US Fed signals one rate cut this year

Spanish Market: Agriculture, Crude oil, LPG, Metals, Natural gas
12/06/24

The US Federal Reserve kept its target interest rate unchanged at a 23-year high today while officials signaled they expect to make only one quarter-point rate cut later this year.

The Fed board and policymakers, in their latest economic projections, expect the target rate range will end 2024 near a midpoint of 5.1pc, compared with the 4.6pc midpoint projected in March. That implies one quarter-point cut, down from three possible cuts penciled-in previously.

"We do not expect it will be appropriate to reduce the target range for the federal funds rate until we have gained greater confidence that inflation is moving sustainably" towards the Fed goal of 2pc, Fed chairman Jerome Powell said after the meeting. "As the economy evolves, appropriate assessments of the policy path will adjust in order to best promote our maximum employment and price stability goals."

The Fed's Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) held the federal funds target rate unchanged at 5.25-5.5pc. It was the sixth consecutive meeting in which the Fed held rates steady following 11 increases from March 2022 through July last year in the most aggressive hiking campaign in four decades.

The decision to keep rates steady was widely expected. CME's FedWatch tool, which tracks fed funds futures trading, had assigned a 99pc probability to the Fed holding rates steady today. The FedWatch tool had earlier signaled two rate cuts later this year, but following a better-than-expected inflation report this morning, FedWatch is now indicating three possible rate cuts, beginning in September.

The Fed's economic projections see core Personal Consumption Expenditures inflation, the Fed's favorite measure of inflation, ending 2024 at a median forecast of 2.8pc from a prior forecast for 2.6pc. Policymakers see inflation falling to a median 2.3pc next year.

The outlook for the unemployment rate for the end of 2024 remained unchanged at 4pc. Policymakers expect gross domestic product (GDP) growth to end the year at 2.1pc, unchanged from prior projections.

The latest policy meeting comes as the Consumer Price Index (CPI) eased to an annual 3.3pc in May, down from 3.4pc in April, the Labor Department reported earlier today. Inflation had ticked up to 3.5pc in March from 3.1pc in January, prompting the Fed to turn more cautious about beginning its rate cuts.

US job growth has surprised to the upside and continues to top pre-Covid levels. GDP growth slowed to a 1.3pc annual rate in the first quarter, from 3.4pc in the fourth quarter of 2023.

By Bob Willis

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13/05/25

US to lift sanctions on Syria: Update

Adds that US, Syrian presidents will meet on Wednesday Washington, 13 May (Argus) — US president Donald Trump said today he will lift all US sanctions on Syria, a move that will allow the new government in Damascus to access global oil markets and banking systems and to advance energy projects. "I will be ordering the cessation of sanctions against Syria in order to give them a chance at greatness," Trump said in Riyadh, while addressing a US-Saudi business forum. Trump said he was ordering the sanctions relief at the urging of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman and Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan. US secretary of state Marco Rubio will meet his Syrian counterpart in Turkey later this week, Trump said. Trump will have a brief meeting with Syria's new leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, in Riyadh on Wednesday, the White House said. Former president Joe Biden's administration in January issued a sanctions waiver through 7 July to enable previously prohibited energy trade with Syria. The EU in February suspended a range of sanctions against Syria, including restrictions related to the energy, banking, transport and reconstruction sectors. A permanent relief of US sanctions would require Trump to remove Syria's previous designation as a "state sponsor of terrorism". Al-Sharaa's group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, is separately classified by the US as a "foreign terrorist organization". The US also has imposed a series of sanctions against Syria by statute, rather than executive action, which Trump would have to waive. Before Syrian president Bashar al-Assad's fall from power in December, the country relied heavily on Iran for crude and product supplies. Syria issued its first tenders to buy crude and refined products in January, but it attracted limited interest. The country then received cargoes of Russian crude and diesel in March-April, including some cargoes delivered aboard tankers that are under US sanctions. By Haik Gugarats Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Nigeria loads first cargo of new Obodo crude

13/05/25

Nigeria loads first cargo of new Obodo crude

London, 13 May (Argus) — The first cargo of Nigeria's new medium sweet crude, Obodo, has loaded and could be headed for Germany, according to sources. The Suezmax Atlanta Spirit loaded on 25 April from the floating production, storage and offloading vessel Tamara Tokoni , according to tracking data from Kpler. Nigerian energy firm Oando, which marketed the shipment, has sold it to an undisclosed buyer, according to traders. A source at Nigeria's state-owned NNPC said the cargo could be headed for the North Sea port of Wilhelmshaven, but this was unconfirmed. Obodo has a gravity of 27.65°API and a very low sulphur content of 0.05pc, according to an assay seen by Argus . Details on Obodo's production levels are not immediately available. Nigerian independent Continental Oil and Gas is producing Obodo at onshore oil block OML 150 in the Niger delta. NNPC restarted production of similar-quality Utapate in 2024 and launched Nembe a year earlier. Obodo could find favour with European refineries, as Nigerian medium sweet grades — including Forcados, Escravos and Bonga — have gone predominantly to Europe, the largest market for the country's crude. By Sanjana Shivdas and George Maher-Bonnett Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

US to lift sanctions on Syria

13/05/25

US to lift sanctions on Syria

Washington, 13 May (Argus) — US president Donald Trump said today he will lift all US sanctions on Syria, a move that will allow the new government in Damascus to access global oil markets and banking systems and to advance energy projects. "I will be ordering the cessation of sanctions against Syria in order to give them a chance at greatness," Trump said in Riyadh, while addressing a US-Saudi business forum. Trump said he was ordering the sanctions relief at the urging of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman and Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan. US secretary of state Marco Rubio will meet his Syrian counterpart in Turkey later this week, Trump said. The White House did not confirm whether Trump plans to meet with Syria's new leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, during his visit to the Mideast Gulf this week. Former president Joe Biden's administration in January issued a sanctions waiver through 7 July to enable previously prohibited energy trade with Syria. The EU in February suspended a range of sanctions against Syria, including restrictions related to the energy, banking, transport and reconstruction sectors. A permanent relief of US sanctions would require Trump to remove Syria's previous designation as a "state sponsor of terrorism". Al-Sharaa's group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, is separately classified by the US as a "foreign terrorist organization". The US also has imposed a series of sanctions against Syria by statute, rather than executive action, which Trump would have to waive. Before Syrian president Bashar al-Assad's fall from power in December, the country relied heavily on Iran for crude and product supplies. Syria issued its first tenders to buy crude and refined products in January, but it attracted limited interest. The country then received cargoes of Russian crude and diesel in March-April, including some cargoes delivered aboard tankers that are under US sanctions. By Haik Gugarats Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

UK TRA proposes 40pc cap on other countries' HDG

13/05/25

UK TRA proposes 40pc cap on other countries' HDG

London, 13 May (Argus) — The UK Trade Remedies Authority (TRA) has recommended the imposition of a 40pc cap on the other countries' quotas for hot-dip galvanised (HDG) and plate in its statement of final determination published today. It proposes that the caps come into effect on 1 October to enable material already on the water to clear and avoid supply restrictions. "This would address the concern about crowding out, whilst maintaining a similar volume of imports to come from existing supply countries," the TRA said. The other countries' quota for HDG is 88,075t for July-September, meaning anyone selling into it — the quota is dominated by Vietnam and South Korea — has access to 35,230t before duties become payable. The TRA said there should be no cap on organic coated material, despite requests to the contrary from UK Steel. Going forward, Turkey will not be in scope of the safeguard on HDG as its share during the investigation period was just 0.1pc. The TRA said unused quota should no longer be rolled forward to the next quota, and that countries with their own individual quota should have no access to the residual other countries' quota in the final quarter of the quota year, April-June. These two changes are largely in line with those made by the EU in its recent safeguard review. Vietnam will also come into the residual quota for hot-rolled coil, which is 24,295t/quarter, as its volumes have exceeded the 3pc limit specified by the WTO for developing economy status, reaching 4.3pc in the TRA's investigation period. Vietnam had been a favoured origin for traders and buyers, given its previous exemption from the measures. Egypt remains exempt and will likely be subject to increased interest going forward. Some large buyers have been visiting the country in recent months to establish supply lines. The TRA's recommendation "falls short of what is required, given the scale of the challenge the UK industry is faced with", UK Steel said. By Colin Richardson Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

US budget bill would prolong 45Z, boost crops

13/05/25

US budget bill would prolong 45Z, boost crops

New York, 13 May (Argus) — A proposal from House Republican tax-writers would extend for four additional years a new tax credit for low-carbon fuels and adjust the incentive to be more lenient to crops used for biofuels. Republicans on the House Ways and Means Committee on Monday introduced their draft portion of a far-reaching budget bill, which included various changes to Inflation Reduction Act clean energy subsidies. But the "45Z" Clean Fuel Production Credit, which requires fuels to meet an initial carbon intensity threshold and then ups the subsidy as emissions fall, would be the only incentive from the 2022 climate law to last even longer than Democrats planned under the current draft. The proposal represents an early signal of Republicans' plans for major legislation through the Senate's reconciliation process, which allows budget-related bills to pass with a simple majority vote. The full Ways and Means Committee will consider amendments at a markup this afternoon, and House leaders want the full chamber to vote on the larger budget bill before the US Memorial Day holiday on 26 May. Afterwards, the proposal would head to the Republican-controlled Senate, where lawmakers could float further changes. But the early draft, in a chamber with multiple deficit hawks and climate change skeptics that have pushed for a full repeal of the Inflation Reduction Act, is remarkable for not just keeping but expanding 45Z. The basics of the incentive — offering benefits to producers instead of blenders, throttling benefits based on carbon intensity, and offering more credit to sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) — would remain intact. Various changes would help fuels derived from US crops. The most notable would prevent regulators measuring carbon intensity from considering "indirect land use change" emissions that attempt to quantify the risks of using agricultural land for fuel instead of food. Under current emissions modeling, the typical dry mill corn ethanol plant does not meet the 45Z credit's initial carbon intensity requirement — but substantially more gallons produced today would have a chance at qualifying without any new investments in carbon capture if this bill were to pass. The indirect land use change would also create the possibility for canola-based fuels, which are just slightly too carbon-intensive to qualify for 45Z today, to start claiming some subsidy. Fuels from soybean oil currently qualify but would similarly benefit from larger potential credits. Still, credit values would depend on final regulations and updated carbon accounting from President Donald Trump's administration. Since the House proposal does not address the current law's blunt system for rounding emissions values up and down, relatively higher-carbon corn and canola fuels still face the risk of falling just below 45Z's required carbon intensity threshold but then being rounded up to a level where they receive zero subsidy. The House bill would also restrict eligibility to fuels derived from feedstocks sourced in the US, Canada, and Mexico — an attempt at a middle ground between refiners that have increasingly looked abroad for biofuel inputs and domestic farm groups that have lobbied for 45Z to prioritize US crops. That language would make more durable current restrictions on foreign used cooking oil and significantly reduce the incentive to import tallow from South America and Australia, a loss for major renewable diesel producers Diamond Green Diesel, Phillips 66, and Marathon Petroleum. The provision would also hurt US biofuel producer LanzaJet, which has imported lower-carbon Brazilian sugarcane ethanol as a SAF feedstock to the chagrin of domestic corn ethanol producers. The bill would also require regulators to set more granular carbon intensity calculations for different types of animal manure biogas projects, all of which are treated the same under current rules. Other lifecycle emissions models treat some dairy projects at deeply negative carbon intensities. Those changes to carbon intensity calculations and feedstock eligibility would kick in starting next year, meaning current rules would remain intact for now. The proposal would however phase out the ability of clean energy companies without enough tax liability to claim the full value of Inflation Reduction Act subsidies to sell those tax credits to other businesses. That pathway, known as transferability, would end for clean fuel producers after 2027, hurting small biodiesel producers that operate under thin margins in the best of times as well as SAF startups that were planning to start producing fuel later this decade. Markets unresponsive, but prepare for new possibilities There was little immediate reaction across biofuel, feedstock, and renewable identification number (RIN) credit markets, since the bill could be modified and most of the changes would only take force in the future. But markets may shift down the road. Limiting eligibility to feedstocks originating in North America for instance could continue recent strength in US soybean oil futures markets. July CBOT Soybean oil futures closed 3pc higher on Monday at 49.92¢/lb on the news and have traded even higher today. The spread between soybean oil and heating oil futures is then highly influential for the cost of D4 biomass-based diesel RIN credits, which are crucial for biofuel margins and have recently surged in value to their highest prices in over a year. The more lenient carbon accounting will also help farmers eyeing a long-term future in renewable fuel markets and will support margins for ethanol and biodiesel producers reliant on crops. Corn and soy groups have pushed the government for less punitive emissions tracking, worried that crop demand could wane if refiners could only turn a profit by using lower-carbon waste feedstocks instead. The House bill, if passed, would still run up against contradictory incentives from other governments, including SAF mandates in Europe that restrict fuels from crops and California's efforts to soon limit state low-carbon fuel standard credits for fuels derived from vegetable oils. By Cole Martin and Matthew Cope Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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