US adds 303,000 jobs in March, tops estimates
The US added a more-than-expected 303,000 nonfarm jobs in March and the jobless rate ticked lower, more signs the labor market remains robust in the face of higher borrowing costs.
Job gains in March topped analysts' estimates of about 200,000 for the month and followed upward revisions of 22,000 jobs for the prior two months, leaving February gains at 270,000, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. Gains over the prior 12 months averaged 231,000.
The unemployment rate fell to 3.8pc in March from 3.9pc the prior month.
Futures markets showed about a 53pc probability of rate cuts beginning in June after the report was released, compared with about 66pc odds prior to the report. Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell this week reiterated that policymakers needed "greater confidence" inflation was sustainably slowing before beginning to cut the Fed target rate, currently at a 23-year high. Still, he said, most Fed policymakers expected rate cuts to begin "at some point this year."
Health care added 72,000 jobs and government added 71,000 jobs. Construction added 39,000 jobs, about double the recent monthly average, while manufacturing was unchanged and mining added 3,000 jobs.
Average hourly earnings were up by an annual 4.1pc in March, down from 4.3pc for the year through February and reflecting easing wage pressures as inflation slows.
By Bob Willis
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Singapore’s bunker sales hit 10-month low in April
Singapore’s bunker sales hit 10-month low in April
Singapore, 15 May (Argus) — Singapore's April bunker sales fell to a 10-month low on weak very-low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) demand. But consumption of high-sulphur fuel oil (HSFO) and B24 biofuel bunkers remained firm. Singapore VLSFO bunker sales fell to at least a 15-month low of 2.25mn t in April, according to data from the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore. This came because of slower demand as more buyers turned to lower-priced HSFO. Singapore HSFO sales accounted for a 42pc share of total fuel oil sales in April, up from a 31pc share a year earlier. Disruptions in the Red Sea led to increased fuel usage by ocean-going vessels with higher rates of scrubber technology adoption, raising demand for HSFO by a greater extent than for VLSFO. Consumption of bio-blended VLSFO, or B24, climbed by 61pc on the year because buying interest gained traction, but slipped by 10pc from strong consumption in March . LNG bunker sales rose by over sixfold on the year but edged down from a record high in March . By Cassia Teo and Asill Bardh Singapore bunker sales 000t Apr-24 m-o-m ± % y-o-y ± % Jan-Apr 2024 ± % Low-sulphur fuel oil (LSFO) 2,252 -6.9 -16 10,088 -2.2 Marine fuel oil (MFO) 1,600 0.0 31 6,466 32 Low-sulphur MGO (LSMGO) 277 -11.0 -11 1,201 -3.0 Bio-blended LSFO 60 -10.0 61 186 53 Liquified natural gas (LNG) 36 -7.9 582 111 N/A MGO 9.7 88.0 -37 43 -9.2 Marine diesel oil (MDO) 0.0 N/A N/A 0.0 N/A Bio-blended MDO 0.0 N/A N/A 0.0 N/A Bio-blended marine gasoil (MGO) 0.0 N/A N/A 0.0 N/A Bio-blended LSMGO 0.0 N/A N/A 0.0 N/A Bio-blended MFO 0.0 N/A -100 0.0 -100 Ultra low sulphur fuel oil (ULSFO) 0.0 N/A N/A 0.0 N/A Bio-blended ULSFO 0.0 N/A N/A 0.0 N/A Methanol 0.0 N/A N/A 0.0 N/A Total 4,235 -4.7 -0.6 18,096 8.9 Source: MPA Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Liberty looks to sell or recapitalise EU rolling lines
Liberty looks to sell or recapitalise EU rolling lines
London, 15 May (Argus) — Beleaguered steelmaker Liberty Steel is looking to recapitalise or divest its main European rolling lines, the company said today. The lines are Liege in Belgium, Dudelange in Luxembourg and Piombino in Italy, and have a capacity of over 2.5mn t, the company said. Liege and Dudelange galvanise hot-rolled coil (HRC) and produce tinplate and blackplate, Magona produces prepaint and hot-dipped galvanised (HDG) products. "The primary objective is to review options for strategic partnerships through long-term HRC feedstock supply contracts, but will also consider and [sic] co-investment and divestment options," Liberty said. Negotiations over at least one of the assets have been ongoing for a number of months, but have potentially stalled at the contract signing stage, sources suggested this week. The company refused to comment on "speculation". As with Liberty's other EU and UK assets, the lines have not been producing anywhere near full capacity, if at all, for a number of years. They have not been supplied with feedstock from the company's own mills. Galati in Romania is operating, but nowhere near capacity, while Ostrava is rolling limited quantities of imported slab with the aid of third-party financing. As far back as June 2021, Belgium's Walloon government discussed loaning Liberty Steel an undisclosed fee to continue operating Liege-Dudelange, subject to the organisation of a sales procedure being started. Walloon's investment firm Sogepa said the loan would be subject to "strict conditions", including the organisation of a sale, but the loan was not finalised in the end. That same month, Liberty merged the downstream assets of Dudelange, Liege and Piombino into its Galati organisation. At the time the company said this would see Galati become the primary supplier of HRC to the rolling lines. The difficult market environment in Europe is compounding the difficulties faced by Liberty. Last week it mothballed its merchant bar mill in Scunthorpe, UK , as first reported by Argus . In reality, the mill has not produced anything for years. At Liberty's Speciality Steel business in south Yorkshire, UK, around 7,000t has been produced this year, out of nameplate capacity of 1.2mn t/yr. By Colin Richardson Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
India extends bid deadline for 28 oil, gas blocks again
India extends bid deadline for 28 oil, gas blocks again
Mumbai, 15 May (Argus) — India has further extended the deadline for submitting bids for 28 upstream oil and gas blocks in the ninth Open Acreage Licensing Programme (OALP) bidding round to 15 July. This is the second such extension in this bidding round under the Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy's OALP. The ninth bidding round was announced on 3 January and bids were initially due by 29 February . The deadline was then extended to 15 May . The government did not provide a specific reason for extending the deadline. But a lack of investor interest could be behind the delay, said market participants, adding that declining crude production and a tax policy that is hard to navigate have kept interest in exploration limited to domestic participants. India's crude and condensate production was at 589,000 b/d in April 2023-March 2024, down by 24pc from 2013-14. Of the 28 blocks offered, nine are onshore blocks, eight shallow-water blocks and 11 ultra-deepwater blocks across eight sedimentary basins, with an area of 136,596.45 km². The Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DHG) "carved out" five of these blocks, while the remaining 23 blocks are based on expressions of interest received from companies during April 2022-March 2023. The government had made offshore acreage of more than 1mn km² available for exploration and production operations off the west coast, east coast and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, which were earlier called "no-go" areas. About 560,000km² will come under exploration by the end of 2024 after the ninth and tenth blocks are awarded. The tenth bidding round under the OALP will be launched as soon as the ninth round is completed and will have more "no go" areas available for exploration. India has held eight OALP rounds and awarded 144 exploration and production blocks comprising a total area of 242,055km². State-controlled upstream firm ONGC won seven blocks in the eighth licensing round, while a private-sector consortium of India's Reliance Industries and BP, state-controlled upstream firm Oil India and private-sector Sun Petrochemicals received one block each. The government introduced the OALP in 2017 to attract oil and gas firms to develop India's upstream sector. The OALP guarantees marketing and pricing freedom with a revenue-sharing model, apart from offering reduced royalty rates. By Roshni Devi Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
IEA downgrades 2024 oil demand growth
IEA downgrades 2024 oil demand growth
London, 15 May (Argus) — The IEA now sees oil demand growth in 2025 outpacing this year, after it again downgraded its forecast for 2024 — mostly because of lower than anticipated first-quarter demand in Europe. In its latest Oil Market Report (OMR), published today, the Paris-based agency lowered its oil demand growth forecast for this year by 140,000 b/d to 1.06mn b/d, citing weak gasoil consumption. This would leave total oil demand in 2024 at 103.16mn b/d. "Poor industrial activity and another mild winter have sapped gasoil consumption this year, particularly in Europe where a declining share of diesel cars in the fleet were already undercutting consumption," the IEA said. The agency again lowered its 2024 forecast for Chinese oil demand growth, this time by 30,000 b/d to 510,000 b/d. It sees China's growth slowing to 360,000 b/d in 2025, but the country will remain the largest single contributor to global growth. The IEA also highlighted a rise in global oil inventories, which increased for a second consecutive month in March — by 36.4mn bl. It said preliminary data show further stock builds in April as "onshore oil inventories skyrocketed after oil on water was discharged." This after onshore stocks fell in March to the lowest since at least 2016, and OECD inventories to a 20-year low. The latest estimates mean the IEA now sees oil demand growth coming in higher in 2025 at 1.18mn b/d, up by 30,000 b/d from last month's estimate. This contrast sharply with Opec , which continues to see much higher growth this year at 2.25mn b/d and next year at 1.85mn b/d. On global oil supply, the IEA lowered its 2024 growth estimate by 160,000 b/d to 580,000 b/d citing maintenance in Canada, outages in Brazil and logistical constraints in the US. It noted a 150,000 b/d fall in Russian output in April, related to a new Opec+ production cut. It forecasts non-Opec+ growth to rise by 1.4mn b/d this year, and an 840,000 b/d fall from Opec+ because of production cuts. The agency projects global gains next year at 1.8mn b/d, with supply hitting a record 104.5mn b/d. The US, Guyana, Canada and Brazil continue to dominate global supply gains with a combined forecast 1.1mn b/d of additions this year and next. The IEA's latest forecasts imply a tighter market in 2024 than it previously anticipated. Its balances now show a global oil supply deficit of 460,000 b/d this year, compared with 270,000 b/d in last month's report. The projections assume Opec+ voluntary cuts remain in place until the of the year, although the group has yet to decide its output policy for the second half of the year. It may do so at a ministerial meeting scheduled for 1 June in Vienna. The IEA's latest balances put the call on Opec+ crude at around 42mn b/d in the second half of this year — 700,000 b/d above the group's April output. A recent slide in oil prices could keep pressure on the alliance to keep the cuts in place for longer. The IEA put the fall in oil prices down to concerns over the health of the global economy and dissipating fears of a wider conflict in the Middle East. By Aydin Calik Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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