underdeveloped southern region.
Eurolink won the contract to build the bridge over the Strait of Messina after an international bid. The consortium is led by Italy's Webuild and includes the Spanish group Sacyr, as well as Japan's IHI.
The Court had earlier expressed doubts regarding the total costs of the bridge, and stated that the government failed to include a technical assessment by a consulting agency.
The judges also questioned if the project was compliant with EU competition laws, referring specifically to the sharp increase in costs from the original 3.8-billion-euro bid awarded to Webuild (known at the time as Salini Impregilo) in 2005. Reporting by Angelo Amante Editing and Crispi Balmer by Keith Weir
(source: Reuters)