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Gulf crisis affects Australian and New Zealand companies, from airlines to banks
As fuel prices rise, they are causing inflation and affecting consumer confidence, while also weighing on the earnings of Australian and New Zealand companies. Some of the companies from Australia and New Zealand have reported an impact on their business due to the Middle East conflict. Air New Zealand, New Zealand's flag airline, announced that it would be raising fares in response to the volatility of jet fuel prices. It was one of the first airlines to do so. The airline announced on April 7 that it would cut flights by 4% and 1%, respectively. Auckland International Airport, New Zealand: Auckland International Airport reported that flights to the Middle East from Auckland were affected. In March, the number of passengers on Middle Eastern routes dropped by 81% and seat capacity fell by 73% compared to a year earlier, according to airport operator. New Zealand-based a2 Milk has cut its profit forecast for fiscal 2026 as higher freight costs and supply chain disruptions due to conflict have affected the availability of the China-label infant formula product on its largest market. Cleanaway Waste Management - The company has slashed their full-year operating profit forecast by approximately A$20million ($14.17million), due to higher costs, lower activity and differences in timing of cost recovery. Cochlear: Cochlear, an Australian manufacturer of hearing implants, has lowered its profit forecast for 2026 due to weaker trading on developed markets. The company cited slower surgical volumes, lower hearing-aid referrals, and softer consumer confidence. The company stated that the Middle East War?has increased risks of order cancellations and delivery delays, as well as higher receivables. This has worsened margin pressure, and restructuring costs. Fletcher Building Fletcher Building in New Zealand said that it is indirectly affected by the Middle East conflict through supply chains, freight lines, energy costs and a broader economic impact on the construction demand throughout Australasia. Construction materials manufacturer expects to increase prices in all divisions as a result of passing on costs to its customers. The company will increase prices by up to 36 percent in plastics, where it says they are most vulnerable. Other divisions can expect a 1%-5% price hike. Fonterra New Zealand, the dairy producer, said that the conflict could impact its supply chain and increase its inventory and costs in second half of year while also contributing volatility in global commodities prices. National Australia Bank: National Australia Bank expects to incur credit-related impairment charges in the amount of?A$706 ($504.44 millions) during the first half fiscal 2026. NAB stated that the volatility of interest rates in the second quarter, the weaker New Zealand Dollar and the increase in provisioning would result in a reduction of the common equity tier one capital ratio for the group by approximately 20 basis points on March 31. The company also plans to apply a discount of 1.5% to its dividend reinvestment program for the first half to raise A$1.8 billion and help strengthen its balance sheet. Orora Packaging Company: Orora has lowered its earnings forecasts for its French division Saverglass, and canceled its share-buyback program. The company cited the impact of war. Due to the closures of shipping routes, the company also stopped bottle production in its glass production plant at Ras al-Khaimah (United Arab Emirates). Qantas Airways: Qantas Airways is Australia's national carrier. It has raised its fuel costs outlook for the second half of this year by as much as A$800,000,000 and announced that it had not yet begun its planned A$150,000,000 share buyback, citing volatile and sharply increased jet fuel prices. Qantas has increased fares to offset the rising cost of its flights and shifted them towards stronger routes, such as Paris and Rome where demand is strong. They have also reduced domestic capacity by 5 percentage points during the second quarter. Qube Holdings : Qube anticipates that the Middle East conflict will have an impact on its EBITA of between A$10 and A$20 million in fiscal 2026. The logistics company said, however, that recent events could encourage an increase in investment in alternative energy projects. This could be beneficial for the firm. Virgin Australia: Virgin Australia expects a fuel cost increase of A$30 to A$40 Million ($21.39 to $28.52 millions) in the second half of fiscal year 2026. In mid-March, the airlines announced that they were adjusting their fares due to rising costs in the aviation industry "exacerbated" by the Middle East situation. Westpac: Westpac, Australia's no. Westpac, Australia's no. Westpac's net margin for its Treasury and Markets division has been?weaker due to interest rate volatility related to the conflict. A weaker outlook is already leading credit provisioning. Westpac's provisioning of potential bad debt has reached its highest level since the COVID-19 pandemic. Worley: Worley estimates that the negative impact of the Middle East Conflict on its underlying EBITA in fiscal 2026 will be between A$30 and A$40 Million. The Australian engineering company warned that it would not be able to grow its underlying EBITA by more than 5% in fiscal 2026 but continued to aim for higher revenue growth than fiscal 2025.
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TUI reduces full-year operating profit forecast on Iran war
German tourism group TUI cut its full-year operating profit (EBIT), and suspended their revenue guidance on Wednesday, citing the uncertainty caused by the ongoing Iran War. It expects its underlying EBIT to be in the range of 1.1-1.4 billion euros for its fiscal year that ends September 2026 ($1.3-$1.6billion). It had previously expected an increase of 7-10% from the 1.4 billion euros in the previous year. The group stated that the conflict in the Middle East, and the uncertainty about its duration, continue to limit consumer confidence in the near term. The 'group's Markets + Airline & Hotels & Resorts has suffered from a partial shift of customer demand - away from Eastern to Western mediterranean destination in the wake if the Middle East conflic. Customers are exhibiting a heightened level of caution and booking nearer to departure dates. ($1 = 0.8511 Euros) (Reporting and Editing by Miranda Murray, Linda Pasquini)
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Gulf markets mixed after Hormuz ceasefire dampens optimism
The major stock markets in the Gulf were?mixed? on Wednesday as caution?over?the continued closure of?the Strait?of?Hormuz offset?U.S. Trump's decision to extend the ceasefire indefinitely with Iran was a major factor. Trump announced on Tuesday that he will extend the ceasefire in order to facilitate further peace talks with the aim of ending the war, which has claimed thousands of lives and shaken the global economy. The U.S. Navy maintained its blockade on Iran's coastline and ports, which Tehran called an act of warfare. The Strait of Hormuz, which is responsible for around 20% of global oil and gas supplies, was largely a standstill Tuesday. Only three ships had passed the waterway in the past 24 hours, according to shipping data. Dubai's main stock index rose 0.3% thanks to a rise of 1.7% in Emirates Integrated Telecommunications. Air Arabia, however, fell 2.1%. In Abu Dhabi, the index increased by 0.2%. Saudi Arabia's benchmark Index fell 0.2% due to a 0.5% drop in Al Rajhi Bank. However, ?oil major Saudi Aramco rose 0.2%. Brent crude futures were flat at $98.47 per barrel, despite a swing between gains and losses. The Qatari Index fell by 0.1% and the Qatar Islamic Bank lost 0.7%. (Reporting by Ateeq Shariff in Bengaluru. Mark Potter edited the article.
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The ministry has stated that no Kazakh crude will be able to reach Germany's PCK Refinery after May.
Germany's economy ministry said on Wednesday that it has been informed by the country's oil company that no crude oil from Kazakhstan will be able to reach the PCK Schwedt Refinery in the northeastern part of the country after May. It added that the production and sale of petroleum products would not be affected. On Tuesday, three industry sources told us that Russia will stop oil exports from Kazakhstan via the Druzhba Pipeline starting May 1. This would affect PCK directly as it is one of Germany's largest refineries and also supplies Berlin. The Ministry, which controls Schwedt through a?trusteeship, stated that Schwedt’s?majority-owner Rosneft informed it of the move, and added that the Russian Government had not confirmed this yet. The German Economy Ministry issued a statement saying that Rosneft Deutschland was assessing the situation and would adapt to "any new situation". "Rosneft Deutschland understands its responsibility and will fulfill its obligations." аке, the existing options will also be used to ensure "security of supply" in Germany. The ministry said that the lack of Kazakh oil deliveries at the refinery did not "ultimately compromise the security of supply of petroleum products in Germany". Rosneft Germany was not immediately available to comment. (Reporting and editing by Matthias Williams, Thomas Seythal, and Christoph Steitz)
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Russian drones kill a railway worker in the south of Ukraine, according to deputy PM.
Oleksiy?Kuleba, the Deputy Prime?Minister of Ukraine, said that Russian 'drones' attacked infrastructure at Ukraine's Odesa Black Sea?port over night. Kuleba, a Telegram user, wrote that the attack damaged berths, storage facilities, rail infrastructure, and port operator's facilities. Ukraine's Seaports Authority said that the?hold on a cargo vessel was also?hit causing an fire. The authority stated on Telegram that based on preliminary information, no one was injured in the attack and 'the port is still operational'. Russia has targeted the maritime export routes of Ukraine more than four years since its invasion, and struck ports that are vital for foreign trade and?wartime economies. Kuleba stated that a Russian drone strike at a sorting yard at the Zaporizhzhia Live station in the "southern"?Zaporizhzhia area killed a assistant train driver. He added that the train driver had been hospitalized. According to the Ukrainian air force, Russia launched 215 drones towards Ukraine since Tuesday evening at 6 pm (1500 GMT), 189 of them were neutralized or downed. (Reporting and editing by Tom Hogue, Andrew Heavens and Anna Pruchnicka)
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Maguire: Five charts showing how the US clean electricity output continues to climb.
The U.S. energy system continues to set new milestones in clean power nine months after President Donald Trump's administration gutted many clean energy policies and pushed more fossil fuels. U.S. utilities are on track to increase clean electricity supply by more than four times in the next four years. They have also increased total electricity production and given clean-power sources an unprecedented share of utility-supplied power generation. U.S. utilities have also reduced fossil fuel-fired generation to the greatest extent since 2023. This has resulted in?the?lowest emissions from coal-fired plants since 2018. Here are five charts that show how the U.S. power mix is getting cleaner, despite federal funding for renewables being cut and fossil fuels receiving more support. CLEAN CUT Data from the energy think-tank Ember show that in March 2026, clean-power sources will generate more electricity than fossil fuel power plants for the first time. In March, 182.6 terawatt-hours (TWh), a record amount of electricity, was produced from clean power sources. This compares to 166 TWh from fossil fuel power plants. The clean power surge was primarily driven by the record-breaking output of wind and solar farms in March. This accounted for 52% of the total electricity produced last month. The total clean electricity supply for the quarter of January to March surpassed 500 TWh for the first. It weighed in at 512.3 compared with 582 TWh coming from fossil fuel sources. Comparing the quarter of 2025 to that of January-March 2019, clean-power production was up by 6.5%, while fossil fuel output fell 5%. In January-March, clean-power sources represented a record share of the total utility supply. This is up from 44%. HIGH AND RISING As the summer approaches, the share of clean power in the utility mix is expected to increase as the combined output of solar and wind farms reaches its annual peak at the same time as the use of fossil fuel power plants reaches an annual low. Solar farms have already contributed to a record 11 percent of the total electricity produced by utilities in March. However, they tend to reach a peak in their output each year in July when the solar radiation is at its highest. The readings of monthly solar shares could thus reach new heights this summer, as solar assets continue to grow in size and capture a larger portion of the energy mix. Battery systems for utility-scale applications, which are often charged during peak solar production and discharged when the sun sets, will also likely capture a record share of electricity supply this year. The output from wind farms peaks around March or April. Utility systems should then play a decreasing role until the fall. The increased wind farm area and upgraded blades on several sites in the country will boost the output of wind farms, even though wind speeds are slower during the summer. Utilities will be closely monitoring this component. COAL VS NUCLEAR The U.S. nuclear fleet is becoming more prominent thanks to the high-profile support of policymakers for the sector. The new nuclear support will take years to increase electricity supply, but the fleet of reactors currently in operation is able to achieve new generational milestones. In the last eight months, for example, the electricity produced by coal-fired power plants has been surpassed, which is a record. This helps the electricity sector to become cleaner. Ember data show that coal-fired power output between January and March was 169 TWh. This is down from the 196 TWh produced during the same period in 2025. It compares with the 194 TWh produced by nuclear reactors this year. The coal-fired emission for the first quarter of 2026 was around 177 millions metric tons of carbon dioxide and other equivalent gases. This compares to an average 219 million tons for the same period in the previous three year. The coal-fired power plant will continue to reduce until summer when the demand for air conditioners, which are energy-intensive, increases and utilities must increase their output. The overall clean-power supply is expected to continue growing until then. This will allow utilities to increase total electricity while reducing their reliance on fossil fuel?plants, and keep power pollution levels under control. Since renewables and?battery system can be deployed more quickly, cheaper and efficiently than new gas-fired power plants, the momentum of clean power in the U.S. electric grid will continue to grow despite Trump's antirenewables stance. These are the opinions of a columnist who writes for. You like this column? Check out Open Interest, your new essential source for global financial commentary. Follow ROI on LinkedIn, X and X. Listen to the Morning Bid podcast daily on Apple, Spotify or the app. Subscribe to the Morning Bid podcast and hear journalists discussing the latest news in finance and markets 7 days a weeks.
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Kazakhstan blames Ukrainian strikes for the cancellation of oil exports from Germany to Germany via Russia in May
The 'energy minister' of Kazakhstan said that no Kazakh oil would be flowing via the 'Russian Druzhba Pipeline' to Germany in 'May'. He said this disruption was likely caused by Ukrainian drone attacks. Erlan Akkenzhenov, Minister of Erlan's Erlan, said that Russia has informally informed Kazakhstan that they do not have the technical capability to ship Kazakh oil into Germany and that exports will resume "once the capacity is restored." He didn't provide any more specific details. He said that the transit of Kazakh oil would resume as soon as the technical feasibility issue was resolved. Most likely, it is related to recent attacks on Russian infrastructure. Kazakhstan will export 2 million tons of oil per year to Germany by 2025. That's more than 40,000 barrels every day. The PCK refinery supplies Berlin with the exports. On Tuesday, it was reported that Russia is planning to stop oil exports to Germany via the Druzhba Pipeline starting May 1. Akkenzhenov said that Kazakhstan will 'not reduce oil production due to the suspension of exports to Germany.' He also stated that the Caspian Consortium, which is responsible for the bulk of Kazakh oil exports through Russia, continues to operate as usual.
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Wall Street Journal April 22,
These are the most popular stories from?the Wall Street Journal. These stories have not been verified and?has no?guarantee for their accuracy. Iraqi and U.S. officials said that the Trump administration has frozen security programs with Iraq's military as well as suspended U.S. dollars shipments. This is a way to increase pressure on Baghdad, to demantle powerful Iranian backed militias. Kevin Warsh, the Fed's nominee for chair, told senators that he would make a radical departure from recent monetary policy. He also promised to maintain independence from President Obama who has frequently expressed his desire for looser monetary policies. Amazon.com is launching a GLP-1 treatment program through its One Medical primary healthcare arm. United Airlines has said that it has already adjusted its schedule to take into account the volatile and high fuel prices. These are partly due to disruptions caused by the war in Iran. Attorney General Letitia J. James of New York filed lawsuits against the crypto exchanges Coinbase & Gemini accusing them of operating prediction market that violates state gambling laws. Medicare will extend its short-term program that pays for weight-loss medications such as Eli Lilly's Zepbound or Novo Nordisk Wegovy. This will ensure seniors will have access to these popular drugs next year.
MOL expects oil to be shipped via Druzhba to Hungary and Slovakia
MOL, the oil group of Hungary, announced 'on Wednesday' that the Ukrainian operator of the Druzhba Pipeline has officially informed MOL that he is prepared to resume crude oil transports from Ukraine to Hungary and Slovakia.
Hungary and Slovakia are no longer receiving Russian oil via Druzhba after a Russian drone attack damaged the pipeline west Ukraine.
The Slovak and incoming?Hungarian prime ministers, Viktor Orban (who was ousted from office in elections on April 12) have accused Ukraine of delaying repairs. Kyiv denies this.
Ukraine will resume pumping through the Druzhba Pipeline?on Tuesday?, according to an industry source. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy had said that repairs were completed and asked the EU to unlock a 90 billion Euro ($105.74 Billion) loan which was halted due to a disagreement over the pipeline.
MOL issued a statement saying that JSC Ukrtransnafta (the company that operates the Ukrainian section Druzhba Pipeline) has informed MOL officially that the repair work on the Druzhba Pipeline is complete and that the force majeure conditions that have been in place since 27 January 2026 have ceased as of 6pm on 21 April.
According to the notification, JSC Ukrtransnafta has a ready-made plan to resume crude oil transport to Hungary and Slovakia.
Peter Magyar, the Hungarian winner of the election on Sunday, urged Zelenskiy to reopen damaged pipelines as soon as they are functional and that Russia resume oil deliveries through them. ($1 = 0.8511 euros) (Reporting by Krisztina Than Editing by Tomasz Janowski)
(source: Reuters)