IlluMyFi

Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news, on the final trading day of the year

European gas prices are also higher today, with the month-ahead contract up 0.8% at €48.25/MWh.

Reuters reports that Russia’s Gazprom said it will pump a reduced volume of gas to Europe via Ukraine today, the last day before the expiry of a deal that had kept the gas flowing throughout nearly three years of war, adding:

Gazprom said it would send only 37.2 million cubic metres on Tuesday compared to 42.4 mcm on Monday. Flows are expected to fall to zero from the early hours of Jan. 1 after the expiry of the five-year transit agreement.

Its demise marks the almost complete loss of Moscow’s once mighty hold over the European gas market. Ukraine refused to negotiate a new deal because of the war.

Sentiment

-0.55

Bearish/Bullish

02.01.25 04:52

by theguardian.com

Early phase-out of full hybrid vehicles may be a political risk too far for UK m...

Pragmatism will win over purism, unless the government favours early closure for car manufacturers

The main timetable is set: no new petrol and diesel cars will be allowed to be sold in the UK after 2030, and sales of all new hybrids will be forbidden from 2035. But that phasing still leaves open the critical matter – for the automotive industry, and for a couple of manufacturers in particular – of which new hybrids will be allowed to be sold until the last day of 2034.

Just the variety that comes with a socket – plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs)? Or should old-style hybrids, such as the Toyota Prius, which have smaller batteries charged by a main internal combustion engine, also be permitted?

United States of America