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China's BYD and Tsingshan cancel plans for Chilean lithium plants
Sources from the government and BYD, a Chinese automaker, confirmed on Wednesday that they have withdrawn multi-million dollar plans for building lithium cathodes in Chile, which is a major producer. The two Chinese giants' retreat is a blow for Chile, which aims to increase domestic processing of lithium - a metal that is essential to electric vehicle batteries. Chile is ranked as the No. The world's No. Tsingshan has announced that it canceled plans for a $233-million project to produce 120,00 metric tons (LFP) of lithium iron phosphate. Chile's National Assets Ministry said that BYD had filed an intention to withdraw their plans in January. BYD declined to comment. BYD announced delays last year to a planned $290-million plant that was supposed to produce 50,000 tons of LFP per year for cathodes. The first newspaper to report the scrapped investments was Chilean Diario Financiero. BYD's and Tsingshan’s plans were both part of an agreement for a special price to buy lithium. The Chilean government awarded this deal in order to encourage investment in lithium products in Chile. The arrangement is no longer attractive, according to a person who knows the situation. This is due to the falling prices of lithium on the international market. (Reporting and editing by Alexander Villegas; Sarah Morland, Emelia Sithole Matarise and Emelia Sithole Matarise).
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Sources say that Guinea has cancelled EGA's mining license
Two people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday that Guinea had begun a process of revoking Emirates Global Aluminium's mine licence. Emirates Global Aluminium is owned equally by Abu Dhabi sovereign fund Mubadala and Dubai sovereign fund Investment Corporation of Dubai. It operates through its Guinea Alumina Corporation subsidiary one of the world's largest bauxite mining operations in Guinea. In a reply, the company stated that it "continues to work hard to find a solution with the government so we can resume our operations." EGA and the Government of Guinea have been involved in a dispute since October last, when the authorities suspended its bauxite mining operations and exports. They cited customs duties as the reason for the suspension. We have withdrawn the mining license of GAC. "A notification has been sent in this regard," said one source, a senior official of the government who asked to remain anonymous because they weren't authorised to talk. Guinea's decision to cancel EGA’s licence is part of a larger trend in which resource-rich nations are seeking greater control over their wealth. This could have a major impact on the global mining industry. In particular, the military-led governments of Guinea, Mali and Niger, as well as Burkina Faso have been pushing to rewrite laws and contracts governing mining, detain executives in mining, suspend operations and seize product in order to gain more control and revenue. The Emirati Company began operations in Guinea in 2019. It will export around 14 million tons of bauxite by 2022. In March, it said that the suspension of activities in Guinea led to a decrease in exports of bauxite from 14,1 million wet-metric tonnes in 2020 to 10,8 million wet-metric tonnes in 2024. Guinea is the second largest producer of bauxite in the world after Australia. EGA's operations in Guinea include a 690 square kilometer mining concession which contains approximately 400 million tonnes of mineral resources. Saliou Samb, Conakry, Guinea. Additional reporting by Hadeel al Sayegh, Abu Dhabi, and Maxwell Akalaare Adombila, Dakar. Writing by Bate Felis Editing by Tomaszjanowski, Elaine Hardcastle, and Matthew Lewis.
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Markets retrench as they focus on US-China talks and Fed rate decision
The world stock market fell on Wednesday, while Treasury yields dipped. This was after the news that top U.S. officials would be meeting with Chinese counterparts soon and before a Federal Reserve statement about its monetary policy at the conclusion of their two-day meeting. After three days of declining against the yen, the dollar index has risen. Gold, the safe-haven asset, fell after a two day rally. The Fed is expected to maintain interest rates at their current level. The U.S. Treasury secretary Scott Bessent, and the chief trade negotiator Jamieson Grer will meet China's highest economic official at the weekend for discussions. This could be a first step towards an agreement after U.S. president Donald Trump ignited the trade war last month with China's second largest economy. Bessent believes the meeting in Switzerland will be about "de-escalation." China, on the other hand, sounded more cautious and quoted a Chinese proverb that said actions speak louder than words. "It is a step in the right directions." Chris Zaccarelli said that until you start talking, you cannot make any progress. He said that "until a framework or agreement is announced, market participants don't know what to make of the talks." The upcoming Fed report also slowed down market movements. Investors are not expecting any rate changes, but will be closely monitoring Chair Jerome Powell’s press conference. He'll be asked to provide more information on the Fed's current position. Do they tend to lean more toward protecting the job markets or do they lean more towards combating inflation? Zaccarelli said. Wall Street At 11:01 am, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 131.77, or 0.33 percent, to reach 40,963.18, while the S&P fell by 1.16, or just 0.01% to 5,606.14, and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 55.37, or about 0.30% to 17,636.66. The MSCI index of global stocks fell by 0.56 points or 0.07% to 841.35. The pan-European STOXX 600 fell by 0.6%. The U.S. Dollar rose against the Japanese Yen, while the Euro was barely lower. Traders awaited Fed's latest update as uncertainty about trade negotiations weighed on the sentiment. The dollar index measures the greenback in relation to a basket including the yen, the euro and other currencies. The index fell by 0.13%, to 99.37. The euro fell 0.02% to $1.1366. The dollar gained 0.6% against the Japanese yen to reach 143.3. The yield on the benchmark U.S. 10 year notes dropped 3.7 basis point to 4.281% from 4.318% at the end of Tuesday, while the 30-year bond rate fell 5 basis points, to 4.7628%. The yield on the 2-year bond, which is usually in line with Fed expectations, increased 0.8 basis points from late Tuesday to 3,797%. Oil prices dropped on commodity markets as investors awaited the outcome of U.S. China trade talks. U.S. crude dropped 0.58%, to $58.75 per barrel. Brent was down to $61.71 a barrel on the same day. As traders awaited Fed's decision, gold prices declined due to a stronger dollar and optimism in the U.S. China trade talks. Spot gold dropped 1.27% to $3385.76 per ounce. U.S. Gold Futures dropped 0.73% to an ounce of $3,386.60. Pakistan's bonds and stocks suffered heavy losses after India attacked the country as a response to the April tourist murders. The attacks sparked the worst fighting between the two nuclear-armed neighbors in more than 20 years.
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EU warns Romania that it faces legal action if it does not remove the gas price cap
The European Commission warned Romania Wednesday that it could face legal action if it did not remove its gas price cap. According to the EU executive branch, the policy violates EU rules on the energy market. Since November 2021, gas and electricity bills for Romanian households and small businesses, as well as public institutions, are capped at certain levels of consumption per month. The suppliers are compensated for any difference. In a statement published on Wednesday, The European Commission stated that the Romanian policy violates EU regulations on the free formation wholesale gas prices since it forces firms to sell a part of their production for a wholesale price fixed. The Commission stated that "Regulated wholesale prices on the EU's entire market distort price signalling and market effectiveness." After Russia restricted deliveries, European wholesale gas prices began to rise in 2021. The following year, prices reached record levels after Moscow cut supplies further in response to its February 2022 invasion. The EU has given the Romanian government two months to respond. If the warning is not resolved, the Commission may refer the case to Europe's highest court. Romania has an interim government in place ahead of the run-off presidential election on May 18, which is unable to issue decrees or implement policies. The former prime minister Marcel Ciolacu announced his resignation on Monday, after George Simion, a hard-right eurosceptic who won the first round in the re-run of the presidential elections. The president who was elected in this month's election will name a new Prime Minister. The former government extended in February the gas price ceiling for an additional year and the electricity price limit until June to help consumers control their bills. Romania produces most of the gas that it consumes in its own country, via producers OMV Petrom and Romgaz, as well as offshore producer Black Sea Oil & Gas.
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Rio Tinto first gallium extracted in collaboration with Indium
Rio Tinto, a mining giant, announced on Wednesday that it had successfully extracted the first primary gallium in a joint venture with Indium Corp. of the United States. The collaboration aims to produce commercial quantities of this rare metal. This development coincides with China's restrictions on metal exports to the United States, including gallium, antimony and germanium. These are part of Beijing’s response to Washington’s trade war. Rio Tinto reported that the first extraction took place at Indium’s R&D facility located in New York. The next phase will assess techniques to enable the production of larger quantities of gallium on a pilot scale. Rio Tinto predicts that if the miner is successful in bringing production to commercial scale in its refinery located in Quebec, Canada it will produce up to 40 tonnes per year, which would be worth 5%-10% the current global output. Rio Tinto and Indium Corporation are working to improve the North American supply of gallium, said Rio Tinto executive Jerome Pecresse in a press release. China is the largest producer of germanium, antimony and gallium. These metals play a niche role in chipmaking, defence and clean energy. However, Beijing's targeting of U.S. supply chain is driving prices up. Reporting by DhanushVigneshbabu in Bengaluru, Editing by Vijay Kishore & Devika Syamnath
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Barrick CEO claims he doesn't know where Mali keeps miners' confiscated gold
Mark Bristow, CEO of Barrick Mining, said that the Canadian company spends $15 million per month to run its Mali mine. He also stated that he doesn't know where the Mali government keeps the gold they confiscated from Barrick. Bristow, in an interview with the authorities of the West African country, said that the government had reneged on an agreement at least three times and referred to the imprisonment of Barrick workers in the nation as a violation of human rights. Bristow stated, "You have four senior executives from Western companies incarcerated. This can only be described as a human rights violation." He claimed that the executives in jail had worked harder for Mali then the people currently leading the negotiations for the government. He said, "We don’t know where the Gold is. It is allegedly in safe custody but we don’t know this." Barrick and Mali’s government have been in dispute over the Loulo-Gounkoto Complex, Barrick’s largest mine in Mali, for more than six month. Authorities confiscated approximately 3 metric tons of gold, in addition to arresting four Barrick employees in January, following allegations that Barrick had not met its tax obligations. This led the miner, Barrick, to close the mine. According to the current gold rate, the value is approximately $318 million. Barrick announced a profit for the first quarter on Wednesday, beating analysts' expectations. The surge in gold prices helped offset lower production. Gold prices soared to over $3,100 an ounce in 2025's first quarter, driven by a surge in demand for safe havens amid rising tariff uncertainty that could fuel inflation or reduce global economic growth. Bullion is up around 29% this year after climbing more than 27% last year. The Toronto-based company expects total gold production in 2025 to be between 3,15 million and 3,50 million ounces. Loulo-Gounkoto is excluded from the outlook. Barrick stated that it would update its guidance to include Loulo Gounkoto once we had more certainty about the timing of the restart. Barrick, which has been streamlining operations since merging with Africa-focused Randgold Resources in 2010, said that it was moving forward with its plans to divest the Tongon mine in Ivory Coast, and its Hemlo operation in Canada. The average realized gold price of the company for the first three months rose from $2,075 to $2,898. Total gold production dropped to 758,000 from 940,000. Barrick's total costs, which reflect the industry's overall expenses, increased by 20.4% in the first quarter to $1,775 an ounce. The company said that the per-ounce price is expected to decrease over the remainder of the year due to higher production. According to data compiled and analyzed by LSEG, on an adjusted basis the company, formerly known as Barrick Gold earned 35 cents a share during the third quarter. This compares with the average analyst expectation of 28 cents a share. Reporting by Arunima Kumna in Bengaluru; Divyarajagopal and Daina Beth Solon in Toronto; and Shounak Dasgupta, and Paul Simao for editing.
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Goldman Sachs raises copper price forecast on resilient Chinese demand
Goldman Sachs raised its quarterly copper forecast on Wednesday, citing a de-escalation of trade tensions as well as the resilient Chinese demand for copper that will continue to support prices over the next few months. The bank stated in a statement that it had upgraded its 2Q/3Q forecast from $8.620/$8.370 to $9.330/$9.150/t. The bank stated that the high U.S. imports of copper are expected to reduce stocks outside the U.S. during the remainder the second quarter. This will tighten the forward spreads at the London Metal Exchange and discourage new speculative positions. Goldman Sachs reported that China's demand for copper has remained stable in 2025, mainly due to strong exports. The bank predicts that as exports begin to slow, demand will remain strong in the second quarter but then start to decline in the third. Baseline forecasts from the bank indicate a significant decline in global demand for copper in the second half, and a decision is imminent on U.S. Tariffs under Section 232. In February, U.S. president Donald Trump ordered an investigation into possible tariffs for copper imports in order to rebuild U.S. metal production. The bank stated that if the decision was delayed until late 2025 it would disrupt copper trade and lead to a shortage of supply outside the U.S., particularly in China. In the longer term, the bank says the copper market will move into a supply deficit in 2026, driven by strong demand from electrification-related sectors and limited growth in mining. It added that this would push the price from an anticipated low of $9,000 per ton in October of 2025, to more than $10,000 per ton by 2026. The benchmark three-month copper price on the LME traded at $9,438 per metric ton as of 1347 GMT. It had previously reached $9,582, which was its highest level since early Asian trading hours. (Reporting and editing by Louise Heavens, Jan Harvey and Brijesh Anil in Bengaluru)
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Grisly Peru mine murders highlight 'golden curse' in Andes
Frank Monzon, a Peruvian miner, was well aware of the risks involved in his work. However the allure of gold deep within the Andean rock that covers the northern Pataz Province outweighed them. He and 12 other miners are now dead in the worst mining massacre in Peru's history. The authorities in Peru's gold rich north halted mining activities this week and sent the military in after the police recovered the bodies from the Lidmar Mine after they had been kidnapped and murdered by illegal miners a month ago. Lidmar worked in agreement with Poderosa, Peru’s second largest gold producer. The suspected illegal mining gangs have been responsible for the killings that have shook the mineral-rich nation, which is the world's No. The world's No. 3 copper producer, and No. Gold, where the soaring prices of gold have led to an explosion in illegal activities and clashes between large mines and small operators. According to the Peruvian government, illegal mining, mostly of gold, is worth more than drug trafficking, with an annual value of $3-4 billion. Abraham Dominguez - the father of a victim - said: "He told me there were many deaths, and I kept telling my son to leave this job. Come back. Don't work here, work somewhere else." "It is a terrible pain for us parents. It's blood from our children. "I thought maybe one day, he would burry me. But instead, I will bury my child." In cities across the country, the relatives of the mine workers who were murdered, and had worked as security guards said goodbye to their loved ones. Families in Trujillo (capital of the region that includes Pataz) were afraid to speak with the media during funerals, citing fear of reprisals by criminal gangs, whom authorities blamed for the killings. Monzon's white coffin was paraded by his family and friends through Trujillo streets before he was buried. Darwin Cobenas, a humble native of northern Piura was laid to rest by his family in his modest hometown. His family wept and prayed for justice. At Monzon's funeral, a local man in 30s who had previously worked with some of those killed said, "I am only alive because my friends told me not go." "He said: 'A lot is happening, don’t go.'" "GOLD IS A Curse" Pataz is now Peru's most important gold producing region. This is in large part because of the artisanal or informal mines that operate under temporary REINFO licenses. According to sources in the police and mining industry, when gold prices are near records, illegal groups will often swarm into small-scale mines or steal their output, working with criminal gangs. Aldo Marino said that "gold is a curse" for Pataz. He was in Lima to meet with President Dina Bouluarte to demand more investment for his remote region. It is an 18-hour drive from Trujillo. He claimed that his community, despite its great mineral wealth, lives in poverty. It lacks basic services, and the roads are deteriorated or unpaved. This has been happening for years. Now, everything is in ruins. He said that the lack of a state was the reason. "People continue to die." Trujillo prosecutors who are investigating the deaths stated on Tuesday, citing forensic analyses, that the workers were dead for 7 to 8 days. Lidmar stated in a press release that its workers were "ambushed, cruelly abused, and killed by hitmen." Poderosa reported 39 deaths in the last few years as a result of attacks on its gold-producing facilities and small mines. In the last four-year period, 15 high-voltage poles of the company have been blown up with explosives. In 2024, Peru exported gold worth $15.5 billion. This is a dramatic increase over the $11 billion it had in 2018. Estimates suggest that 40% of the gold in Peru came from illegal sources.
Clean up starts after a minimum of one dead in heavy UAE rain, floods
Authorities and communities across the United Arab Emirates were clearing particles on Wednesday after at least one person passed away and homes and organizations were damaged in an unusual torrential storm.
The level of the damage was not right away clear as emergency situation employees looked for to drain flooded roads across the nation hours after heavy rain gone away late on Tuesday.
The UAE saw record rain with 254 mm (10 inches) falling in less than 24 hours in Al Ain, a city on the UAE-Oman border, according to the national meteorology center. That was one of the most since records began in 1949, before the UAE was formed in 1971.
The UAE lacks much of the needed drain facilities to deal with heavy rain. It is not uncommon for roads to become partly immersed undersea during extended periods of rain. It normally just ever rains a couple of times a year.
The UAE likewise often conducts cloud seeding operations to boost rainfall. A forecaster from the national meteorology center rejected any cloud seeding operations had occurred recently.
Bloomberg earlier priced estimate the agency as saying seven cloud seeding operations had happened in the days before the storm.
Climate scientists state that increasing international temperature levels, driven by manufactured climate modification, is causing more severe weather condition events, including intense rainfall like the UAE storm.
ROADS OBSTRUCTED, FLIGHTS INTERRUPTED
The impact of the heavy rain continued to be felt on Wednesday, with roadways blocked and flights significantly disrupted.
Emirates, among the world's most significant global airline companies, stopped checking-in passengers leaving Dubai till midnight. Flydubai, which partly resumed flights in the morning, said operations would not go back to typical till after midnight. On the other hand, budget plan carrier Air Arabia suspended check-in to flights to and from Sharjah until 2 a.m. on Thursday ( 2200 GMT Wednesday).
Kanish Kumar Deborah Barman, 39, stated he had actually been stuck at Dubai airport with his spouse given that around 4 a.m., when his flight landed late from Paris, missing his next flight to Calcutta, in India.
Individuals are simply lying around in the airport. There is not enough seats and chairs to, you understand, let them sit. They are sitting on the flooring, he informed on Wednesday afternoon, waiting to board the next available flight.
Dubai International Airport, among the world's busiest, said after the storm diminished that the heavy rain had caused significant disruptions, with flights postponed and diverted, and recommended travelers in Dubai versus taking a trip to the airport.
We are striving to recover operations as rapidly as possible in very challenging conditions, the airport wrote on X.
Some foreign airline companies canceled flights to Dubai.
The federal government of Dubai bought schools to continue mentor classes online on Thursday, as emergency situation employees cleared particles, including trees and terrace furnishings, from the streets.
VEHICLES SUBMERGED
Local media and social media posts showed significant damage across the nation, including collapsed roadways and flooded homes.
The official media offices for the federal government and Dubai and Abu Dhabi did not immediately react to an emailed inquiry on the scale or expense of the storm damage.
Regional media reported that a senior Emirati male in his 70s died on Tuesday early morning when his car was captured in flash floods in the Ras Al Khaimah emirate, in the nation's north.
In neighbouring Oman, 19 individuals passed away, consisting of school kids after three successive days of heavy rain, according to Omani media, which published images of flooded communities.
The Times of Oman reported that more rain was expected on Wednesday. In Dubai, the skies were clear and in some locations the roads were peaceful after the federal government bought its employees and all schools to work from another location for a 2nd successive day.
Social media posts on Tuesday showed flooded roads and cars and truck parks with some automobiles completely submerged. Sheikh Zayed Road, a 12-lane highway through Dubai, was partially flooded, leaving individuals stuck in a kilometres-long traffic congestion for hours.
(source: Reuters)