President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky discussed with UNITED24 ambassadors the fundraising to buy generators for hospitals.
“The terrible war against our country continues, and with the onset of winter, new challenges have emerged. Together with the UNITED24 fundraising platform ambassadors Andriy Shevchenko, Oleksandr Usyk, Scott Kelly, Elina Svitolina, Liev Schreiber and Timothy Snyder, Head of the President’s Office Andriy Yermak we discussed further steps to support Ukraine. In particular, fundraising to buy generators for hospitals,” he wrote on his Telegram channel on Tuesday.
“After all, due to constant enemy strikes on the energy structure, Ukrainian doctors are forced to operate in the light of flashlights. We must maintain the unity of the world in support of Ukraine in order to get through this difficult period. And I am 100% sure that we will win. Thanks to UNITED24 ambassadors for everything you do for Ukraine and Ukrainians,” Zelensky said.
The U.S. dollar is moderately declining against major world currencies in early trading on Wednesday as market participants are waiting for Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell to speak.
The index, calculated by ICE and showing the U.S. dollar dynamics against six currencies (euro, Swiss franc, yen, Canadian dollar, pound sterling and the Swedish krona), is down 0.3%, while the broader WSJ Dollar Index is down 0.2%.
Powell will speak at 8:30 p.m. ksc Wednesday at the Hutchins Center on Fiscal and Monetary Policy with an outlook on the economy and labor market. The event also includes answers to questions from the audience. Traders will closely follow the Fed chief’s statements, hoping to get signals about the future trajectory of monetary policy.
Last meeting, the Fed raised the rate by 75 basis points (bps) for the fourth consecutive meeting, and the rate is now at its highest level since January 2008 at 3.75-4% per annum. The last meeting this year will be December 13-14, and the market is expecting a rate hike of a more moderate 50 bps.
Earlier Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis Governor James Ballard noted that the U.S. central bank will have to keep its key interest rate above 5% throughout 2023 and part of 2024. He also said there is no big difference between raising the rate by 50bp or 75bp at a separate meeting, and he leaves such “tactical” details to the head of the Fed.
The euro/dollar pair is trading at $1.0356 by 7:47 kk against $1.0331 at the close of Tuesday’s session, with the euro gaining about 0.25%.
The dollar/yen exchange rate is down 0.15% at 138.51 yen from 138.71 yen at the end of last session.
The pound is up 0.3% and trades at $1.1987 versus $1.1951 the day before.
The U.S. will finance the purchase of $53 million worth of power grid equipment to restore Ukraine’s energy system, CNN reported, citing a U.S. State Department report.
“This supply package will include distribution transformers, circuit breakers, arresters, disconnectors, vehicles and other key equipment,” the report specifies.
The funds will be in addition to the $55 million already provided for emergency support of the country’s energy sector.
Oil prices are rising on Wednesday morning after having risen the previous day on expectations that China will ease anti-coke restrictions.
The price of January Brent futures, which end trading on Wednesday, on the ICE Futures Exchange in London is $83.97 a barrel by 7:17 a.m. Ksk, up $0.94 (1.13%) from the previous session’s closing price. The more actively traded February futures rose $0.93 (1.1%) to $85.18 a barrel. On Tuesday, February contracts rose $0.36 (0.4%) to $84.25 a barrel.
The price of WTI futures for January at electronic trades on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) is $79.09 per barrel by that time, which is $0.89 (1.14%) above the final value of the previous session. The day before contract rose by $0.96 (1.2%) to $78.2 per barrel.
Chinese authorities the day before announced plans to more actively vaccinate the elderly population against coronavirus, reducing the time between vaccinations for those over 80 years to three months.
“The announcement followed unprecedented street protests and was the first signal that Beijing might consider easing draconian measures to control the spread of the coronavirus. The prospect of normalization in the world’s biggest oil importer has driven oil prices higher, the first significant recovery in two weeks,” said ActivTrades senior analyst Ricardo Evangelista.
The market’s attention is also directed towards OPEC+ meeting to be held on December 4. Eurasia Group analysts believe that the alliance may decide to reduce production quotas amid prospects of weakening demand in China.
Meanwhile, the American Petroleum Institute (API) data showed a decline of 7.85 million barrels of oil reserves in the USA last week instead of the 2.5 million barrels reduction which analysts expected.
Official data from the US Department of Energy on inventories will be released on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. ksec.
The European Commission (EC) on Tuesday proposed a new strategy for the further development of the European drone market.
“The new strategy explains how Europe can carry out large-scale commercial drone operations while offering new opportunities in the sector,” according to an EC communiqué published in Brussels.
The document notes that “thanks to the EU’s comprehensive regulatory framework, drones have been flying safely in European skies for hundreds of thousands of hours, for example to survey infrastructure, monitor oil spills or take soil samples.
The EU has also been successful in developing projects to use drones in medicine, such as transporting medical samples between health services.
Brussels has announced that the introduction in January 2023 of “the world’s only European U-space secure drone traffic control system” will lay the groundwork for expanding the types of operations that use them.
But before promoting these innovative technologies, the European Commission wants to make sure that society supports this type of air transport, the EC document said. Therefore, the new strategy calls on national, regional and local municipalities to ensure that drone services meet the needs of citizens, including addressing issues such as noise, safety and privacy in the use of the machines.
The strategy foresees that by 2030 the following drone services will be an integral part of European life: emergency services, mapping, imaging, inspection and surveillance by civilian drones within the scope of current legislation, and the delivery of small consignments of urgent supplies such as biological samples or medicines.
The strategy looks ahead to innovative aerial mobility services such as air cabs, which provide regular passenger transportation, initially with a pilot on board, but with the ultimate goal of fully automated operations, according to an EC communiqué.
Germany will provide Ukraine with €56 million in financial aid and 350 generators to restore its energy infrastructure, the German government’s press service said after a conversation between Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky and German Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
“President Zelensky briefed on the consequences of Russian airstrikes on civilian infrastructure, water and electricity supplies. The Chancellor condemned the ongoing shelling and assured Ukraine of further short-term support. So far, the federal government has provided short-term financial assistance to repair energy infrastructure of about 56 million euros, and Germany is providing more than 350 generators,” the chancellor said in a statement posted on his website Tuesday evening.
In addition, Scholz “confirmed Germany’s continued support for Ukraine, including air defense and long-term reconstruction.”
