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As the global race for renewable energy accelerates, the billions of dollars of subsidies that the US, Europe and China dole out to vie for market dominance are likely to have implications for investors.This year, the EU adopted the Net-Zero Industry Act, which aims to make investing in solar, wind and other clean technologies more appealing. The legislation eases bureaucracy, accelerates project approvals, and targets reaching 50mn tonnes of carbon dioxide storage capacity in Europe by 2030. Investors will have seen that these subsidies have begun to prompt companies to take action. For example, ArcelorMittal, the world’s second-largest steelmaker, has started testing a carbon capture project in Ghent, Belgium, according in a Morgan Stanley report in June. This facility will test the feasibility of a full-scale carbon capture at the site as the Act comes into effect, Morgan Stanley said.Asset manager Invesco said the legislation is “expected to be a game-changer for EU companies transitioning to net zero emissions”, in its own report in August. The law will accelerate demand for European-based manufacturers, such as solar cell makers. “The €375bn in grants, tax credits, direct investments and loans from the NZIA will help to spur additional capital and operating expenditures,” the report concluded.The EU’s action highlights how the bloc is eager to match renewable energy subsidies adopted by the US and China in recent years. The Biden administration’s 2022 Inflation Reduction Act angered many European officials, who worried the $369bn package would lure cleantech businesses and investments away from their region. It even prompted the EU to accuse Washington of breaching World Trade Organization rules. The head of carmaker Stellantis and other European executives called for Brussels to consider reciprocal measures, or change its rules to respond to the IRA.The EU should “take action to rebalance the playing field . . . [and] improve our state aid frameworks”, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said shortly after the US adopted the IRA. The EU’s net zero law was quickly proposed in 2023 to counter the American legislation. “There is a risk that the IRA could lead to unfair competition,” von der Leyen warned.President Joe Biden announces a $3bn investment from the Inflation Reduction Act in October to help reduce pollution from US ports More

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NEW YORK (Reuters) -Several key players in President-elect Donald Trump’s new cryptocurrency venture head to Abu Dhabi on Monday for the largest bitcoin gathering in the Gulf region as the digital currency sets record highs.Speakers include the president-elect’s son Eric and billionaire Steve Witkoff, the new White House envoy for the Middle East and co-founder of World Liberty Financial, a crypto platform launched in September that Donald Trump and his family helped form.Eric Trump will deliver Tuesday’s keynote address at the Bitcoin MENA conference, which is projected to draw more than 6,000 people, and will then hold a “whale-only” chat in the conference’s VIP lounge, according to the event’s agenda.Witkoff will also speak separately to that more exclusive crowd, which requires a $9,999 “whale” pass, a nickname for large players who have potential to move a market.The president-elect is World Liberty Financial’s chief crypto advocate, and sons Eric, Don Jr. and Barron are ambassadors, according to the WLF website. Company filings show Donald Trump is entitled to 22.5 billion WLF tokens and a share of its revenues. “The bitcoin conference carries a lot of significance for crypto as it’s one of the longest-running conferences focused on bringing our industry together,” said Marshall Beard, chief operating officer of Gemini, the crypto exchange founded by Trump backers Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss.     “It’s been incredible to see the rise of bitcoin alongside the growth of the conference … and crypto became a major campaign issue in this year’s presidential election.”Other speakers also have close ties to World Liberty Financial, including Justin Sun, the 32-year-old Chinese founder of blockchain platform Tron.Three weeks after Trump won the Nov. 5 election, Sun posted on X that he bought $30 million worth of WLF tokens, making him the venture’s largest investor. Sun was charged with crypto-related fraud and securities violations under the Biden administration. The Gulf gathering is occurring at an inflection point for the industry as Trump, once a crypto skeptic, has vowed he will be the “crypto president” and make America the new “crypto capital of the planet.” Buoyed by these promises, bitcoin smashed records last week when it hit $100,000. Trump also named a White House czar for artificial intelligence and cryptocurrencies, former PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) executive David Sacks, a close friend of Trump adviser and megadonor Elon Musk. Musk, whose companies include X, SpaceX and Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA), spent more than a quarter of a billion dollars to help elect Trump in 2024, records show. Other technology and digital asset veterans also gave millions to candidates friendly to the industry, according to analytics firm Breadcrumbs. Trump’s 2016 campaign manager, Paul Manafort, will address the conference on “A Life of Politics with the Man Closest to Donald Trump.” Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, who served a four-month U.S. prison sentence this year for crypto-tied money-laundering law violations, will also hold a whale session at the conference. Trump, his family members, other speakers and their firms did not respond to requests for comment. More

SYDNEY (Reuters) – Asian shares were dragged by a slide in South Korea on Monday ahead of a packed week of central bank meetings that should see borrowing costs take a step lower, while U.S. inflation data are the last hurdle to a further policy easing there.Political tumult in France and South Korea was joined by the fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime, which complicated an already fraught situation in the Middle East.Still, the mood was generally upbeat after U.S. November payrolls showed enough of a recovery to assuage concerns of a slowdown, but not so much as to forestall a rate cut from the Federal Reserve next week.”Incoming data support our call for global growth lift into year-end, despite a slipping Euro area and building political stress,” said Bruce Kasman, head of economic research at JPMorgan.”We expect policy rates in Canada, Euro area, and Sweden to drop to 2% or lower over the coming year, while US and UK rates settle close to 4%,” he added. “This month’s meetings should point in this direction.”Futures imply an 85% chance on a quarter-point easing at the Fed’s Dec. 17-18 meeting, up from 68% ahead of the jobs figures, and have a further three cuts priced in for next year.That outlook combined with the bull run in tech stocks to boost the Nasdaq market by over $1 trillion in value last week alone. On Monday, S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq futures were both little changed.MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan eased 0.2%. South Korean stocks fell 1.7% even as authorities pledged all-out efforts to stabilise financial markets amid uncertainty over the fate of President Yoon Suk Yeol.Japan’s Nikkei firmed 0.4%, helped by an upward revision to economic growth. Asia will also be alert to data on Chinese inflation later in the session. The consumer price index is seen slipping 0.4% in November, while the annual pace is expected to tick up to 0.5%.China’s Central Economic Work Conference is also scheduled for this week, though markets are not sure if any new policies will be announced.The U.S. consumer price report is out Wednesday and the core is seen holding at 3.3% for November, which should be no impediment to a rate easing.CENTRAL BANKS GALOREAmong the many policy meetings this week, the European Central Bank is fully expected to cut by 25 basis points on Thursday, with a one-in-five chance of 50 basis points.”With geopolitical uncertainty high and conflicting signals from hard and soft data, monetary policy remains the only game in town to support economic activity, especially in the absence of strong political leadership in Paris and Berlin,” said Barclays (LON:BARC) economist Christian Keller.”We continue to expect consecutive 25bp cuts until June next year, and then cuts in September and December to reach a terminal rate of 1.5%.”Markets are leaning toward a half-point cut from the Swiss National Bank on Thursday given slowing inflation and a desire to stop the franc reaching record highs on the euro.Canada’s central bank is now expected to ease by a half point on Wednesday following a shock rise in unemployment for November. 0@CADIRPR >The Reserve Bank of Australia holds its meeting on Tuesday and is one of the few seen standing pat, while Brazil’s central bank is set to hike again to contain inflation.In currency markets, the dollar index was flat at 106.010 after edging up 0.2% last week. The euro stood at $1.0557, having bounced as high as $1.0629 on Friday before the job figures boosted the dollar broadly. [USD/] The dollar was steady on the yen at 149.92, having held to a 148.65 to 151.23 range last week as investors await further guidance on the prospect of a near-term rate hike from the Bank of Japan.Geopolitical uncertainty helped gold edge up 0.4% to $2,643 an ounce, but it faces resistance at $2,666. [GOL/]Oil prices gained some support from events in the Middle East, though markets are preoccupied with the risk of weak demand, particularly from China. [O/R]Brent added 9 cents to $71.21 a barrel, while U.S. crude rose 12 cents to $67.32 per barrel. More

(Reuters) – Demand for workers in Britain collapsed last month after the new Labour government’s first budget, a survey published on Monday showed, adding to other signs of the impact of the tax increases on employers.The Recruitment and Employment Confederation trade body and accountants KPMG said their index of demand for staff slid to 43.9, the lowest reading since August 2020, from October’s 46.1.Only the COVID-19 pandemic, the global financial crisis, and the immediate aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States resulted in worse readings.Permanent staff placements fell in November at the fastest rate since August 2023, although the pace of decline for temporary workers eased slightly from October, REC said. “It should be a surprise to no-one that firms took the time to re-assess their hiring needs in November after a tough budget for employers,” REC Chief Executive Neil Carberry said.”The real question now is whether businesses will return to the market as they go into next year with greater certainty about the path ahead.”Last week REC issued an “urgent warning” over the government’s separate Employment Rights Bill which aims to reform the labour market and raise living standards, describing it as “undercooked”.Finance minister Rachel Reeves, who announced her budget on Oct. 30, will hope that Monday’s survey represents a one-off dip rather than the start of a longer downturn in the labour market.The REC survey is a diffusion index which can be prone to sharp but short moves around big political and financial events.But employers have said the tax rises on businesses will have a deeper impact.Last week, the Confederation of British Industry cut its estimate for economic growth next year due to the higher social security contributions, although other forecasters such as the OECD have said other measures in the budget will raise growth.A Bank of England survey showed 54% of businesses said they would respond to their higher costs from the budget by reducing employment, while 38% expected lower wages.Separately on Monday, a survey from research company Incomes Data Research showed the median pay deal offered by private sector employers slipped to 3.9% in the three months to October from 4.0% previously.The BoE is watching for signs of diminishing inflation pressure in the labour market.Reeves has described the budget as a one-off to fix the public finances and pay for improved public services and has promised businesses stable and predictable tax policy to help them plan and invest.Jon Holt, group chief executive of KPMG UK, said expected interest rate cuts in 2025 and the government’s investment plans offered reasons for optimism.”This should give businesses greater confidence which may help stabilise the labour market,” Holt said. More

(Reuters) – A look at the day ahead in Asian markets. Attention turns to China on Monday and the release of November inflation data, with global investor sentiment broadly upbeat as the relentless rally on Wall Street continues but tempered by an increasingly volatile geopolitical backdrop.The toppling of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and the uncertainty that unleashes on an already volatile Middle East, criminal charges against South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, and France’s political chaos are all potential reasons for investors to play it safe.If so, U.S. Treasuries and other government bonds, gold and the dollar may all see increased interest in early trading on Monday. The fast-moving events in South Korea could ripple across Asia, and the country’s finance ministry and central bank are expected to do all they can to ensure financial stability and protect the won.The currency has weakened around 10% since the end of September, hitting a two-year low last week. A move through 1,445 won per dollar, which is eminently possible, will mark its weakest level since the global financial crisis in early 2009.On the other hand, the prospect of further interest rate cuts from the U.S. Federal Reserve and falling Treasury bond yields, combined with solid U.S. employment figures on Friday, delivered yet another record high on Wall Street.Global FX volatility may be on the rise, but measures of U.S. equity and bond market volatility are the lowest in months. As long as that remains the case, Wall Street seems set to end a remarkable year on a firm footing.Investors in Asia on Monday have their first opportunity to react to Friday’s U.S. non-farm payrolls report which showed solid job growth but an uptick in the unemployment rate last month.Rates traders appeared to have put more weight on the unemployment rate – they now fully expect a quarter point rate cut from the Fed on Dec. 18, and priced in an extra 10 bps of easing over the course of next year.The main data focus on Monday in Asia will be consumer and producer price inflation from China. The pace of monthly consumer deflation is expected to have accelerated to -0.4% from -0.3%, and this would be the deepest rate of month-on-month price declines since March. Annual inflation is seen rising to 0.5% from 0.3%. Producer prices, however, are expected to remain deep in deflationary territory with factory gate prices falling at an annual rate of 2.8% in November, little changed from October’s 2.9% fall.Investors will also now be looking ahead to China’s upcoming Politburo meeting, where Beijing’s top policymakers will set out their priorities for the coming year. For investors, the government’s 2025 growth target and budget will be two of the most important. Here are key developments that could provide more direction to markets on Monday:- China producer, consumer inflation (November)- Japan GDP (Q3, revised)- Taiwan trade (November) More