The ratings agency says international sanctions on Russia have certainly exacerbated its domestic economic pain since the country was plunged into recession in 2014 by low commodity prices.But Putin's government has done "little to address the weak spots"."Experience tells us that Vladimir Putin's fourth presidential term, which he won Sunday, will likely not bring a sea change in economic policy...Read More
Chile's state copper miner Codelco said on Thursday it had reached an agreement with the professionals' union at its Ministro Hales mine in northern Chile, following early talks on a new collective labor contract.The 36-month contract, which includes a signing bonus of 7.1 million pesos ($11,600), was approved by 75 per cent of the union, Codelco said in a statement.Ministro Hales had production o...Read More
TOKYO, March 22 (Reuters) - Global miner BHP anticipates planned new U.S. steel import tariffs will have a limited impact on both the steel market and the firm, and doesn't foresee a chain reaction from other countries, a senior official said on Thursday."I think direct impact on steel is quite marginal because the United States is not such a big steel producer," Arnoud Balhuizen, chief commercial...Read More
(Bloomberg) - One by one, the biggest names in African mining are getting squeezed. The tactics might be blunt, but the message is clear: the countries where they operate want a bigger share of the proceeds.The collapse in commodities through 2015 hobbled some of Africa's biggest resource economies, stunting growth and leaving budgets short. Since then a recovery in prices has sent the continent'...Read More
Luxury vehicle maker BMW won't be signing any supply contracts for lithium and cobalt at least until 2020, when mass-producing electric vehicles (EVs) proves to be profitable, chief executive Harald Krueger said.The German company, which unveiled its first battery electric car in 2013, and is said to be ready to unveil a new wave of EVs later this year, told analysts in Munich it will wait until t...Read More
The repeated instances of civil unrest during recent weeks offer yet more evidence that large numbers of Guineans hold the government in complete contempt amid mass school closures and controversy over the recent local elections. But among the numerous protests are renewed signs that many people also blame mining companies for the state's failure to contribute to their wellbeing. Anti-government s...Read More
Canada's RNC Minerals (TSX: RNX) said Thursday it might sell all or part of its Beta Hunt gold and nickel mine in Western Australia to focus instead on its Dumont cobalt and nickel project in Quebec, the world's largest undeveloped reserve of both metals.The Toronto-based miner, which acquire Beta Hunt in 2016, said while it has grew the scale of the operation ever since, such asset is now cons...Read More
* MSCI all-country index weaker before 1800 GMT Fed announcement* Fed likely to raise rates; markets see four more hikes in 2018* Tech sector woes weigh on sentiment on Facebook troubles* Trade war fears escalate after WSJ China report (Updates prices)By Sujata RaoLONDON, March 21 (Reuters) - World shares fell on Wednesday and the dollar eased off three-week highs as markets awaited a likely incre...Read More
The discount of gem-quality lab-created diamonds, manufactured for use in jewelry, relative to natural diamonds has doubled from 11-20% a year ago to 28-40% today, according to a survey of prices. For example, a white, 1-carat round diamond that is VS (very-slightly included) in clarity, F-H (near-colorless to colorless) in color, VG-ideal cut, with no-to-low florescence was selling for approxima...Read More
The results for the first 29 holes of its extended 55-hole infill drilling programme at New Liberty in Liberia have shown that some of the inferred resources - 275,000 ounces, in fact - could move into the higher confidence categories in the future. The assays that showed promise include a 26m interval grading 8.49g/t Au from 176m, a 42m intercept at 3.17g/t Au from 255m and a 24m hit a...Read More
SHANGHAI, Mar 22 (SMM) – Nonferrous metals futures registered gains for the most part on Thursday March 22 except for SHFE nickel which closed slightly lower. SHFE lead gained 3%, zinc rose 1.6% and copper climbed close to 1%.The ferrous complex was weaker as iron ore saw a narrower rise of 1%. Coke edged up but coking coal fell close to 2%. Hot-rolled coil dipped almost 1% an...Read More
Donnelly's place on the board has been taken by Swinoga, who replaced Chris Osterman in January.Donnelly has been in the job since January 2015, when First Mining Financial (as it was known at the time) first came to being through a reverse listing.Osterman accepted the COO job when Swinoga arrived.First Mining chairman Keith Neumeyer thanked Donnelly for his work over the past three years.Wh...Read More
SHANGHAI, Mar 22 (SMM) – China's aluminium industry is likely to take a greater hit than the steel industry as a result of the US' recent tariffs on steel and aluminium imports, said director and top economist at the Rushi Advanced Institute of Finance, Guan Qingyou.Chinese aluminium accounted for 16.6% of US aluminium imports while Chinese steel account...Read More
The Pyrenees-focused developer Apollo is working on reopening the Salau tungsten mine and exploiting the gold deposits within and around the old underground workings.Read More
SHANGHAI, Mar 22 (SMM)? 1/4 ?Spot copper in the Shanghai market was offered at a discount of 190-140 yuan/mt on the morning of Thursday March 22, SMM learned.This compared with discounts of 210-160 yuan/mt on the morning of Wednesday March 21. For editorial queries, please contact Daisy Tseng at daisy@smm.cn For more information on how to access our research reports, please email service...Read More
The sale comes hot on the heels of another agreement earlier this week for Glencore (LN:GLEN) to acquire Rio's Hail Creek and Valeria assets, also in Queensland, for $1.7 billion.Rio CEO Jean-Sebastian Jacques said the agreement was "the best option for the future development of the project while delivering attractive value for Rio Tinto as we continue to streamline our portfolio".The deal is...Read More
The discovery dates of 2017's 10 largest copper-producing mines show exploration has slowed and more investment is needed to keep up with global demand for the red metal.Read More
SHANGHAI, Mar 22 (SMM) – This is a roundup of global macroeconomic news last night and what is expected today.Last nightThe US dollar dropped below 90 at one point and then hovered around 89.7 as the Federal Reserve anticipated hiking interest rates three times in 2018, below market expectations of four hikes. Nonferrous metals rose due to the weak US dollar and higher oil prices....Read More
Ascendant acquired the 70-year-old zinc, silver and lead mine in December 2016 and embarked on a turnaround programme, increasing milled production 81% and decreasing direct operating costs by 31% during 2017. The turnaround was in step with a rising zinc price throughout 2017 that went on to reach a 10.5-year high earlier this year but has since eased about US$300 a tonne to around $3,...Read More