Latest News
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Oil tanker prices reach record highs after US and Iranian shipping attacks
This week, the cost of'shipping' oil in the largest tankers reached record levels following the most intense wave of attacks against shipping since the U.S. - Iran war began late in February. According to Baltic Exchange, the shipping rate for supertankers, also known as very large crude carriers (VLCCs), loading oil in the Gulf of Oman to be shipped to China, reached around 450 on Worldscale, which is?roughly?$11.50 per barrel. The rate is at its highest level since it was introduced earlier this year after the U.S. and Israel war against Iran. The increase in rates is a sign of 'how the Middle East conflict feeds into the wider economy. The rise in shipping costs could add to inflationary pressures, and increase costs for consumers and businesses already feeling the effects of a growing conflict. Iran announced on Wednesday that it had launched 10 attacks near the Strait of Hormuz, after the U.S. destroyed five Iranian oil tanks. Four Yemeni government officials said that the Houthis, who are aligned with Iran, reached Perim, a strategic island in the Bab El-Mandeb Strait on Friday, possibly tightening their hold on one of the world's most important shipping routes. Ioannis Pandimitriou, analyst at Vortexa, said that "repeated attacks between the U.S. Navy and Iran continue to push freight rates in the Gulf up to new heights." Papadimitrou said that the higher risk of operating in the Middle East Gulf and the surrounding area is driving up the Gulf of Oman's freight rates, out of fear of Iranian reprisals. This naturally reduces the number of available tankers in the region. The recent military escalation is having a wider impact, with VLCC rates also reaching record highs on the West Africa-Asia route.
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Travel chaos caused by the protest of Polish train drivers who slow down during safety demonstrations
On Friday, Poland's railways were impacted by widespread disruption as train drivers protested safety concerns and slowed down their trains. Around two thirds of services experienced delays on what is one of the busiest weeks of the year. A train that hit a truck and derailed at a level-crossing in central Poland Wednesday killed one person and sent 10 to the hospital. This is just the latest of a series of accidents caused when road users ignore warning signs. "We do not view this as protest but as an act of desperation," said Sebastian Piernik. He added that the union's demands for safety were?ignored in the past. "The fundamental problem is to ensure that drivers are held accountable for crossing the tracks at a time when there's a red signal." Train drivers at all level crossings slowed to 20 kilometres an hour (12 mph), as part of the protest that lasted until Friday noon local time. As a consequence, train operator PKP intercity reported that as of 12 p.m. (1100 GMT), 203 of 290 services?faced delays averaging 38 minutes. Alicja Kiman, a resident of Gdansk, said that she wasn't surprised by the protest because?motorists are?often reckless. She said, "I've seen garbage trucks break the barrier twice - forcing themselves in when it was closing." The government announced that it would introduce harsher 'penalties for drivers disregarding warning signals at crossings, and it spent hundreds of millions?zlotys to improve safety. Dariusz Klimczak, Infrastructure Minister, told reporters that "these changes will result in the risk of losing a driver's licence" for drivers who enter a road/rail crossing with RED light on.
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Gains in UAE shares as oil supply concerns fuel regional conflict
The UAE stock market closed higher on Friday. Dubai was the best performer in its region, aided by a sharp rise in oil prices. Attacks on Middle East shipping routes have fueled concerns about supply disruptions. Crude oil was on track to gain over 7% this week while U.S. Diesel prices reached a record. The Strait of Hormuz remains closed to oil as Iran and the U.S. trade attacks. Meanwhile, the Houthis, who are aligned with Iran, have taken control of Yemen's Mocha port, which threatens Saudi oil exports into the Red Sea. Preliminary ship tracking data on Friday showed that the number of vessel transits in the Strait of Hormuz dropped to seven on Thursday, from eleven the day before. This is well below the 10-day average of 15 Brent crude, the main driver for Gulf economies, fell 3.6% to $103.75 per barrel by 1056 GMT. Dubai's main stock market gained 0.6% following two sessions of losses, thanks to a 4.2% surge in the top lender Emirates NBD Bank. Utility firm Emirates Central Cooling Systems Corporation also rose by 1.9%. National Central Cooling's shares fell by 2.1%, however, after the announcement of Yousif al Hammadi becoming its new CEO. Abu Dhabi's benchmark Index edged up for the fourth consecutive session by 0.03%, supported?by a rise of 3.6% in investment firm Two Point Zero Group owned by IHC. Adnoc Logistics & Services, a state-owned energy shipping company, grew by 2.9%. Meanwhile, energy infrastructure developer NMDC Group grew by 3.5%. The index's gains were capped by a 5% decline in Fertiglobe, a chemical manufacturer, and a 1.5% drop in First Abu Dhabi Bank, the largest lender. Six people with knowledge of the matter said that the United Arab Emirates is quietly revising its plans for a 5-gigawatt AI Data Center?project, one of the largest outside the U.S., after the Iran War prompted a reconsideration of where and how critical infrastructure should be built. According to LSEG, the Abu Dhabi Index and Dubai Index both recorded weekly gains of 1,4% and 1%, respectively.
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Turkish Minister says Turkey and Azerbaijan are aiming to sign a deal on a power transmission line in Europe by November.
Alparslan Bayraktar, the Turkish Energy Minister, said that Turkey, Azerbaijan, and other participating 'countries' aim to sign an agreement for a power transmission link to europe during COP31 - the climate summit, in November. The electricity corridor would allow surplus electricity from Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkey to be exported to Southeast Europe. Bayraktar said at the Azerbaijan and Turkey Energy Forum in Baku that "this is a TANAP on a regional scale" referring to the?pipeline that carries Caspian gas through Turkey to Europe. Bayraktar stated that the participating governments aimed at finalising an intergovernmental agreement regarding the overland electric corridor during the United Nations COP31 Climate Conference in Antalya, in November. Turkey and Azerbaijan want to use their geographical positions and existing energy ties to become major exporters of green electricity as European countries diversify and pursue decarbonisation goals. Azerbaijan is 'further planning to build a regional power bridge connecting Central Asia with Turkey via the 'Zangezur Transport Corridor, said?country energy minister, Parviz Shahbazov.
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AirBaltic has postponed a key bondholders meeting
In an email, Latvia's airBaltic> announced that it had rescheduled the meeting of its?bondholders, which was scheduled to take place on Friday. The airline stated that the bondholders meeting had been postponed in order to give bondholders more time to review and submit their voting instructions. The virtual meeting will now take place on September 15th. The Latvian government, which owns the majority of the carrier, has said it will seek financing from bondholders in a bid to avoid default. AirBaltic asked bondholders on Friday for approval of a plan to raise EUR257,000,000 ($298,000,000) via new super-senior bonds due in 2027. The airline is a 'test case' for the wider market, where weaker operators who struggle to re-pass on increased costs are most affected by the soaring jet fuel price caused by the Iran War. Analysts said that the rise in yields could be due to a 'priority' given to new bonds over notes due in 2029.
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Myanmar's Mandalay Airport shuts down after drone attack
According to a major domestic carrier, flight operations at the airport international serving Myanmar's 2nd largest?city were shut down following a drone strike on 'Thursday' by rebels fighting the country's military in a long-running civil war. Myanmar Airways International announced on its official page on Facebook late Thursday night that all international flights into and out of Mandalay's Tada-U International Airport had been temporarily suspended. Domestic flights will be?transferred until further notice to another airport for "operational" reasons. An official from Myanmar Airways International's Bangkok office, who declined to give their name, said that flights to Mandalay on September 11 and 12, are cancelled. The airport is closed, so the flights have been cancelled. Global New Light of Myanmar, the state-run news outlet, reported that security forces thwarted a terrorist attack by the People's Defence Force (PDF), a prodemocracy militant organization, who fired six suicide drones from 'first-person' view at an airport. The attack caused a temporary disruption of some domestic flights. The newspaper reported that no injuries or damage was caused to airport runways or vehicles. Local media reported that the resistance was targeting military jet fighters on the airport. Could not independently verify the situation. Since the February 20, 2021 coup that ousted Aung San Suu Kyi's elected government, Myanmar has been engulfed in conflict. This has triggered a national resistance movement which has developed into a civil war involving the military with a variety of ethnic groups armed and pro-democracy militas. Min Aung Hlaing was the former head of Myanmar's junta and was elected president in April by a parliament backed by the military. This formalised his hold on power following five years under army rule.
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AirBaltic has postponed a key bondholders' meeting
AirBaltic, a Latvian carrier, has rescheduled the'meeting with bondholders scheduled for?Friday. The majority-owned airline by the Latvian government has stated that it is seeking funding from bondholders in order to avert default. AirBaltic asked its bondholders on Friday for their approval of a plan to raise EUR257m ($298m) via a new super-senior loan due in 2027. The virtual meeting will now take place on the 15th of September, without further explanation. The airline is a good test case for the broader airline market, where weaker operators who struggle to pass higher costs on face the greatest pressure due to the rising jet fuel prices caused by the Iran War. The new bonds will be given priority in repaid from collateral, which includes eight aircraft and seven engines. Notes due in 2029 are ranked third. Analysts believe this could have been the cause of a spike in yields this week.
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New York Times Business News - September 11,
These are the top stories from the New York Times' business pages. ? These stories have not been?verified? and we cannot vouch for the accuracy of these reports. Anthropic has blocked several attempts to use their artificial intelligence models in research that could help?the development?of biological weapons. The Trump administration has announced that it will issue $500 rebates to nearly one million Americans in 30 states who are higher-income earners and have enrolled in Obamacare plans. Michael O'Leary, Chief Executive Officer of Ryanair, denied reports that a passenger was partially sucked from a shattered glass during a Malta Air flight on its way to Germany. McClatchy owns The Miami Herald and has cut more than one-third of the editorial staff at The Herald. The company cited a lack of interest from subscribers as a reason for cutting jobs.
TC Energy's oil pipeline spin-off South Bow starts trading on TSX
TC Energy's liquids pipeline spinoff, South Bow Corp, edged lower on its first day of trading on the Toronto Stock Market on Wednesday, tracking a broader weakness in Canadian energy stocks.
South Bow was drawn out of Calgary-based TC to help TC minimize its debt load and concentrate on moving gas. Investors got one South Bow common share for every five TC common shares held.
The stock was last down 0.2% at C$ 29.01 on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
South Bow's main asset is the 622,000 barrel-per-day Keystone pipeline, which ships Canadian crude from Alberta to the U.S. Midwest and Gulf Coast. In overall the business operates 4,900 km (3,045 miles) of oil pipeline facilities and ships about 20% of Canadian crude exports to the U.S.
South Bow has made clear it will concentrate on optimizing operations on its existing assets and returning money to investors, rather than ending up being a growth engine, said Martin Cobb, senior vice president of equities at Lorne Steinberg Wealth Management, which holds shares in South Bow.
They have set out their stall as a capital maker, Cobb stated.
Canada is the world's fourth-largest crude producer and output from northern Alberta's oil sands has struck record highs over the past year, driven partly by the start-up of the Trans Mountain growth project which takes on Keystone for customers.
Analysts said South Bow's higher-than-average dividend yield would help offset financier concerns about its substantial financial obligation load, while the extremely contracted Keystone pipeline is viewed as a. stable source of profits.
The high level of agreements and competitive position of the. Keystone pipeline supports a healthy valuation, however the less. varied capital, lower development and greater utilize will. most likely weigh on assessment relative to peers, BMO Capital. Markets analyst Ben Pham stated in a research note.
(source: Reuters)