Category: Business

ANKARA: The US has increased its share in the global liquefied natural gas (LNG) trade from 1% in 2016 to 21% by the end of 2023 to become the world's top LNG exporter. According to Anadolu's compilation of data from CEDIGAZ, the International Information Center on Natural Gas, the US exported 84.3 million tons of LNG to global markets last year. Australia followed with 78.9 million tons and Qatar with 78.5 million tons. The US made its first exports to the global LNG market in 2016, and this percentage share has increased incrementally year over year. In 2017, US exports hit a 5% share of the market, and then increased to 7% in 2018, 10% in 2019, 13% in 2020, 18% in 2021 and 20% in 2022. With a 21% share of global LNG exports at the end of the previous year, the US was declared the world's top LNG exporter. Last year, global LNG supply increased by 2% to 395 million tons, registering growth of 7.3 million tons compared to the previous year. According to CEDIGAZ data, the US has been the single largest driver behind global LNG supply, not only in 2023 but also in the last five years. Notably, total supply from regions outside the US remained stagnant from 2019 to 2023. In 2023 alone, the US increased its exports to 84.3 million tons, contributing 6.7 million to global LNG supply growth. The growth in US exports is largely due to the commissioning of the Freeport LNG plant in the first quarter of 2023, which had been closed due to fire since June 2022. Europe "fleeing" from Russia turns to US LNG Last year, the top destination for US LNG was Europe, which has reduced its natural gas purchases from Russia. US LNG provided a solution for many countries in Europe, which had been resisting the purchase of natural gas from Russia and had imposed an "embargo" on their exports. Due to mild weather and waning demand, Europe has not faced supply constraints for the past two winters and has chosen to replace Russia's LNG with US LNG. Of the LNG exported by the US, 67% was sold to Europe, while Asia accounted f or 25%, South and Central America 7%, and other countries 1%. The country importing the most LNG on the global market was China, with 70.5 million tons. Japan followed with 66.1 million tons and South Korea with 44.2 million tons. The top LNG importers in Europe were France with 21 million tons, Spain with 17.2 million tons and the Netherlands with 15.7 million tons. Trkiye's LNG imports decreased by 7.7% year-on-year to 10.5 million tons. Source: Anadolu Agency

ISTANBUL: Amazon.com Inc. joined the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) on Monday, becoming a member of the blue-chip index. The e-commerce and tech firm's stock price was down 0.12% to $174.78 per share at 9.59 a.m. EDT. Amazon replaced Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. in the DJIA. The Dow has only 30 companies, while it is weighted by the stock price of firms' individual stocks rather than their total market values. Amazon's market value stands approximately at $1.8 trillion. Source: Anadolu Agency

ANKARA: Oil prices drifted lower on Monday over strong US dollar pressure as investors await Thursday's release of the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index, the US Fed's preferred measure of price fluctuations and an importance gauge in its next monetary policy decision. International benchmark Brent crude traded at $80.60 per barrel at 10.33 a.m. local time (0733 GMT) for a 0.25% decrease from the closing price of $80.80 a barrel in the previous trading session. American benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) traded at $76.24 per barrel at the same time for a 0.33% loss after the previous session closed at $76.49 per barrel. The rising value of the US dollar, which is making oil more expensive for holders of foreign currencies and possibly reducing demand, was the primary factor behind the bearish market sentiment at the start of the week for both benchmarks. The rise in the US dollar came amid expectations that the Fed would postpone interest rate cuts as the earnings of US multinational corporation and technology company Nvidia ignited a rally across global stock markets. Investors are awaiting the Fed's preferred measure of inflation, the PCE price index, which will be released on Thursday. Markets are also awaiting oil demand data from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) to be released on Wednesday. The country's stockpiles showed an increase of around 3.5 million barrels last week; however, if stocks continue to rise, oil prices are expected to further decline. Nevertheless, because of the associated supply risks, the unfolding geopolitical tension in the Middle East is driving up prices. Yemen's Houthi group said late Saturday that it would allow the British ship Rubymar sunk in the Gulf of Aden to be salvaged in exchange for bringing relief aid into the Gaza Strip. On Sunday, a Yemeni civilian was killed and six others injured in US and British attacks in the southern city of Taizz. Source: Anadolu Agency

ISTANBUL: The Greek deputy foreign minister said Friday that the improvement of Greek-Turkish relations contributes to regional prosperity. 'The deepening of the positive climate in Greek-Turkish relations and the further development of our bilateral cooperation contribute to the prosperity of the whole region,' Konstantinos Fragkogiannis told Anadolu. About the ongoing thaw in the relations in general and particularly Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's visit to Athens in December, he said, 'At this moment, our bilateral relations run on a roadmap at three levels: political dialogue, the Positive Agenda, and Confidence Building Measures.' Drawing attention to the Positive Agenda that focuses on topics of economic interests where cooperation can be mutually beneficial, Fragkogiannis underlined that significant improvements were made regarding connectivity, facilitation of trade transactions, increase of tourist flows and enhancement of cooperation on civil protection issues since its adoption in 2021. The Agenda also aims to boost understanding and cooperation between the youth of our two countries in vital fields such as innovation and technology, he added. On trade, which both countries repeatedly indicated they want to increase, Fragkogiannis said the volume between the two countries has recorded a steady upward trend in recent years. 'Currently, our bilateral trade exceeds pound 5 billion ($5.45 billion). Our goal, which I find realistic enough, is to reach pound 10 billion within five years,' he said, noting the vast potential for cooperation. Asked about the difficulties Turkish investors face in Greece and if the country has plans to address it, Fragkogiannis said Greece has made significant strides in overcoming bureaucracy in recent years. 'We have a plan in this government that we actively implement regarding the constant improvement of the business environment in Greece. And we keep working on overcoming any barriers by setting rules that will be respected by all parties involved,' he added. On the prospects of the bilateral relations, Fragkogiannis said: 'What is important to stress is that Greece and Turkey are two neighboring countries that ought to live in peace, thus they ought to keep trying to bridge differences through honest dialogue.' Numerous major global and regional challenges including climate change and conflicts in the region make rapprochement even more relevant and needed, he said.

Source: Anadolu Agency

[ad_1]

The total sales of petroleum products amounted to 124,832 tonnes in August 2023, recording an increase of 2.3% compared to August 2022, according to data published by the Statistical Service on Wednesday. A rise was observed in the provisions of aviation kerosene, up by 12.5%, as well as in the sales of kerosene, with an increase of 22.2%, motor gasoline 5%, road diesel 4.6%, liquified petroleum gases 3.7% and heating gasoil 2.5%. On the contrary, a decrease was observed in the provisions of marine gasoil, down 23.9%, as well as in the sales of light fuel oil with 14.9% and asphalt 9.3%. As far as the sales from filling stations are specifically concerned, these have registered an increase of 5.5% to 54,879 tonnes, compared to August 2022. The total sales of petroleum products in August 2023 compared to July 2023 recorded a drop of 2.9%. Indicatively, the provisions of aviation kerosene fell by 2.3%, so did the sales of road diesel, by 8.4% and motor gasoline by 0.2%, while the provisions of marine gasoil increased by 50.9%. The total stocks of petroleum products at the end of August 2023 decreased by 11% compared to the end of the previous month. During the period January – August 2023, the total sales of petroleum products dropped marginally by 0.1% compared to the corresponding period of the previous year.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

[ad_2]

Source link

The Ministry of Oil and Minerals supported what was included in the speech of the leader of the revolution, al-Sayeed Abdul-Malik Badr al-Din al-Houthi, regarding his directions to make radical changes in state institutions.

In a statement, a copy of which was received by the Yemeni News Agency (Saba), the Ministry stressed the importance of continuing to build a strong and just state that preserves the sovereignty of the nation.

The statement considered the changes that the country will witness in institutional work as a positive step on the right path.

Source: Yemen News Agency

Cyprus' Finance Minister, Makis Keravnos, expressed his concern about the impact on the economy of the ongoing rise in interest rates at the informal Eurogroup and the ministerial meeting on EU Economic and Financial Affairs that took place on Friday and Saturday in Spain.

The Finance Ministry said in a written statement that Keravnos participated on Friday at the Eurogroup meeting that discussed macroeconomic developments based on the European Commission's summer economic forecast.

It said that the Minister agreed with the need to align the fiscal policy with the monetary policy to limit inflation, without however jeopardising the prospects of economic development, while in this context, he once again raised his concerns about the impact of the ongoing rise in interest rates on the economy and inflation.

He stressed the need for a thorough analysis both at the overall and at country level in order to have a clearer picture of the impact on consumption, investments, on the servicing of debt by vulnerable borrowers, on the capital needs of small businesses, on the creation of jobs and on the banks' balance sheets.

On Saturday, the Finance Ministers' discussion focused on the interaction of fiscal and monetary policy with particular emphasis on the need for fiscal policy to remain prudent so as to align with the intended objectives of monetary policy, it said.

It was also underlined that the two policies must be implemented in a complementary manner in order to address both the challenges of high inflation and interest rates, as well as the future EU priorities on green and digital transition and ensuring sustainable growth, it adds.

The statement also said that the Ministers exchanged views regarding the promotion of the EU's strategic autonomy and international economic cooperation, and strengthening its role in the international geopolitical arena.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

The US assistant secretary of commerce for global markets has expressed optimism about the potential for significant growth in trade between the US and Türkiye, highlighting the importance of the "deep strategic partnership" between the two countries.

"I think we are at a unique turning point in history. We have such a deep strategic partnership," Arun Venkataraman said, sharing his assessment of Türkiye-US trade relations with Anadolu Agency on Sunday.

Underlining the decades-long presence of many American companies in Türkiye, Venkataraman said the country was on a "great trajectory," with a "real opportunity for the US-Turkish business to grow exponentially."

On the goal to achieve $100 billion trade volume between the US and Türkiye, he said this is attainable "given the depth of commercial relationships, given the entrepreneurship that exists in both countries."

Venkataraman also stressed that both Ankara and Washington needed to work towards this goal. "We have to set the right policies in place to make sure that we can encourage trade between our peoples."

An annual US trade conference called Trade Winds is scheduled to take place in the Turkish metropolis Istanbul in May, he said, adding that the US trade delegation would be the largest yet attending the conference.

At the conference, "... We hope to really be able to expand US-Turkish business ties with concrete connections between companies and we think that's a good first step towards attaining that goal," said Venkataraman.

According to data from the Turkish Exporters Assembly (TIM), Türkiye's exports to the US reached $16.9 billion last year, while imports from that country amounted to $15.2 billion.

This resulted in a trade volume of over $32 billion between the two nations, surpassing the approximately $28 billion recorded in 2021.

Chemicals were the leading category in Türkiye's exports to the US, followed by automotive, steel, and the ready-to-wear clothing industry.

Source: TRTworld.com

Business association Confesercenti said in a report on Saturday that it forecasts consumer spending in Italy will drop by 3.7 billion euros in the second half of 2023 with respect to the first six months of the year.

The report, prepared for Confesercenti by the Centro Europa research institute, said consumer spending was declining because purchasing power and savings were being eroded amid the cost-of-living crisis.

It said that, as result, consumer spending for 2023 would be up by only 0.8% on 2022, after registering a 4.6% rise last year.

Source: Ansa News Agency (ANA)