Mining

Gina Rinehart, baroness of mining in Australia, said that excessive regulations have put the industry's global competitiveness under threat. Rinehart, executive chairman of?Hancock Prospecting?, Australia's 4th-largest miner of iron ore, has risen to the top of Australia's richest list over the last 15 years. The comments were made in a speech marking the 10-year anniversary since Hancock first shipped iron ore. They echo previous statements by BHP executives. However, they are her first remarks since Australia passed an environmental law reform in a bid for a reduction in red tape last month. Rinehart cited a report from the Minerals Council...

Smackover Lithium, the joint venture between Standard Lithium and Equinor announced on Tuesday that it had attracted more than $1 billion of financing interest for its southwest Arkansas Lithium project. Three export credit agencies including EXIM, Export Finance Norway and Export Finance Sweden have expressed interest in providing debt financing to the project. Standard Lithium's U.S. listed shares rose 5% during premarket trading. The joint venture seeks up to $1.1billion in senior secured debt for the majority of the $1.45billion cost of constructing the first phase of the project. Export credit agencies would provide loans and guarantees, while commercial banks...

Critical Metals announced on Tuesday that it would form a joint-venture with FPCU, a Romanian company. The two companies will set up a facility to process 'rare earth minerals' from the Tanbreez mine of Critical Metals. In premarket trading, shares of the company increased by 4%. The company has said that it will supply half of the Tanbreez Project's?rare-earth concentrates to the Romanian joint venture for the entire?lifespan?of the mine, at "mutually agreeable competitive market terms". Tanbreez is a critical project as it provides an alternative source for heavy rare earths, which are vital to the production of electric vehicles,...

Investors were preparing for the?expected Federal Reserve rate reduction in December and looking for'signs' that policymakers would outline a more accommodative path at their two-day conference, which begins later on Tuesday. By 1130 GMT, spot gold had risen 0.36%. U.S. Gold Futures for February Delivery rose 0.4% to $4232.9 an ounce. The path of least opposition for gold is to the 'upside', said ActivTrades Analyst Ricardo Evangelista. Evangelista said that gold prices could return to $4,300 in the near term if the Fed confirms dovish 'expectations. According to CME's FedWatch Tool the markets now give a 89.4% probability of a...

Nvidia's shares increased 1.7% on Tuesday in premarket trading after President Donald Trump announced that he would?allow the sales of its H200 chip to approved Chinese customers, alleviating concerns about access to one of Nvidia's biggest?markets. Trump's decision seems to have settled the debate about whether Nvidia, and its competitors should maintain their global leadership by selling their AI chip to China or not. After Beijing told companies to stop using U.S. tech, it is not clear if the move will lead to new sales. Nvidia has been hampered by the restrictions that prevent it from selling?advanced AI processing units...

Investors positioned themselves for the widely anticipated December Federal Reserve rate cut. However, attention has now shifted to the policymakers' two-day meeting that begins later that day. By 0920 GMT, spot gold had risen 0.47% to $4208.39 an ounce. U.S. Gold Futures for February Delivery rose by 0.48% to $4237.80 an ounce. Linh Tran is a market analyst for XS.com. She said that although confidence in future rate cuts remains, their signals suggest a more cautious and gradual approach to easing. According to CME’s FedWatch Tool the markets now assign an 89% probability of a rate cut of 25 basis...

Gold ?edged down on Tuesday as investors, having mostly priced ?in ?a Federal Reserve rate cut, looked ahead for clues that the U.S. central bank might opt for a gentler-than-expected easing cycle when its two-day policy meeting begins later in the day. As of 0609 GMT, spot gold was down by 0.3% at $4,174.91 an ounce. U.S. gold futures for delivery in December fell 0.4% to $4.202.70 an ounce. Kelvin Wong, senior market analyst at OANDA, said that investors are largely repositioning themselves ahead of the Federal Reserve's meeting. During his press conference earlier in the month, Jerome Powell signaled...

Gold prices fell slightly on Monday as investors were cautious in advance of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s two-day meeting to discuss policy and Chairman Jerome Powell’s remarks. Investors are looking for clues about future monetary policies. By 01:50 pm, spot gold had fallen 0.2% to $4,189.49 an ounce. ET (1850 GMT). U.S. Gold Futures for February Delivery settled 0.6% lower, at $4,217.7 an ounce. Peter Grant, senior metals analyst at Zaner Metals and vice president of the company, said that "the market is waiting on the Fed's decision and more policy guidance." Grant stated that gold remains attractive, as fundamentals...

Gold rose on Monday, as investors became more confident that U.S. Federal Reserve would cut interest rates during its two-day meeting this week. A weaker dollar also helped. Gold spot rose 0.3%, to $4208.40 an ounce at 09:11 am ET. ET (14:11 GMT)). U.S. Gold Futures for February Delivery fell 0.1 per ounce to $4,238. Dollar index slid lower, boosting the appeal of greenback-priced Gold for overseas buyers. Both gold and silver have a very strong technical posture in the near term. This is a good thing for speculators, as it encourages them to be on the long side of...

REalloys, a U.S. startup that produces heavy rare-earth magnets, announced on Monday that it will partner with Saskatchewan Research Council (Canada's unit for technology innovation) to expand a processing plant for heavy rare earths, which is expected to begin operating in 2027. REalloys said it would invest around $21 million to expand the production of heavy rare Earths in exchange for a long term offtake agreement that covers 80% of its annual production. The announcement is made as the U.S. Government seeks to diversify the risk away from China, the top supplier of magnets, by developing an alternative supply line...

Gold prices increased on Monday due to growing expectations that the U.S. will cut interest rates, which pushed up the dollar ahead of this week's Federal Reserve policy meeting. By 1127 GMT, spot gold had risen 0.2% to $4206.36 an ounce. U.S. Gold Futures for February Delivery fell 0.2% to $4235.60 an ounce. Dollar-priced Gold is now more affordable to overseas buyers thanks to the dollar index, which has been trending lower since December 4. The gold price is rising due to a lower dollar, and the market expects that the Fed will cut rates this week. This was stated...

Gold edged higher on Monday as traders became more confident that the U.S. Federal Reserve would cut interest rates at its meeting this week. Spot gold increased 0.5% at $4,215.69 an ounce as of 0643 GMT. U.S. Gold Futures for December Delivery were unchanged at $4,244.80 an ounce. Gold priced in greenbacks is now cheaper for foreign buyers. Tim Waterer, KCM Trade's Chief Market Analyst, said that the Fed is on track to reduce rates this week. The expectation of looser monetary policy has driven gold prices higher. The anticipated rate cut is keeping the dollar under control, and simultaneously...

St Barbara Mining, a subsidiary of Australia's St Barbara, announced on Wednesday that Chinese gold producer Lingbao?Group would buy a 50% share in the company for A$370m ($245.5m) cash. St Barbara Mining is the owner of Simberi Gold Company. This company will own an 80% stake on Simberi Gold 'Project' in Papua New Guinea. Kumul Minerals will purchase the remaining 20% of the shares for A$100million. Kumul Minerals is the state nominee to?PNG for the share of minerals in the country. Kumul's investment comes as the PNG Government seeks to?expand national ownership of key resource projects. Australian gold producers are...

The copper price hovered just below its record highs as investors waited for the U.S. Federal Reserve to announce a possible hawkish policy following their two-day meeting. As of 0315 GMT, the?most-traded copper contract at the Shanghai Futures Exchange?was down by 0.37% to 91,720 Yuan ($12,987.27) per metric ton. The benchmark three-month price of copper at the London Metal Exchange rose 0.67%, to $11,564 per ton. The upward trend in copper slowed as the Fed rate decision drew near. At a time of persistent inflation fears and a resilient economy in the United States, the market was expecting a "hawkish"...

One government source and two sources in the trade familiar with the matter said that Glencore was the first miner who exported cobalt to the Democratic Republic of Congo under the new quotas. They sent a "small" initial shipment as a test to the system. The government source confirmed that the Congo has cleared Glencore's shipment pending payment a 10% royalty. This marks the beginning of exports following a long-term ban which pushed cobalt prices sky high and strained the availability of metals needed for electric cars. Analysts estimate that the central African nation's production will be around 280.000 metric...

Beijing will limit access to Nvidia H200 advanced chips, despite the?U.S. The Financial Times reported Tuesday that President Donald Trump had decided to allow exports of the technology to China. According to a report, regulators in Beijing are discussing ways to allow limited access to Nvidia H200 chips, the second-best generation artificial intelligence chip from Nvidia. This would be a major obstacle for Nvidia, and other leading?U.S. After Trump's announcement on Monday, chipmakers are now able to target the China market. Nvidia's shares, which were up as much as 2 percent in premarket trade, retreated after the report, and ended...

Prices of copper fell on Tuesday due to profit-taking after a 'rallying' rally, concerns about a possible slowdown in U.S. interest rate cuts and concern over Chinese demand. Benchmark three-month Copper on the London?Metal Exchange?was 1% lower at $11,523.50 a metric tonne by 1015 GMT. It had reached a record high of $11,771 a metric tonne on Monday. LME copper prices have risen 31% this year. About 10% of the increase has occurred in the past few weeks. Ole Hansen is the head of commodity strategy for Saxo Bank, a Copenhagen-based bank. The U.S. has seen a surge in metal...

Exports of China's steel products are surging this year, as the domestic demand – particularly in property development – is slumping. However, those of aluminum have fallen due to increased activity in the manufacturing and energy sector. China produces more steel and aluminum than the rest of the world combined. Beijing has set informal production ceilings for both sectors in order to curb overcapacity. Informally, steel production is limited to no more than 1.005 billion metric tonnes. Given that production for the first ten months of this year was 817.87 millions tons, 2025 production will likely dip below 1 billion...

A judge in Ecuador ordered Monday that former president Lenin Moreno stand trial for alleged bribery related to the construction of Ecuador's largest hydroelectric plant. The case was first brought in March 2023 by the prosecutor’s office. It involved Moreno and members of his family as well as local and Chinese business partners in connection with bribes paid for the construction Coca Codo Sinclair, which started operations in 2016. Since then, it has been plagued by technical problems. According to the prosecutor, Sinohydro (the Chinese builder of the hydroelectric plant) allegedly paid around $76million in bribes between 2009 and 2018....

Prices of copper reached record levels on Monday, as the lower dollar in anticipation of the Federal Reserve meeting this week led to a rush of purchases. Concerns about future shortages also fueled optimism. Benchmark copper at the London Metal Exchange rose 0.3% to $11,657 per metric ton by 1057 GMT, from a previous peak of $11,771 per ton. This represents a gain in excess of 30% for this year. The U.S. Central Bank is expected to reduce rates. The U.S. dollar will be affected, and when it falls the price of metals priced in dollars becomes cheaper for holders...

Iron ore futures fell on Monday due to a sagging Chinese demand and increased equipment maintenance. However, the lingering bets for stimulus limited losses. As of 0219 GMT, the most-traded contract for January iron ore on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange fell by 0.7% to $782 yuan (US$110.63) per metric ton. It hit 778 yuan earlier in the session. This was the lowest price since November 17. As of 2109 GMT, the benchmark January iron ore traded on the Singapore Exchange fell 0.57% to $100.8, after earlier touching $102.35, the lowest price since December 1. Analysts said that several steelmakers have...

The price of copper reached a new record on Friday, after Citi raised its outlook for the metal. A weaker dollar provided additional support in anticipation of a rate cut expected by the U.S. next week. At 1025 GMT, the benchmark three-month price of copper at the London Metal Exchange had risen 1.4% to $11,609.50 per ton. The metal, which is widely used in construction, manufacturing and power generation, rose earlier by as much as 2.2%, reaching a peak of $11,705. LME copper has gained over 30% since 2025 and is expected to finish the week with a gain of...

Boliden, the Swedish miner, said that the European Union had acted on rare earths ten years ago. Boliden was commenting on the European Commission plan to invest 3 billion euro ($3.5 billion) in 25 key mineral projects. China, the country that produces 90% of all rare earths in processed form, has recently increased export restrictions. Boliden CEO Mikael staffas said that Europe's inability to produce critical raw materials on its own is a vulnerability which must be addressed despite the long process of making major changes. He said the latest EU initiative was a sign the bloc of 27 countries...

The Asian equity capital market will be boosted by a strong pipeline of high profile IPOs from companies in China and India that are looking to take advantage of the diversification trend among investors. However, concerns over rising tech valuations may slow down momentum. LSEG data shows that Asian equity capital markets (ECMs) have been awash with $267 billion in deals this year. This is up 15% on 2024 and the first annual increase since 2021. Data shows that Hong Kong, which is the preferred listing destination of Chinese companies, has dominated regional ECM transactions with 75 billion dollars raised...