MARKET MOVEMENTS:
--Brent crude oil is down 0.6% at $78.87 a barrel
--European benchmark gas is down 2% at EUR38.56 a megawatt
hour
--Gold futures are 0.1% higher at $1,994 a troy ounce
--LME three-month copper futures are up 0.3 % at $8,619.50 a
metric ton
--Wheat futures are 0.1% higher at $6.19 a bushel
TOP STORY:
BP Beats Expectations With $5 Billion Profit After Fending Off
Shareholder Challenge
British oil major BP beat expectations in the first quarter on
strong results from trading oil and gas, and said Tuesday that it
will buy back a further $1.75 billion in shares.
BP's first-quarter underlying replacement-cost profit--a metric
similar to net income that U.S. oil companies report--of $4.96
billion exceeded the $4.27 billion average forecast by 25 analysts
in a survey compiled by the company. It compared with $6.25 billion
a year prior.
The result followed a record-high full-year profit in 2022, and
a move by BP in February to scale back earlier targets for reducing
its oil-and-gas production.
That 2022 profit of $27.7 billion--by the same underlying
replacement-cost measure--and BP's plans to increase spending on
oil-and-gas production had made the company a target of some
shareholders, including U.K. pension funds, who were angry about
its slower-than-planned shift away from fossil fuels.
--
OTHER STORIES:
The Air Has Come Out of the Dollar
The U.S. economy no longer looks so exceptional. That is bad
news for the dollar.
The greenback has fallen about 8.3% from a peak in September, as
tracked by the WSJ Dollar Index, and is experiencing its worst
start to the year since 2018.
Investors are betting the U.S. currency has further to fall as
the Federal Reserve nears the end of its most aggressive program of
interest-rate increases since the 1980s. Also weighing on the
dollar: concerns over the banking system, a potential U.S. debt
default and expectations, shared by many economists, that the U.S.
will slip into recession in the coming months.
--
H2 Green Steel Gets EUR1.79 Bln Supply Deal From Italy's
Marcegaglia
H2 Green Steel said Tuesday that it has signed a seven-year deal
worth around 1.79 billion euros ($1.96 million) to deliver its
low-carbon steel to Italian steel group Marcegaglia.
H2 Green Steel plans to produce steel by replacing coal with
green hydrogen that is produced using fossil-free energy, reducing
carbon-dioxide emissions by up to 95% compared with traditional
steelmaking.
--
Mitsui & Co. to Keep Pursuing Natural-Gas Project in
Russia
The chief executive of Mitsui & Co., a Japanese trading
company partly owned by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, said
Tuesday that his company would continue pursuing a natural-gas
project under development in Russia.
Kenichi Hori said the Arctic LNG 2 project in Russia's polar
region was an important part of global efforts to increase the
supply of natural gas.
Mr. Hori said the project's first train, or exporting facility
for liquefied natural gas, was expected to be completed by the end
of this year. He said no talks were under way to revise the
construction plan but said if there were changes he would announce
them.
--
MARKET TALKS:
Oil Inches Up Ahead of Fed, ECB Meetings This Week
0749 GMT - Oil prices are edging higher as investors await a
busy week of central bank meetings and economic data. Brent crude
oil gains 0.3% to $79.52 a barrel while WTI adds 0.2% to $75.821 a
barrel. Investors are looking ahead to Wednesday's meeting of the
Federal Reserve and what is broadly expected to be another
quarter-point rate increase. The European Central Bank meets on
Thursday, also to decide on the path of interest rates. Friday's
jobs report will also be keenly watched following recent signs that
the labor market is loosening. (william.horner@wsj.com)
--
Metals Mixed Ahead of Wednesday's Fed Decision
0743 GMT - Metals prices are mixed, with markets looking to
major macro events due later this week. Three-month copper is up
0.6% to $8,647 a metric ton, while nickel is down 1% to $24,040 a
ton. Gold, meanwhile, is flat at $1,991.60 a troy ounce. "The macro
mood is mixed and volatility is low ahead of three big
market-moving events," Peak Trading Research says in a note,
referring to the Federal Reserve's interest-rate decision due
tomorrow, the European Central Bank's decision on Thursday and U.S.
nonfarm payrolls on Friday. Investors are pricing in a 25 basis
point hike but are hoping it will be the last of this current
cycle, which should benefit risk assets and weaken the dollar, Peak
Trading Research adds. (yusuf.khan@wsj.com)
--
Vale Indonesia Seems Like a Strong Nickel Play
0314 GMT - Vale Indonesia's strong foothold in Indonesia's
nickel sector and investment in new growth projects should support
its long-term earnings growth, say Maybank analysts Richard
Suherman and Etta Rusdiana Putra in a note. The Indonesian mining
company is the analysts' top pick in the metal space, as they
reckon that China's potential economic recovery could be a major
growth tailwind in 2H. Maybank raised its 2023 net profit estimates
by 12% to factor in the strength of LME-listed nickel prices year
to date. Maybank maintains its buy rating and target price of
IDR8,800 on the stock. Shares are down 0.4% at IDR6,950.
(yiwei.wong@wsj.com)
--
Copper Rises; Uptrend Seen on Low Inventory
0205 GMT - Copper rises in the early Asian session. Bound by
price sensitive Chinese consumer dip buying and U.S. recession
fears, copper prices have been trapped so far this year between the
mid-$8000s and low $9,000s, say Goldman Sachs analysts in a
research note. They expect copper prices to rise ahead given that
the market is in a "significant deficit phase, with the velocity of
global inventory draw from peak seasonal surplus in Q1 to the end
of April the highest since 2004." The three-month LME copper
contract is up 0.9% at $8,671.00 a ton. (bingyan.wang@wsj.com)
--
BHP Leads Big Australian Miners on Copper
0158 GMT - BHP's already-strong copper business is about to be
strengthened further by the acquisition of Oz Minerals, due to
close Tuesday, UBS analysts say in a note. When it comes to copper,
BHP is ahead of Australia-listed rivals Rio Tinto and South32 on a
number of key metrics, including projected total copper Ebitda and
copper as a proportion of group Ebitda through FY 2030, they say.
South32 is expected to have the biggest near-term copper production
growth, though. "Copper exposure is sought for leverage to
electrification of transport and decarbonization of power grids"
although "the universe of ASX listed copper stocks has shrunk post
BHP's acquisition of OZL," says UBS. Still, UBS keeps a sell rating
on BHP due to a cautious view on iron-ore prices for the next six
to 12 months. (rhiannon.hoyle@wsj.com; @RhiannonHoyle)
-0-
Write to Yusuf Khan at yusuf.khan@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 02, 2023 07:00 ET (11:00 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2023 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
BP (NYSE:BP)
Historical Stock Chart
From Aug 2024 to Sep 2024
BP (NYSE:BP)
Historical Stock Chart
From Sep 2023 to Sep 2024