MARKET MOVEMENTS:

--Brent crude oil is down 0.3% at $81.77 a barrel

--European benchmark gas is down 1.4% to 46.34 euros a megawatt-hour

--Gold futures are up 0.9% at $2,742.50 a troy ounce

--LME three-month copper futures are up 0.1% at $9,227.50 a metric ton


TOP STORY:

BP Cuts 4,700 Internal, 3,000 Contractor Roles as It Trims Costs

BP will cut 4,700 internal and 3,000 contractor roles across its business as part of cost-cutting measures.

Employees at the British oil-and-gas giant were told of the job cuts Thursday via an email from Chief Executive Murray Auchincloss.

The cuts form part of the multiyear program Auchincloss launched last year to simplify BP's business structure. The company employs 90,000 people worldwide and the internal job cuts represent around 5% of its workforce.


OTHER STORIES:

TotalEnergies Expects Fourth Quarter Production Increase, Weak Refining Margins

TotalEnergies expects hydrocarbon production in the fourth quarter to increase slightly, but refining margins to remain weak despite increasing on-quarter.

The French oil and gas company said Thursday that fourth-quarter production is expected to have increased in-line with its guided range. It expects to report production between 2.4 million and 2.45 million oil-equivalent barrels a day, but that the $5 a barrel decrease in oil prices will have dragged on financial performance. Hydrocarbon production in the third quarter was 2.4 million oil-equivalent barrels a day.

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Antofagasta Backs 2025 Target Despite Copper Production Miss Last Year

Antofagasta copper production came in below company expectations last year but the miner backed its 2025 guidance.

The Anglo-Chilean copper miner said Thursday that it produced 664,000 tons of copper in 2024, a 1% increase on the year prior. The miner had expected full-year copper production to be at the lower end of its 670,000 to 710,000 tons guided range.

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Why Getting Greenland's Mineral Riches Won't Be Easy

Beneath its desolate, icy expanse, Greenland holds some of the world's biggest untapped reserves of the raw minerals used to make everything from smartphones and electric cars to F-35 Lightning II jet fighters.

Good luck getting them out of the ground.

President-elect Donald Trump has said the U.S. needs Greenland for national security. Part of the island's allure are its rare earths, metals and other raw materials. America now mostly relies on China for its supplies of some key materials, and Beijing could wield its access to them as a weapon in a trade war.

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Dozens of Dead Pulled From Illegal South African Gold Mine After Standoff With Authorities

At least 78 people have died after authorities imposed a blockade on an illegal gold mine here, part of a monthslong standoff between prospectors and a government determined to force them to surface-often by cutting off their food and water.

Workers have rescued 246 miners alive since beginning the full-scale recovery operation on Monday. The survivors were charged with trespassing and other crimes and were either arrested or taken for medical treatment. The prospectors were trapped underground for months as police, on orders from South Africa's government, attempted to starve them out of the disused Buffelsfontein gold mine, which extends some 8,000 feet below ground.

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Uranium Energy Increases Stake in Canadian Energy Company Anfield

Uranium Energy bought 107.1 million shares of Anfield Energy's common stock for $10.5 million.

The uranium company said Wednesday that it now owns 203.4 million of the Anfield Energy's shares. This stake represents roughly 18% of the Canadian energy company's outstanding shares on a non-diluted basis, or about 24% of its outstanding shares on a partially diluted basis after assuming the exercise of all warrants held by the company.

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Asia Cocoa Grindings Fell in Fourth Quarter

Asia's cocoa-bean grindings fell 0.5% in the final quarter of 2024, according to figures released Thursday by the Cocoa Association of Asia.

Cocoa grindings for the fourth quarter totaled 210,111 metric tons, compared with 211,202 tons a year earlier, the figures showed. On a quarterly basis, cocoa grindings dropped 3.2% in the fourth quarter from the prior quarter.

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Cocoa Bean Demand Fell in Europe in the Fourth Quarter, Report Says

Cocoa beans demand fell in Europe in the fourth quarter of 2024 and for the year as a whole, though it remains relatively stable, according to a report from the European Cocoa Association.

The number of grindings, or beans processed to be turned into chocolate, fell 5.4% on year in Europe in the fourth quarter to 331,853 metric tons, according to the ECA. Grind statistics are used as a proxy for cocoa demand, with Europe one of the world's largest markets for cocoa. For the full-year, cocoa usage fell 1.7%.


MARKET TALKS:

Cocoa Prices See Small Falls After Report Shows EU Bean Usage Fell -- Market Talk

1315 GMT - Cocoa futures fall 0.5% to $10,769 a metric ton in thin trading. The crop has slid 16% from its mid-December highs but has still more than doubled on-year, and sits up 3% on-week. The market reaction to the latest European Cocoa Association grind statistics report--which says cocoa beans usage fell in Europe in the fourth quarter of 2024--has been relatively muted. The number of grindings, or beans processed to be turned into chocolate, fell 5.4% on year in Europe in the fourth quarter to 331,853 metric tons, according to the ECA. Grind statistics are used as a proxy for cocoa demand, with Europe one of the world's largest markets for cocoa, and the small slide comes amid a combination of relatively persistent demand, high prices and supply-shortage fears. (joseph.hoppe@wsj.com)

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Metal Prices Rise; Aluminum Gains on Reports of EU Ban on Russian Aluminum -- Market Talk

1305 GMT - Metal prices rise, with LME three-month copper up 0.2% to $9,237 a metric ton and LME three-month aluminum up 1.4% to $2,640 a ton. Aluminum's gains reflect unconfirmed reports that the European Commission intends to propose a ban on the import of Russian aluminum, MUFG analysts say in a note. The reports--which cite unnamed European Union diplomats--say the proposed ban would be part of a 16th sanctions package on Russia, which would mark the third anniversary of its invasion of Ukraine. European imports of Russian aluminum have already been declining and now amount to around 6% of total imports, MUFG says. Therefore, the scale of the effect of sanctions on aluminum prices will be conditional on whether volumes can be rerouted, it adds. (joseph.hoppe@wsj.com)

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Repsol's Fourth-Quarter Production Miss Expected to Hit Consensus -- Market Talk

1039 GMT - Repsol's 4Q production volumes were below consensus expectations but its low refining margins were expected, RBC Capital Markets analysts write. Production volumes were 554,000 oil-equivalent barrels a day versus consensus expectations of 573,000, they write. Repsol's refining-margin indicator for the quarter was $4.8 a barrel while it reported a deteriorating on-quarter chemicals margin, which is likely to weigh on results, they add. The analysts expect consensus expectations to fall around 10% as a result of the update, they write. Shares in the Spanish energy major are down 1.7% at 11.53 euros. (adam.whittaker@wsj.com)

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Palm Oil Ends Lower Amid Weak Soybean, Crude Oil Prices -- Market Talk

1018 GMT - Palm oil ended lower on weak soybean and crude oil prices, according to David Ng, a trader at Kuala Lumpur-based Iceberg X. Weak export volume also contributed to the decline, Ng says. Still, the vegetable oil may find some support in the near term amid hopes for earlier Federal Reserve rate cuts, Kenanga Futures analysts say in a commentary. The Bursa Malaysia Derivatives contract for April delivery fell MYR86 to MYR4,182 a ton. (tracy.qu@wsj.com)

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Equinor Update Points to a Weak Fourth Quarter -- Market Talk

1005 GMT - Equinor's trading update points to a weak fourth quarter, driven by a challenging period for gas and liquids trading and a weaker refining margin, Berenberg analysts write. The company's acquisition of a 10% stake in Orsted means that capital allocation is likely to remain a focus, including guidance on the 2025 share buyback and the potential for any further acquisitions, they say. Berenberg models a 2025 buyback of $4 billion versus consensus at $4.9 billion. "Equinor's confidence in the gas price outlook and resulting cash flow potential will likely be a key factor in where the 2025 payout lands." The bank expects European gas prices to remain strong through 2025. Berenberg rates Equinor at buy with a 325 Norwegian kroner price target. Shares fall 1.2% to 287.70 kroner. (dominic.chopping@wsj.com)

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Europe Needs to Boost LNG Imports to Meet Storage Targets, MUFG Says -- Market Talk

0958 GMT - Europe will likely need to ramp up imports of liquefied natural gas to meet its storage filling targets for the year as inventories deplete fast, according to MUFG. Inventories have been withdrawn at an average rate of around 350 million cubic meters a day this winter, compared to a rate of 220 mcm/d in the same period last year, analysts at the group say. Data from Gas Infrastructure Europe shows EU storage is currently 64% full, more than 15% lower on year. "European gas inventories are set to end the winter season 34% full," the analysts say. "Europe will need to import around 30% more LNG on an annualized basis before the start of the next winter season in October 2025 to meet the EU's 90% storage fill target." The benchmark Dutch TTF price currently trades 1.7% lower at 46.22 euros a megawatt hour. (giulia.petroni@wsj.com)

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Oil Gains Might Be Short-Lived, MUFG Says -- Market Talk

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01-16-25 0908ET