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Reuters
11 minutes ago
- Reuters
Standard Chartered inks deal to sell jurisdictional forest credits in Brazil
LONDON, Aug 7 (Reuters) - Standard Chartered has agreed to sell millions of carbon credits aimed at protecting the Amazon rainforest on behalf of the Brazilian state of Acre as it looks to build out its carbon credits business and foster trust in the nascent market, a senior banker told Reuters. Standard Chartered's agreement to exclusively sell forest carbon credits generated in Acre over five years is one of the first examples of a major international bank working with a sub-national government in this way to support forest conservation, the bank said. The bank's involvement could bring legitimacy to a market which has struggled in recent months after prosecutors in Brazil's Para state sought to annul a similar $180 million carbon offset scheme amid concerns about forward contracts and local community rights. "We are doing everything we can to ensure these are high quality from an environmental point of view and that a credit really does reduce a tonne of carbon," said Chris Leeds, head of carbon markets development at the bank. "It is a very complicated process." The project is expected to generate up to 5 million credits in 2026, bringing in up to $150 million. Carbon credit projects that claim to avoid deforestation have faced intense scrutiny in the past because of the challenges involved in proving how many trees projects saved from being razed. Jurisdictional forest carbon credits are generated by national or state-level programmes aimed at reducing emissions from deforestation. They are designed specifically to reduce the risk that projects overstate the carbon-reduction benefits they claim. Local and indigenous communities are set to receive 72% of the net funds generated by the state and have been part of a consultation process, the main phase of which began in May 2025. Unlike Para's deal, Acre's is not a forward sale, Leeds added. "There is no commitment on our part to sell the credits today. That is the difference." Several Brazilian states have signed agreements to protect vast swathes of forest in return for investment including the State of Piauí in July.
Reuters
11 minutes ago
- Reuters
China's July imports of soybeans, crude oil rise
Aug 7 (Reuters) - China's imports of soybeans and crude oil rose in July from a year earlier, while those of coal and iron ore fell, customs data showed on Thursday. China's exports topped forecasts last month, as manufacturers made the most of a fragile tariff truce between Beijing and Washington to ship goods ahead of a looming deadline later this month. Outbound shipments from the world's second-largest economy rose 7.2% year-on-year in July, customs data showed, beating a forecast 5.4% increase in a Reuters poll and June's 5.8% growth. Imports grew 4.1%, following a 1.1% rise in June. Economists had predicted a 1.0% fall. KEY POINTS: * Soybeans: July imports at 11.67 mmt, up 18.48% y/y * Crude oil: July imports at 47.20 mmt, up 11.48% y/y * Unwrought copper: July imports at 480,000 mt, up 9.59% y/y * Coal: July imports at 35.61 mmt, down 22.94% y/y * Iron ore: July imports at 104.62 mmt, down 1.26% m/m * Rare earths: July exports at 5,994.3 mt, down 22.58% m/m Preliminary table of commodity trade data Below are comments from analysts on the commodities data: WAN CHENGZHI, ANALYST, CAPITAL JINGDU FUTURES, DALIAN CITY: "Brazil's abundant soybean production has provided a strong supply foundation. Due to its bumper harvest, the peak supply period for Brazilian soybeans is expected to be longer than in previous years, remaining at a high level leading up to the fourth quarter." "As for China's purchases of U.S. soybeans in the fourth quarter, no shipments have been confirmed yet, as buyers await the outcome of China-U.S. trade negotiations. Overall, a temporary mismatch between supply and demand for imported soybeans in China's domestic market may occur in the fourth quarter." ROSA WANG, ANALYST, JCI, SHANGHAI: "China's soybean imports remained very high in July, and are expected to stay above 10 million tons in August and September. This suggests the market is preparing for potential uncertainties arising from China-U.S. trade tensions." CAO YING, ANALYST, SDIC FUTURES, BEIJING: "The reason for a monthly fall in iron ore imports is that higher prices in July suppressed some steelmakers' interest in stockpiling iron ore." "A delayed customs clearance for some cargoes because of the hit of Typhoon Wipha to many regions also contributed to a monthly fall in imports and more port congestion." MUYU XU, SENIOR ANALYST, KPLER, SINGAPORE: "China's crude oil imports fell month over month but rose on a year-on-year basis. The month-on-month decline was mainly due to reduced arrivals from Iran, Saudi Arabia, Brazil and Angola, according to Kpler's data." "Independent refiners bought heavily in June, building up inventories, so their immediate demand in July was lower. "Operating rates are also not particularly high at the moment, which does not support a sharp increase in Iranian oil purchases. Additionally, some independent refiners are facing tight import quota situations, prompting them to manage their buying pace more cautiously." LINKS: For details, see the official Customs website ( BACKGROUND: China is the world's biggest crude oil importer and top buyer of coal, copper, iron ore, and soybeans.
Reuters
11 minutes ago
- Reuters
Take your pick. China's commodity imports can be solid or soft
LAUNCESTON, Australia, Aug 7 (Reuters) - Markets often look to data such as China's imports of major commodities to discern clear trends about the state of the world's second-biggest economy. But July's trade data provides little in the way of clarity, rather giving ammunition to both the case for an economy that is resilient and recovering, and one that is struggling for momentum. Crude oil is a case in point. The world's top importer, China received arrivals of 11.11 million barrels per day (bpd) in July, according to calculations based on official data released on Thursday. On the bullish side of the ledger, this was up 11.5%, or 1.14 million bpd, from the 9.97 million bpd of July last year. But if a bearish view is sought, July's imports were down 5.4%, or 1.03 million bpd, from June's 12.14 million bpd, and were also the weakest since January. What is often ignored in discussions about the relative strength or weakness of commodity imports is the role of prices. China has shifted in recent years to become a far more price-sensitive buyer of commodities, adopting a tactic of raising imports and lifting inventories when prices are deemed low, and trimming purchases when they rise too high or too soon. China's crude oil imports were weak in the first quarter of this year, as arriving cargoes would have been arranged when prices were in an uptrend, with Brent futures reaching a high so far this year of $82.63 a barrel on January 15. But oil imports rose in the second quarter as prices trended lower, with Brent dropping below $60 a barrel briefly in both April and May. Since then prices have been trending higher, with increased volatility from geopolitical events such as Israel's June conflict with Iran and threats to Russian supplies from U.S. President Donald Trump and the European Union. The higher prices are likely to make Chinese refiners cautious and some easing in imports is likely. Perhaps the best indicator of the state of China's demand for crude is the year-to-date imports, which are up a modest 2.8%, to the equivalent of 11.25 million bpd. It is also worth noting that China's domestic crude output rose 1.3% in the first half of the year, and that increasing electrification of the vehicle fleet is cutting gasoline demand. The overall picture for crude oil demand in China is one that is neither robust or weak. The same can be said of several other major commodities. Iron ore imports of 104.62 million metric tons in July were down 1.3% from June but up 1.8% from July last year. For the first seven months imports of the key raw material for making steel were down 2.3% at 696.57 million tons, a figure that fits with the small decline in steel production seen in the first half. Imports of unwrought copper recovered in July to 480,000 tons, up 3.5% from June and 9.6% from July 2024, but they are still down 2.6% for the first seven months of the year. This largely reflects the influence of uncertainty over U.S. tariffs on copper imports, which drew copper away from China to the United States in the first half. But this trade is likely to reverse as Trump backed off imposing his 50% tariff on imports of refined copper, limiting it only to certain types of copper products. With U.S. imports likely to decline in the second half as stockpiles are used up, Chinese copper buyers will get the opportunity to import more. Coal imports managed a small increase in July, with arrivals of 35.61 million tons, up slightly from June's 33.04 million, but down 23% from July last year. For the first seven months of the year, China's coal imports have slumped 13% as rising domestic output and lower coal-fired electricity generation cut the need for imports. Enjoying this column? Check out Reuters Open Interest (ROI), your essential new source for global financial commentary. ROI delivers thought-provoking, data-driven analysis of everything from swap rates to soybeans. Markets are moving faster than ever. ROI can help you keep up. Follow ROI on LinkedIn, opens new tab and X, opens new tab. The views expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters.
