S Africa's ANC, DA agree to form government

: Coal, Crude oil, Metals, Oil products
24/06/14

South Africa's African National Congress (ANC) and Democratic Alliance (DA) political parties today agreed to form a government while the first sitting of the new parliament was underway.

The agreement, which includes the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), paves the way for ANC leader Cyril Ramaphosa to be re-elected president. The parties will assume various positions in government broadly in proportion to their share of seats.

The government of national unity (GNU) agreement is the result of two weeks of intense negotiations after the ANC lost its long-held majority in the national election on 29 May. It secured 40.2pc of the vote, and the centre-right, pro-market DA retained its position as the official opposition with 21.8pc.

The deal scuppers the possibility of an alliance between the ANC and the two largest left-wing parties, MK (uMkhonto weSizwe) and the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), which credit ratings agency Fitch warned could pose risks to macroeconomic stability.

MK party unseated the EFF in the election to come third, winning 14.6pc of the vote. The EFF secured 9.5pc, and the IFP came a distant fifth with 3.85pc.

The MK and EFF are populist parties that campaigned on agendas including wide-scale land expropriation without compensation, nationalisation of economic assets — including mines, the central bank and large banks and insurers — halting fiscal consolidation and aggressively increasing social grants.

The GNU parties agreed the new administration should focus on rapid economic growth, job creation, infrastructure development and fiscal sustainability. Other priorities include building a professional, merit-based and non-partisan public service, as well as strengthening law enforcement agencies to address crime and corruption.

Through a national dialogue that will include civil society, labour and business, parties will seek to develop a national social compact to enable South Africa to meet its developmental goals, they said.

The GNU will take decisions in accordance with the established practice of consensus, but where no consensus is possible a principle of sufficient consensus will apply.

By Elaine Mills

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25/07/08

Immigration raids pressure south Texas scrap flows

Houston, 8 July (Argus) — South Texas ferrous scrap yards are facing inflow headwinds as increased efforts by US immigration officials to detain and deport non-citizens affect peddler traffic and the labor force. Several market participants speaking to Argus on condition of anonymity have reported a steep decrease in scrap inflows along the US-Mexico border in Texas since the start of President Donald Trump's second term in mid-January due to raids by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. Sources surveyed by Argus estimated a 25-50pc reduction in scrap being sold to yards in south Texas as a result of the raids, but they struggled to provide a more specific volume of scrap not delivered. Peddler traffic — scrap sold to yards by the public — accounts for a considerable percentage of material acquired by yards in the region, a market participant said. Sources said that many peddlers, as well as some workers at yards, are non-citizens and risk deportation if detained by ICE. The reduction in scrap flows is much larger than what would be seen from peddlers and yard workers who have been detained by ICE or the US Customs and Border Protection agency, they said, and is likely the result of a wider pull back from peddlers, nervous over the risk detention and deportation. Several yards reliant on peddler traffic or undocumented labor have shut in recent weeks, sources familiar with the matter said. ICE has been raiding communities along the border since early in the year when President Donald Trump started his second term. The recently-passed US budget bill allocated $45bn to, in part, hiring "thousands" of new ICE and Border Protection agents. It is unclear how much scrap is sold to US scrap yards by sellers who lack US citizenship, but continued pressure on those sellers and undocumented workers could cause supply tightness and labor shortages in south Texas yards. The monthly Texas ferrous scrap trade is expected to settle today, with several mills bidding all grades flat from June settlements. By Marialuisa Rincon Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

French diesel, HVO customs data mislabelled: Eurostat

25/07/08

French diesel, HVO customs data mislabelled: Eurostat

Barcelona, 8 July (Argus) — French firms have mislabelled imports of 10ppm diesel as hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) this year, following confusion over new customs codes, EU data service Eurostat has said. The confusion has come about after the introduction of a new import-export (CN) code for HVO that took effect at the start of 2025. Some French data will be restated. A diesel code of 27101943 was discontinued at the end of 2024 and was replaced by 27101944. A new CN code 27101942 for HVO was introduced. HVO is produced by treating vegetable oil with hydrogen, counts against biodiesel blend mandates, but is molecularly separate from biodiesel output by esterification. When customs data for 2025 began to be published at the end of the first quarter, France appeared to be importing large amounts of HVO from Saudi Arabia and the US. Cargoes from the former amounted to around 255,000t in the first quarter. Saudi Arabia has no HVO production known by Argus , nor does it re-export cargoes. It is France's largest diesel supplier. There were also 140,000t labelled as HVO from the US in January-March. But because the EU has anti-dumping and countervailing duties on US HVO imports, shipments of this size appeared questionable. The US is the second biggest diesel supplier to France. The mislabelling has made French and EU HVO traffic difficult to track. It has distorted French diesel import data , which show imports have fallen sharply. Argus first questioned the numbers in March when initial 2025 customs data were released. These queries were rebuffed, but after a follow up in May Eurostat said French customs had "confirmed that there has been an input error". New data will be supplied by France at an unspecified time this year, it said. By Adam Porter Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Australia's Gladstone port coal exports drop in FY25

25/07/08

Australia's Gladstone port coal exports drop in FY25

Sydney, 8 July (Argus) — Coal shipments out of Australia's Gladstone Port — which mainly supports coking coal mines in the northeastern state of Queensland — fell by 2.5pc on the year to 64mn t for the July 2024-June 2025 financial year. The decline was due to a mix of domestic operational and weather challenges, and subdued global steel production. Coal producers in the region faced multiple mine, rail, and port disruptions over 2024-25, beginning less than a month into the financial year. Rail operator Aurizon — which manages the lines linking Queensland's mines to Gladstone Port — closed its 100mn t/yr Blackwater and 30mn t/yr Moura lines for two weeks over July-August 2024. Gladstone Port faced its own challenges later in the year. The LNG and coal hub handled [multiple work stoppages in December]( https://direct.argusmedia.com/newsandanalysis/article/2640101), during tense labour negotiations between the port's management and five worker unions. Coal and LNG exports from Gladstone fell by 9.3pc and 2pc, respectively, that month . Challenges around the port continued into 2025. Global natural resources company Glencore's Oaky Creek mine along Aurizon's Blackwater line has been shut since late-April 2025 due to a water leak from a storage facility. Another mine, US-Australian producer Coronado's Curragh mine, faced cash availability challenges for much of the year. Australian producer Whitehaven Coal, which ships coal out of a number of Queensland ports, including Gladstone, also reported reduced coal sales in January-March because of wet weather. Coal financing issues in Queensland — and the rest of Australia — will likely persist in 2025-26. Australian producer Bowen Coking Coal, which produces both thermal and coking coal at its flagship Burton mine complex, said on 3 July that it may soon need to halt or reduce production at the site, if it is unable to raise capital. The company was suspended from the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) a few days later and remains suspended. Chinese purchases of Gladstone coal also fell in the 2024-25 financial year as the country's crude steel output waned. China-based steelmakers cut production by 1.7pc on the year in January-May 2025, data from China's National Bureau of Statistic show. Accordingly, China's coal buying from Gladstone also fell 5.2pc on the year, port data showed. Demand for Gladstone coal was largely supported by Vietnamese and Taiwanese buying in 2024-25 (see table) — a trend which is expected to continue over the coming years. Vietnam-based steelmakers bought 4mn t of Gladstone coal over the fiscal year, up from 2.7mn t in 2023-24. The country's coal imports — which include both thermal and coking coal — rose to a 23-month high in May, Vietnamese customs data show. Vietnamese demand for Australian coking coal is expected to remain elevated in 2025-26, pushing up Queensland coal exports , the state government said in June. The state also expects buying from India to rise though coal shipments to the south Asian country fell by 11pc on the year for the 2024-25 financial year to 11.8mn t. By Avinash Govind Gladstone coal exports (July-June financial years) t 2024-25 2023-24 Change (%) Vietnam 4,012,532 2,706,506 48 Taiwan 3,939,110 2,956,583 33 Japan 18,063,450 18,464,123 -2.2 India 11,784,331 13,167,414 -11 China 10,201,030 10,759,961 -5.2 Total 64,291,396 65,961,612 -2.5 * Total includes other countries Source: Gladstone Ports Corporation (GPC) Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Tokyo unlikely to yield on car levy despite US pressure

25/07/08

Tokyo unlikely to yield on car levy despite US pressure

Tokyo, 8 July (Argus) — The Japanese government is unlikely to offer concessions to the US for an automobile deal in stalled trade talks between the countries, even after Washington announced plans to raise tariffs on Japanese imports. Each government has its own interests to defend, the country's minister for trade and industry (Meti) Yoji Muto said on 8 July, reiterating that the automobile sector is a key industry for the Japanese economy and is vital to national interests. Muto reiterated Tokyo's intention to pursue a resolution through negotiations, but without compromising its core economic priorities. This suggests that there is little space for Tokyo to accept auto tariffs imposed by the US. This comes after US president Donald Trump announced plans to impose additional tariffs of 25pc on all imports from Japan from 1 August, slightly higher than the initial rate of 24pc set in April. Trump threatened to impose an even higher levy if Tokyo moves to retaliate against the measure. "We have had years to discuss our trading relationship with Japan, and have concluded that we must move away from these long-term, and very persistent, trade deficits engendered by Japan's tariff, and non-tariff policies and trade barriers," Trump said in his official letter to the Japanese government. "Our relationship has been, unfortunately, far from reciprocal." Tokyo and Washington have held seven trade talks on the US tariff since mid-April without reaching an agreement. Japan was initially seen as a frontrunner among other US trading partners in the negotiation, but progress has stalled partly because of disagreements over the auto sector. The Trump administration has long expressed strong dissatisfaction against the imbalance in US-Japan car trade. Japan exported around 1.3mn automobile units to the US market in 2024, and only purchased 14,724 units of US vehicles during the same period, according to Japanese customs and industry group the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association, respectively. Tokyo has declined to disclose the details of the ongoing negotiations, but the country's prime minister Shigeru Ishiba in mid-June reiterated that the automobile sector is vital to Japan's national interests, underscoring the car sector as a key sticking point in the trade talks. By Yusuke Maekawa and Kohei Yamamoto Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Alberta, Ontario to study oil pipelines, port, rail

25/07/07

Alberta, Ontario to study oil pipelines, port, rail

Calgary, 7 July (Argus) — Alberta and Ontario plan to study new trade routes to boost economic activity between the two provinces and beyond, with an interest in exporting oil and gas through Hudson Bay, leaders said today. Alberta premier Danielle Smith and Ontario premier Doug Ford signed two memorandums of understanding to drive interprovincial trade and major infrastructure development, including pipelines and rail lines. The broad intent is to further connect Alberta's energy resources to Canada's most populous province, and on to foreign partners, using steel from Ontario. "Built using Ontario steel, new pipelines would connect western Canadian oil and gas to existing, and potential, new refineries in southern Ontario," said Ford during a joint press conference in Calgary, Alberta. A "potential" new deep sea port at James Bay on the south side of Hudson Bay in northern Ontario would also enable further export opportunities for land-locked Alberta, which is trying to get more pipelines built before growing oil sands production fill existing capacity. Oil and gas would need to flow across Saskatchewan and Manitoba to get to Ontario. Alberta has taken an all-of-the-above strategy in its pipeline pursuits, calling for more egress in all directions, including enhanced access to Pacific Rim markets via a 1mn b/d bitumen pipeline to British Columbia's (BC) coast. "Having access to the northwest BC coast is essential to being able to get to Asian markets, and that's the one that we hear the most enthusiasm for," said Alberta premier Danielle Smith, who expects to have some "good news" on that front in a few months. Federal regulations need to be undone: premiers Smith and Ford called on the federal government to significantly amend or outright repeal the onerous Impact Assessment Act and other legislation that has stifled investment, including the oil and gas emissions cap, Clean Electricity Regulations and the Oil Tanker Moratorium Act that currently prevents an oil pipeline to BC's northwest coast. "No one will build a pipeline to tidewaters if there is a ban on tankers," said Ford. "It is the craziest thing I've ever heard of . . . a ban on tankers." Ford is the latest premier to side with Alberta's stance on federal oversight after Saskatchewan premier Scott Moe did in June . Ford's automobile , steel and aluminum sectors have been caught in US president Donald Trump's crosshairs, spurring the premier to look elsewhere to shore up trade, including within Canada. But hostilities from south of the border are not new for Ontario, whose refining sector relies on Enbridge's 540,000 b/d Line 5 cross-border pipeline. "We have the governor of Michigan constantly threatening to close down the pipeline," said Ford. "Do you know the disaster that would create in Ontario?" To both kickstart a lagging economy and pivot away from the US, Canadian prime minister Mark Carney fast-tracked Bill C-5 through Parliament last month to allow "nation building" projects to bypass regulatory hurdles. To be considered for the new "National Interest Projects" list, a project should strengthen Canada's autonomy, provide economic benefits, have a high likelihood of completion, be in the interests of Indigenous groups, and contribute to meeting Canada's climate change objectives. "The days of relying on the United States 100pc, they're done, they're gone," said Ford. By Brett Holmes Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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S Africa's ANC, DA agree to form government

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