Day: May 4, 2022

Retail sales in the EU increased 1.7% in March compared to the same month last year, the bloc’s statistical office said on Wednesday.

According to Eurostat, the retail trade volume increased by 8.9% for automotive fuels, and by 4% for non-food products, while it diminished 2.1% for food, drinks and tobacco.

The highest yearly increases in the total retail trade volume were registered in Slovenia (25.6%), Estonia (18.4%) and Malta (16.4%), while largest decreases were seen in Denmark (11.0%), Spain (4.8%), and Belgium (3.9%).

Meanwhile, on a monthly basis, the seasonally adjusted volume of retail trade decreased by 0.2% in March in the EU, compared with February.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Spanish politicians celebrated the record-breaking employment figures released on Wednesday, which showed that more than 20 million people were working in the country for the first time.

The employment milestone came years behind schedule. Former Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy aimed to have 20 million people working by 2019.

April’s employment figure was also historic because of a sharp shift toward permanent contracts.

In April, nearly half of all new contracts signed in Spain were permanent, whereas, over the past four decades, an average of around 90% of all job contracts were temporary.

The abrupt break in hiring practices has to do with the labor reform passed by Spain’s lawmakers in February to clamp down on precarious employment.

The labor reform squeaked by in the Spanish Parliament with a majority of just one vote, thanks to an opposition politician accidentally voting in its favor.

“These are difficult times, marked by the effects of the war in Ukraine and the pandemic,” said Spain’s Minister of Labor Yolanda Diaz on Wednesday. “Our bet on permanent contracts and stable work is strengthening our labor market in this difficult international context.”

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez also applauded the employment figures, saying Spain’s economic recovery is based on “more employment of higher quality.”

Despite the achievements, Spain still has one of the highest unemployment rates in the European Union.

Nearly 14% of Spain’s labor force remains unemployed, more than double the EU average of 6.3%.

However, Spain’s unemployment rate is down significantly from the staggering high reached in 2013, when more than 27% of workers were unable to find a job.

While Spain has more than recovered employment lost to the pandemic, its overall economy still hasn’t bounced back.

The government figures released last week predict GDP won’t recover to pre-pandemic levels until the first quarter of 2023.

Source: Anadolu Agency

The US trade deficit hit a record high of $109.8 billion in March, with imports increasing 10.3% to $351.5 billion, the highest value on record, according to the US Bureau of Economic Analysis.

The deficit increased from $89.8 billion in February as imports increased more than exports.

Exports of goods and services went up by $12.9 billion, or 5.6%, in March to $241.7 billion, also reaching a new record value.

Shipments increased mainly for crude oil, fuel oil, natural gas liquids, autos and parts, transport, and travel.

Oil import prices in March surged to $87.2 a barrel compared to $76.37 in the previous month.

The largest rises were seen in purchases of finished metal shapes, crude oil, cotton apparel, household goods, footwear, furniture, computers, passenger cars, transport, and travel.

The trade deficit with China rose to $34 billion in March from $30.7 billion in February.

Source: Anadolu Agency

The German government said Monday that it is ready to support a European Union ban on Russia oil.

Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock told the German ARD broadcasting network that her country is ‘prepared’ to get by without Russian oil for several years since it now has new supply contracts.

A few weeks ago, an immediate halt to deliveries would not have been possible, Baerbock said.

Meanwhile, Economic Minister Robert Habeck warned that an embargo would not go unnoticed in Germany either.

There will be high price jumps. The changeover could also mean loss of time, said Habeck, referring to an oil refinery in the town of Schwedt which is controlled by Russian state-owned oil company Rosneft.

But an embargo no longer means that Germany is slipping into an ‘oil crisis,’ the minister added.

Habeck urged all EU countries to reduce their dependence on Russian energy as quickly as possible.

‘Solidarity with Ukraine now requires that deliveries of fossil fuels from Russia be reduced quickly and drastically,’ Habeck said on the sidelines of a special meeting in Brussels Monday of EU ministers responsible for energy.

The respective dependencies of the countries must be taken into account, but the efforts must be pushed forward together, he added.

Hungary, which is heavily dependent on Russian energy, had threatened to reject sanctions on Russian oil supplies.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Oil prices on Tuesday recovered some losses made on Monday, after Germany announced it would support a ban on Russian oil imports.

International benchmark Brent crude cost $107.11 per barrel at 0630 GMT for a 0.44% loss after closing the previous session at $107.58 a barrel.

American benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) traded at $104.72 per barrel at the same time for a 0.43% drop after the previous session closed at $105.17 a barrel.

Oil prices dropped to as low as $103.12 on Monday pushed by slow economic growth concerns in China, the world’s biggest oil importer, due to Covid-19 pandemic.

Prices regained some losses on Tuesday as Germany said it is ready to support a European ban on imports of Russian oil.

‘Germany stands ready for new sanctions, including an oil embargo,’ finance minister Christian Lindner said.

New sanctions on Russia by European Union (EU) are under way. The EU Energy Ministers discussed the possibility of a gradual embargo on Russian oil imports during a meeting on Monday.

The European Commission is expected to propose a new package of EU sanctions this week, including an embargo on imports of Russian oil.

Meanwhile, investors are awaiting US crude oil supply data from the American Petroleum Institute later in the day.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Daily electricity consumption in Turkiye decreased by 11.8% on Monday compared to the previous day, totaling 570,478 megawatt-hours, according to official figures of Turkish Electricity Transmission Corporation (TEIAS) on Tuesday.

Hourly power consumption peaked at 26,683 megawatt-hours at 01.00 local time (2200 GMT), data from TEIAS showed. The country’s electricity usage dropped to the lowest level of 20,956 megawatt-hours at 07.00 local time (0400 GMT).

Electricity production amounted to 570,799 megawatt-hours on Monday, marking a decrease of 12% compared to Sunday.

Electricity production from hydropower plants constituted 26.6% of total generation, while run-of-the-river plants and wind power plants contributed 18.5% and 15.1%, respectively.

On Monday, the country’s electricity exports amounted to 12,389 megawatt-hours and imports totaled 12,068 megawatt-hours.

Source: Anadolu Agency

The US and Armenia launched a bilateral strategic dialogue Monday with Secretary of State Antony Blinken pledging a ‘further strengthening’ of diplomatic ties.

Blinken hosted Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan at the State Department for a meeting in which the two nations signed an agreement on civil nuclear cooperation, which the State Department said ‘improves our cooperation on energy security and strengthens our diplomatic and economic relationship.’

The department said in a separate statement that the agreement is aimed at helping Armenia diversify its energy supplies.

Blinken and Mirzoyan further ‘discussed Armenia’s progress in implementing democratic, rule of law, and anti-corruption reforms,’ spokesman Ned Price said in a statement.

‘They also discussed the ongoing dialogue between Armenia and its neighbors,’ he said.

‘Secretary Blinken thanked the Foreign Minister for the flexibility Armenia has shown and encouraged further direct talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan, underscoring the U.S. commitment to help Armenia and Azerbaijan find sustainable peace and prosperity, including in our capacity as an OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair,’ he added.

Armenia and Turkiye are set to hold the next round of ministerial-level normalization talks on May 3.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Chevron and Bunge North America, agribusiness and food ingredient company, finalized an agreement to create a new company that will develop renewable fuel feedstocks to help meet the demand for renewable fuels and to develop lower carbon intensity feedstocks, company announced on Monday.

Bunge will contribute its soybean processing facilities and Chevron is expected to contribute approximately $600 million in cash to the joint venture.

Bunge will continue to operate the facilities while Chevron will offtake rights to the oil to use as renewable feedstock to manufacture diesel and jet fuel with lower lifecycle carbon intensity.

With the joint venture, the companies expect to double the combined capacity of the facilities from 7,000 tons per day by the end of 2024.

The partnership will establish a reliable supply chain from farmer to fueling station for both companies.

‘Together, we share a commitment to sustainability and reducing carbon in the energy value chain,’ Greg Heckman, Bunge CEO said.

‘Chevron’s proposed joint venture with Bunge positions us to expand into the renewable fuel feedstock value chain, which will advance our higher returns, lower carbon strategy,’ said Mark Nelson, executive VP of Downstream and Chemicals for Chevron.

Source: Anadolu Agency

bp intends to invest up to £18 billion ($22.5 billion) in the UK’s energy system by the end of 2030, helping the country to deliver on its ambitions to boost energy security and reach net zero, bp said on Tuesday.

The company intends to continue investing in North Sea oil and gas, while driving down operational emissions.

In the North Sea, bp plans on investing in exploration around its existing North Sea hubs and developing lower emission oil and gas projects to support near term security of supply.

In addition to oil and gas investments, ‘bp is also in action on a range of lower carbon energy investments in the UK,’ the company said.

bp, in partnership with German energy company EnBW, is developing two 60-year offshore wind leases in the Irish Sea with a combined potential generating capacity of 3 gigawatts (GW) and has a lease option with a potential generating capacity of 2.9 GW off the east coast of Scotland.

The company is investing in infrastructure, ports, harbors and shipyards, including the construction of four ships to support the offshore wind projects across the UK.

Additionally, bp is planning to invest £1 billion ($1.25 billion) in electric vehicle charging in the UK over the next 10 years, ‘approximately tripling the number of bp’s UK charging points by 2030 and deploying more rapid and ultra-fast chargers in key locations.

bp focused on creating two large-scale hydrogen production facilities in the UK, together aiming to produce 1.5 GW of hydrogen by 2030.

Source: Anadolu Agency