South Korea inks minerals, EV international agreements
South Korea has signed multiple mineral and electric vehicle (EV) agreements at international talks over the past week, as it sets sights on furthering its EV battery manufacturing ambitions.
The agreements are in line with the ambitious targets and goals the country unveiled this year, despite the nation's lacklustre manufacturing purchasing managers' index.
The Philippines is the fifth Asean country to have a free trade agreement (FTA) with South Korea and it was signed on the sidelines of the 43rd Asean Summit that took place in Jakarta last week, according to South Korea's trade, industry and energy ministry (Motie). The FTA will benefit South Korean automobile and car part exports to the Philippines through tariff removals, cutting the current tariff rate of 3-30pc for automobile and car part exports down to zero over the next five years, with the same for the 5pc tariffs for eco-friendly cars like EVs and hybrids. The FTA is expected to come into effect by the first half of 2024 after being ratified in South Korea's National Assembly, said Motie.
South Korea and Indonesia also signed 16 agreements during the summit, including two on establishing joint research and development centers for critical minerals supply chain, and two regarding two-wheeler EVs and integrated parking solutions. An agreement involved nurturing a nuclear energy industrial base, with another five agreements signed for electric power and clean energy for eco-friendly equipment, green ammonia and carbon capture and storage. Further details regarding these agreements were undisclosed.
South Korea also signed two agreements with Indonesia regarding EV ecosystem co-operation and "future industries" during last week's Korea-Indonesia summit talks. Under the EV ecosystem agreement, they will expand co-operation on four EV "critical areas", namely infrastructure expansion, training personnel, joint international research and development projects, as well as government policies and systems, said Motie.
South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol met Argentine president Alberto Fernandez during last week's G20 summit in New Delhi and proposed to explore joint lithium-ion battery production in Argentina. Argentina is poised to become a major player in lithium and produced 6,200t of lithium last year, making it the world's fourth-largest producer.
Related news posts
Brazilian steelmakers expect better 2H
Brazilian steelmakers expect better 2H
Sao Paulo, 13 August (Argus) — Brazilian steelmakers expect better results in the second half of the year, as they stand to benefit from higher tariffs on imported steel and a potentially improved economic situation. The top producers have so far reported mixed results for the second quarter, with Gerdau , Usiminas and CSN posting higher sales volumes and production but also losses and lower revenues. Yet there was a consensus that recently announced new tariffs on imported steel are likely to improve results in the coming quarters. The Brazilian government announced in May it would impose a new quota and tariff system on imported steel to protect local production from unfair competition. The government outlined a 25pc tariff on the share of imports that exceeds volume quotas. The move led some companies to notify clients of price increases , claiming much needed adjustments. CSN said on an earnings call that it plans to raise prices for its steel products in the third quarter as a part of its "price realignment." In late July , Usiminas said it plans to increase prices by 5-7pc in the coming months. An expected price hike by Gerdau would improve the company's profitability for its Brazilian operations, XP analysts said in a report. The recent hastening of the dollar appreciation against the Brazilian real — by over 12pc year-to-date — will also drive better results for companies in the coming months, according to analysts. Although Usiminas suffered losses because of the dollar appreciation, as it is a major importer of slab, it — and other companies — might benefit from higher prices of other imported products. A stronger dollar to the Brazilian real could "reduce the impetus for imports," MonteBravo brokerage analysts said in a report on Gerdau. A third component for better results in the coming quarters could be stronger demand from Brazil, boosted by improving economic growth and aligned with the continuation of support from North American volumes, which the companies highlighted in their earnings. "Brazil's steel demand is resilient and prices are showing signs of improvement," Goldman Sachs analysts said in a report about CSN. "We then expect steel earnings to improve." Despite the optimism, the negative scenario for these companies could not be reversed this year, Genial analysts said, adding that Chinese steelmakers will keep prioritizing exports because of weakened domestic demand. "Brazil, for its part, remains a market with a complex and potentially ineffective tariff protection system, due to the additional quota system," the analysts said. By Carolina Pulice Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Mexico June trade gap driven by falling crude exports
Mexico June trade gap driven by falling crude exports
Mexico City, 13 August (Argus) — Mexico's trade balance swung to a deficit of $1.04bn in June, impacted by reduced oil exports at lower prices and a weaker peso. The trade gap in June flipped from a $1.99bn surplus in May, acccording to statistics agency Inegi's final estimate, as exports fell at nearly twice the rate of declines in imports. Exports fell by 12pc to $48.9bn in June from the prior month, while imports declined by 7pc to $49.9bn from the prior month. The trade balance was in deficit for four of the six months in the first half of 2024. The deficit in the first half of the year was $5.5bn compared with a $6.5bn deficit a year earlier. In explaining the June deficit, Banorte cited "a slight moderation in oil prices relative to May, with the Mexican oil mix averaging $73.49/b in the month; a depreciation of the Mexican peso; and the temporary suspension of exports of some agricultural products to the US." Likewise, exports were down 5.7pc from June 2023, while imports were 3.6pc lower than a year earlier. The deficit was below Mexican bank Banorte's forecast for a $450mn surplus in June. Inegi breaks Mexico's trade data into two broad categories of "oil" and "non-oil", where the oil category includes crude, natural gas, oil derivatives and petrochemicals. Non-oil includes everything else from light vehicles and farm goods to copper and other mined minerals, Exports in the broad oil category declined by 33pc to $2.1bn in June from $3.2bn in May, with imports down by 13pc at $2.82bn in June from $3.23bn in May. Exports were down by 27pc from a year prior, with imports down by 26pc. Within this, crude exports were valued at $1.73bn in June, a sharp drop from $2.15bn in May and lower than the $2.44bn in the same month of 2023. Natural gas imports, meanwhile, were valued at $395mn in June from $316mn in May and $469mn in June 2023. Non-oil exports reached $46.8bn in June, with $15.6bn from automotive exports. This was down by 5pc and 5.2pc, respectively from May. Still, as reported last week by Mexico's auto associations , auto exports have climbed by 8.4pc in the first seven months of the year from a year earlier. By James Young Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
S Korean EV producers pushed to reveal battery details
S Korean EV producers pushed to reveal battery details
Singapore, 13 August (Argus) — South Korea's government has advised domestic electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers to disclose their battery information and to allow inspections after multiple fires have raised safety concerns. It comes as authorities seek to ease EV owners' safety concerns after an EV earlier this month caught fire at an apartment complex in Incheon city and destroyed nearby cars. A fire at a lithium battery manufacturing plant at Hwaseong in June led to a chain explosion, killing 23 workers and injuring eight, according to South Korea's National Fire Agency. South Korea's government formed a task force that carried out safety inspections at battery industrial sites, following the lithium battery manufacturing plant fire. The task force, led by its environment ministry, also inspected safety conditions of underground electric chargers and related facilities from July to early August, according to government agency the Office for Government Policy Co-ordination. Multiple South Korean auto manufactures including Hyundai and Kia, as well as the South Korean units of global producers such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz, have released information about the installed batteries in their EVs. This has often been confidential and included their suppliers. Hyundai and BMW Korea were among the first to disclose the information, with BMW Korea disclosing that the majority of its models use batteries from South Korean battery maker Samsung SDI, with the rest from Chinese battery manufacturer CATL. LG Energy Solution (LGES) and SK On are supplying most of Hyundai's EV batteries, with only the batteries for its Kona SX2 model from CATL. Kia also disclosed that the battery cells used in its EVs come from domestic producers LGES, SK On, as well as CATL. South Korea's Mercedes-Benz revealed that a number of its EV models use batteries from LGES, SK On, CATL, as well as fellow Chinese battery producer Farasis Energy. South Korea's domestic sales of battery EVs (BEVs) in this year's first half fell by 15pc from a year earlier to 66,930 units despite firm domestic demand for BEVs in June. BEV sales in June rose to around 17,000 units, which was up by 16pc on the previous year and by 29pc against a month earlier. By Joseph Ho Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
India's Facor cleared for Odisha ferro-chrome expansion
India's Facor cleared for Odisha ferro-chrome expansion
Mumbai, 13 August (Argus) — Indian producer Vedanta-Ferro Alloy Corporation (Facor) has received permission from India's environment ministry for a ferro-chrome capacity expansion at its plant in east India's Odisha state. The company plans to more than double its ferro-chrome production capacity from 145,000 t/yr to 300,000 t/yr by adding two new furnaces at its Bhadrak district plant. The firm has receives all required permissions, including environment clearances, and expects to complete the project by 2026. Chrome ore production during April-June at Vedanta subsidiary Ferro Alloys rose by 5pc from a year earlier to 80,000t. Ferro-chrome production nearly trebled to 28,000t from 10,000t the previous year, driven by enhanced productivity at the charge chrome plant but also reflecting operations being disrupted during April-June 2023. By Deepika Singh Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Business intelligence reports
Get concise, trustworthy and unbiased analysis of the latest trends and developments in oil and energy markets. These reports are specially created for decision makers who don’t have time to track markets day-by-day, minute-by-minute.
Learn more