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Sources say that RPT-Barrick Mining has removed the Mali gold complex production forecast for 2025.
Four sources have confirmed that Barrick Mining removed the Mali gold complex's output forecast from 2025. This is a result of a two-year dispute with West African authorities over new mining laws aimed at increasing revenue. The Loulo-Gounkoto complex, one the Canadian miner’s largest assets in Africa, has been closed since January. This is because the military-led government of Mali blocked gold exports, detained employees and seized 3 metric tons during separate negotiations for a new mining agreement with Barrick. Both sides are hoping to make at least $1 billion in revenue this year, thanks to the record-high gold prices. Barrick's shares are lagging behind those of its peers, and Mali is at risk of repelling investors. Sources spoke under condition of anonymity, as they weren't authorized to speak in public. Barrick's spokespersons and the Mali Mines Ministry did not respond immediately to requests for comment. Barrick's Mali production forecast has not been made public. Morningstar analysts, however, had predicted that Mali would contribute approximately 250,000 ounces by 2025. Jefferies reports that Mali, as a shareholder, requested a court to appoint an interim administrator in May. This would mean Barrick losing control of the mines, which accounted for 14% its total production. On Thursday, a court hearing is scheduled to be held on this matter. Parallel to the court case, negotiations are underway. Two people with knowledge of the situation said that Mali made a concession by allowing Barrick to repatriate 20 percent of its earnings to an international account. This was a concession not granted to any other foreign miner who had recently renegotiated their contracts with the government. Mali and Barrick still have a disagreement over the future handling of disputes. According to a source and a person familiar with the issue, Barrick believes that any new mining contracts should be covered by an international treaty. In the event of disputes in the future, they will be resolved through international arbitration. The threat of a temporary administration has investors worried, according to one source. Even though strong gold prices have helped Barrick increase its global revenue, a threat of a temporary administration is a concern, another source said. Barrick initiated international arbitration proceedings in December against Mali. In May, Barrick asked the World Bank arbitration court to stop court proceedings in Bamako due to provisional administration. Two people who were aware of this development said that the tribunal denied the request. The President of the Arbitration Tribunal for this case declined to comment. Barrick's revenues in the first nine-month period of 2024 were $949 million due to production in Mali. Jefferies estimated in a December report that Barrick's earnings for 2025 would be reduced by 11% if its Mali complex remained idle. This was before taxes, interest, depreciation and amortization. Mali, Africa's largest gold producer, is ranked third in the world. The Malian authorities who seized power through coups in 2020 and in 2021 say that their current Barrick agreement is unfair. The state has negotiated with other multinational miner companies. Last year, the chief executive of Australian mining company Resolute spent more than a full week in detention during negotiations. Reporting by Divyarajagopal from Toronto and PortiaCrowe in Dakar, Editing by Veronica Brown & Rod Nickel
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China removes decade-old rubbish from the park that inspired the sci-fi movie 'Avatar.'
China has removed 51 tonnes of rubbish from a scenic region in the south, famed for its craggy peak that was featured in Hollywood blockbuster Avatar. The removal came after social media videos showing ancient caves being used as a garbage dump went viral. Videos on Chinese social media showed that the caves of Hunan province in southern China were filled with rotting garbage piled up to seven to eight stories high. This led to an accumulation of sewage. The Zhangjiajie Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that inspired the scenery of James Cameron's 2009 sci fi film. On Sunday, Cili County officials posted on their official Wechat account that they had removed 51 tonnes of trash from the Datiankeng Caves and Yangjiapo Caves. Some of this garbage dated back to 2010 and 2016. They added that villagers had dumped their waste in the area after the local authorities banned incineration, and before they established a new service for waste collection and treatment. They said that four officials were suspended and 12 farms are being investigated for illegal discharges of waste water. The authorities have established a whistleblower system for reporting illegal waste disposal. The Cili officials, who live near the caves, claimed that the "prominent" environmental and ecological issues prompted them to take action against those responsible for the caves and their companies. (Reporting and editing by Farah master, Beijing newsroom)
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Oil prices drop as the market evaluates Middle East tension
Oil prices fell on Thursday, reversing gains earlier in the Asian session. Market participants analyzed a U.S. move to remove personnel from the Middle East before talks with Iran about its nuclear activities. Brent crude futures fell 30 cents or 0.4% to $69.47 a bar at 0433 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude was 23 cents or 0.3% lower at $67.92 a bar. Brent and WTI both rose more than 4% the day before, reaching their highest levels since early April. Donald Trump, the U.S. president, said that the U.S. is moving personnel to the Middle East because it "could become a dangerous area". He said that the United States will not allow Iran to possess a nuclear device. Iran claims its nuclear activities are peaceful. The increased tensions with Iran have raised the possibility of oil supply disruption. Both sides will meet on Sunday. The rise in Brent oil prices to above $70 per barrel is overdone. The U.S. did not identify any specific threats regarding an Iranian attack, said Vivek Dahar, director of Mining and Energy Commodities Research at Commonwealth Bank Australia. Dhar stated that the response from Iran depends only on U.S. escalated, He said: "A price pullback makes sense. But a geopolitical bonus that keeps Brent at $65 per barrel is likely to persist until more clarity about U.S. nuclear talks with Iran is revealed." U.S. sources and Iraqi ones reported that the U.S. was preparing to evacuate its Iraqi Embassy and allow dependents of military personnel to leave Middle East locations due to the increased security risks in the region. Iraq is the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries' second largest crude oil producer, after Saudi Arabia. A U.S. official confirmed that military dependents could also leave Bahrain. Kelvin Wong, senior market analyst at OANDA, says that prices have weakened after hitting key technical resistance levels in Wednesday's rally. Some market participants also bet on a reduction of tension following the U.S.Iran meeting scheduled for Sunday. Trump has said repeatedly that the U.S. will bomb Iran if both countries are unable to reach an agreement regarding Iran's nuclear activities, including uranium enrichment. Aziz Nasirzadeh, Iran's Minister for Defense on Wednesday, said that Iran would strike U.S. military bases in the area if negotiations fail or if the U.S. starts a conflict. Steve Witkoff, the U.S. Special Representative for Iran, plans to meet with Abbas Araghchi on Sunday in Oman to discuss Iran's reaction to a U.S. deal proposal. Analysts at ANZ say that despite Trump's statements, the chances of a deal disappearing are decreasing. Trump said he was less confident in his ability to convince Iran to cease its nuclear activities. The Energy Information Administration reported that U.S. crude oil inventories dropped 3.6 million barrels, to 432.4 millions barrels, last week. The analysts polled had predicted a drawdown of 2 million barrels. Reporting by Arathy S. Somasekhar, in Houston; Emily Chow, in Singapore. Editing by Sonali Paul & Christopher Cushing
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No relief for US-China Trade Trance
Johann M. Cherian gives us a look at what the future holds for European and global markets. The mood of European investors is set to change as a result of the rapidly increasing tensions in Middle East, and another tariff salvo by U.S. president Donald Trump. This has triggered a wave dollar selling and risk off moves. The U.S. and China talks, which were much hyped up, ended in a fragile truce. This may have temporarily quelled the simmering tensions on trade between the two largest economies of the world. However the investors are still uneasy due to the lack details. China's President Xi Jinping has not yet approved the 'deal.' Details on the new tariffs and how they will be implemented have yet to be worked out. Also, U.S. restrictions on exporting high-end artificial Intelligence chips remain in place. Trump has returned to his unilateral policymaking style as the deadline for worldwide tariffs on July 8 is fast approaching. He said that he will send letters to dozens of countries in one to two week outlining trade terms, which they can accept or reject. The markets will be looking for another TACO Moment. Companies are beginning to raise the alarm, even though inflation reports from the past do not reflect current price pressures. Inditex, Zara's owner, was the latest company to release a disappointing quarter report and warn of trade uncertainty. As if investors didn't have enough to deal with, geopolitical tensions are escalating in the Middle East, increasing the risk of inflation as crude prices rise. Brent and West Texas Intermediate futures reached two-month highs, each at nearly $70 per barrel. As my colleague Jamie McGeever has pointed out, the valuations of stocks and equities are starting to look stretched. This increases the risk to investors in case of a selloff. Futures in Europe were down by 0.7% while those in the U.S. point to a lower opening on Thursday. However, the benchmark indexes of the two regions are only 2% apart from their respective records highs. Investors continue to doubt the dollar's status as a safe-haven currency. The euro reached a seven-week peak on Thursday and has gained 11% in 2018. It is poised to make its largest annual gain since 2017. Next week's central bank bonanza could shed more light on global economic outlook. Next week, the U.S. Federal Reserve, the Bank of Japan, and the Bank of England will announce their policy decisions. Investors will also be watching for UK economic data, including the gross domestic product (GDP) and manufacturing output reports later that day. Both reports are expected to show a decrease in activity on an annual basis. This is due to the BoE’s cautious approach towards monetary policy ease. Thursday's key developments could give investors more guidance on the markets. - In UK: data on GDP, industrial production, manufacturing output, and trade In the U.S., data on producer inflation, initial weekly claims for unemployment and an auction of bonds for 30 years worth $22 billion - Policymakers including David Jacobs, Reserve Bank of Australia and Jose Luis Escriva of the ECB are expected to speak. - UniCredit CEO says Commerzbank is too expensive, and that there are few chances of a BPM deal. - Oracle raises annual forecast on robust cloud services demand Fitch downgrades Warner Bros credit rating to junk on the split-up
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Market awaits clarity about Sino-US trade talks progress
Iron ore futures were in a range on Thursday as investors awaited further details about the trade talks between China and the U.S., even though U.S. president Donald Trump made a positive statement. The September contract for iron ore on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange closed the morning trading 0.07% lower, at 705 Yuan ($98.16). As of 0400 GMT, the benchmark July iron ore traded on Singapore Exchange fell 0.53% to $84.6 per ton. Trump said on Wednesday that he was extremely happy with the trade deal which restored a fragile truce to the U.S. - China trade war. Beijing hasn't confirmed any progress in the trade negotiations. It would be a good thing if both countries were able to reach an agreement, as this would remove some uncertainty in the export industry, but it could also reduce the likelihood of Beijing introducing more stimuli. Ge Xin said that the focus has temporarily shifted from the deteriorating fundamentals to the Sino-US trade talks until there is greater clarity. Ge stated that "Steel production has declined for the past two weeks. This indicates a lower consumption of raw material, including iron ore." Coking coal and coke, which are both steelmaking ingredients, have also lost ground. They fell by 1.9% and 1.33% respectively. The Shanghai Futures Exchange saw a decline in most steel benchmarks. Rebar fell 0.8%, while hot-rolled coil, wire rod, and stainless steel all gained 0.76%. ($1 = 7.1818 Chinese Yuan Renminbi)
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Chartwell Marine to Design CTV for NR Marine Services
NR Marine Services has commissioned Chartwell Marine to design a new crew transfer vessel (CTV) in response to client requests for a new class of vessel capable of supporting older generation assets, now referred to as legacy turbines.Chartwell Marine has developed the Defiant Class vessel, a 20-meter CTV designed to Workboat Code Edition 3 with IMO Tier 3 compliance featuring a step free flush forward deck, superstructure and modern furnishings and materials used in larger CTVs.The Defiant Class comes in response to the need for a new class of smaller CTV required for legacy turbines.The vessel will retain flexibility to be tailored to different projects from a water jet propulsion system for shallow water sites and hybrid options where budgets allow to internal modularity to suit different racking and seating solutions. “It is always enjoyable bringing a new class of vessel to the market. What’s interesting in this case, is the vessel is based-on ‘legacy vessel’ parameters but with modern up-to-date experienced thinking.“With the Defiant Class, we are able to utilize our proven high efficiency, high seakeeping performance hull form, in a smaller, more dynamic cost-effective platform, appropriate for the legacy turbine projects the vessels are intended to support,” said Andy Page of Chartwell Marine.“NR Marine Services is excited to be the first to bring the brand-new Chartwell DEFIANT Class CTV to the market. With strong industry focus being on the HSOSC market space, the CTV development has been taken away from the smaller vessel market. “Working closely with Chartwell Marine and Diverse Marine we have looked at incorporating as many of the recent CTV developments a possible into a smaller package.“Following an internal fleet review long with external market research, the data shows that there is a potential to replace older tonnage which is between 10-15 years old for near shore projects which have a lifespan that warrants investment in new CTV’s,” added Richard Thurlow of NR Marine Services.
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London Copper rises, but volatility concerns linger
London copper prices rose a little on Thursday. Analysts expect continued volatility due to the uncertainty surrounding trade tariffs, as well as fundamentals of the market. The London Metal Exchange's three-month contract for copper gained 0.2%, reaching $9,663.5 a metric ton at 0100 GMT. Meanwhile, the Shanghai Futures Exchange's most traded copper contract fell 0.7%, to 78660 yuan (10,935.94). The U.S. Dollar fell after data showed that inflation in the largest economy in the world rose less than anticipated in May. This suggests that the Federal Reserve may resume cutting rates sooner than later. The metal price is usually supported by a weaker dollar, which makes it more attractive for buyers who use other currencies. "The U.S. China trade agreement induced a muted reaction from the metal markets," ANZ stated. On Wednesday, U.S. president Donald Trump declared that he was "very pleased" with the trade agreement which restored a fragile truce in trade with China. The deal also removed Beijing's export restrictions on rare earths, and allowed Chinese students to attend U.S. Universities. Although the trade agreement eased concerns about copper prices, uncertainty continues to linger. SHMET, an Shanghai-based commodity analysis house, stated that while inventories at LME warehouses have decreased, China's copper stocks have increased. Inventory increases can indicate a softening of demand. Other LME metals include zinc, which rose by 0.1% per ton to $2,656.5, nickel, up 0.1% at $15,190; tin, down 0.3% at $32,555, and lead, down 0.1% at $1,986. Other SHFE metals include aluminium, which gained 0.6%, to 20,285 Yuan per ton. Zinc rose by 0.1%, to 22,035 Yuan. Nickel fell by 0.8%, to 120,520 Yuan. Tin lost 0.3%, to 264330 Yuan. Click or to see the latest news in metals, and other related stories. DATA/EVENTS (GMT) UK GDP Estimate 3M/3M, April 0600 UK Gross Domestic Product MM,YY, April 0600 UK Manufacturing Output, April 0600 UK Initial Jobless Clm Weekly, 1230 US Machine Mfg PPI, May 1600 US Federal Reserve releases Quarterly Financial Accounts for the United States
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Gold prices rise on weaker dollar and rising Middle East tensions
Gold prices rose Thursday on the back of rising tensions in Middle East, a weaker Dollar, and better-than-expected U.S. Inflation data. As of 0202 GMT, spot gold was up 0.6% to $3,372.46 per ounce. U.S. Gold Futures rose 1.5% to $3393. The U.S. Dollar Index fell to near a two-month low making greenback priced bullion more appealing to overseas buyers. Kelvin Wong is a senior analyst at OANDA. He said that the weakness of the dollar index was a powerful catalyst. Gold faced resistance at $3.346, but the breakout bullish triggered technical selling. The rising geopolitical risk aided the safe-haven assets. President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that U.S. military personnel would be moved out of Middle East because of increased security risks due to increasing tensions with Iran. In the meantime, U.S. consumer price data revealed that gasoline prices were lower than expected, but inflation could increase due to import tariffs. Trump has again called for the Fed to cut rates significantly. Wong stated that the CPI data is not alarming and could lead to the Fed acting more quickly than expected. The Fed will meet on June 17-18. Traders are now expecting a rate cut of 50 basis points by the end of the year. They await U.S. Producer Price Index data due at 1230 GMT for more clues. Trump also said that Washington and Beijing agreed on a framework for restoring a fragile truce to the U.S. China trade war. This could have avoided higher tariffs. Trump said he would be willing to extend the deadline of July 8 for trade negotiations with other countries before U.S. tariffs increase, but he did not anticipate such a requirement. (Reporting by Anmol Choubey in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips) (Reporting and editing by Sherry Jacobi-Phillips in Bengaluru)
Trump Administration ends Iraq's waiver for buying Iranian electricity
A State Department spokesperson confirmed that the Trump administration had revoked on Saturday a waiver which allowed Iraq to pay Iran electricity as part of Donald Trump's campaign against Tehran.
The spokesperson stated that the decision to let Iraq’s waiver expire ensures that we don't allow Iran any economic or financial relief. Trump's campaign against Iran is aimed at "ending its nuclear threat, curbing its ballistic missile programme and stopping it from supporting terrorist organizations."
In one of his very first acts upon returning to office, Trump restored the "maximum" pressure on Iran. In his first term he pulled out the U.S. from the Iran Nuclear Deal, an international agreement designed to prevent Iran developing nuclear weapons.
The U.S. Government has stated that it wants to cut off Iran's oil export revenue and isolate Iran from global economic growth in order to slow down Tehran's nuclear weapons development.
Iran denies seeking nuclear weapons, and claims its program is peaceful.
Washington has imposed sanctions against Tehran for its nuclear program and its support of militant groups, effectively barring countries who do business with Iran to do business with the U.S.
James Hewitt, spokesperson for National Security, said that "President Trump made it clear that Iran's regime must abandon its nuclear weapons ambitions or face Maximum Pressure." "We hope that the regime will place the interests of the people of Iran and the region above its destabilizing policy."
BAGHDAD PRESSURE -
Trump granted initial waivers to buyers in order to meet their energy needs in 2018 when he reimposed the sanctions on Iran’s energy exports, citing the country's nuclear program and its alleged meddling in the Middle East.
Joe Biden and his administration have repeatedly renewed the waiver for Iraq while encouraging Baghdad's dependence on Iranian electric power. State Department spokesperson reaffirmed this call on Saturday.
The spokesperson stated: "We urge Iraq to reduce its dependency on Iranian energy sources as soon as possible." "Iran is a unreliable supplier of energy."
Sources have said that the U.S. used the waiver review to put pressure on Baghdad, to allow Kurdish crude exports through Turkey. Sources have told us that the U.S. has used the waiver review to increase pressure on Baghdad to allow Kurdish crude oil exports via Turkey.
Iraq's negotiations over oil exports with the semi-autonomous Kurdish Region have been fraught to date.
The State Department spokesperson stated that "Iraq’s energy transition offers opportunities for U.S. firms, who are world-leading specialists in increasing the productivity and efficiency of power plants, upgrading electricity grids, as well as developing electricity interconnections" with reliable partners.
The spokesperson downplayed the impact of Iranian imports of electricity on Iraq's grid by saying "In 2023 electricity imports from Iran represented only 4%" of Iraq's electricity consumption.
(source: Reuters)