Mining

EGC, the state-backed cobalt buyer in Congo, is looking to increase the market for traceable cobalt. This includes establishing closer ties with electric vehicle battery manufacturers. Congo is the largest producer of cobalt in the world, and small-scale suppliers are responsible for 15% to 25%. The government is stepping up its efforts to formalise this sector by introducing export quotas, and tightening oversight. Cobalt is a critical metal for the energy transition. Since Congo implemented the system in October last year, Entreprise Generale du Cobalt, established to channel artisanal supply chains into formal supply, has shipped 100 percent of its...

A senior executive at Congo's EGC, the state-backed cobalt buyer, said that it was aiming to expand the market of traceable artisanal artisanal. This includes e-car battery manufacturers. Congo is the largest producer of cobalt in the world, and small-scale suppliers are responsible for 15% to 25%. The government is stepping up its efforts to formalise this sector by introducing export quotas, and tightening oversight. Cobalt is a critical metal for the energy transition. Since Congo introduced the system in October last year, Entreprise 'Generale du Cobalt, established to channel artisanal supply chains into formal supply, has shipped 100 percent...

The gold price rose on Friday, as investors awaited the remarks of Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh at the 'Jackson Hole Symposium' later that day. This will help gauge the direction the central bank is taking with its monetary policy. By 1032 GMT, spot gold had risen 0.1% to $4,606.73 an ounce. The price of gold reached a three-month-high of $4,696.18 after the U.S. Treasury announced support measures for bonds with long-term maturities. U.S. Gold Futures?were barely changed at $4.660.10. Kyle Rodda is a senior financial market analyst with Capital.com. He said, "I believe price action has been fairly constructive...

Radiant World, a commodity trader, is being scrutinized by counterparties who have stopped doing business after hearing that the authorities are investigating a report that it provided banks with invalid documents. Radiant called the claims "inaccurate" and "unsubstantiated", and said it conducts its business according to the highest legal and commercial standards. Here are some details about?Radiant World. What is RADIANT World? Radiant World was founded by Indian Pinkesh Nahar in the early 2000s. According to its website, with offices in Britain and China, India, Singapore Switzerland, the United States, and the United Arab Emirates it has become one of...

The gold price rose on Friday as investors awaited Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh's speech at the Jackson Hole Symposium later that day in order to gauge the future monetary policies of the central bank. By 0839 GMT, spot gold had risen 0.1% to $4,607.47 an ounce. The price of gold reached a three-month-high of $4,696.18 after the U.S. Treasury announced support measures for bonds with long-term maturities. U.S. Gold Futures are little changed at $4,661.20. Kyle Rodda is a senior financial market analyst at Capital.com. He said, "I believe price action has been fairly constructive in recent months, and...

Argentina and Chile want to "unlock billions in mining investment" by advancing regulatory and legal frameworks which would allow companies to share infrastructure and resources throughout the Andes Mountains. The Mining Integration and Complementation Treaty was revived by the two countries in July, after years of stagnation. They are now looking to move forward with a new generation copper projects. The Chilean government released a statement without revealing any further details. At the meeting, both countries approved operating protocol for the Vicuna and NexoAndino mining projects. Their mineral deposits span the border between Argentina’s?San Juan Province and Chile's Atacama Region....

The Nikkei reported that Universal Studios Japan is preparing for a major expansion. Investments are expected to total between 200 billion yen (US$1.26 billion to US$1.88 billion). Universal Japan will use a 60,000 square meter?site adjacent the theme park for?new attractions. This is the first time that the venue has expanded its footprint since 2001. Nikkei reported that Universal Japan wants to increase its annual attendance above the 16 million visitors it currently has, which is already the highest of all the theme parks in Japan. This will be due to the increasing number of overseas tourists visiting Japan. Nikkei...

Donald Trump said that the U.S. needs more aluminum "desperately". He was speaking at a virtual rally in support of Mike Mazzei who had just been nominated by the Republican Party for Governor of Oklahoma. A massive new smelter is being built in Oklahoma by a joint-venture between U.S. aluminum producer Century Aluminum and Emirates Global Aluminium. The $500 million federal funding is backing the project, which is just what Trump wanted when he raised aluminium import tariffs to 50% last June. Even if the construction of the Inola plant begins according to schedule at the end of 'this year',...

Argentina and Chile want to unlock 'billions' of dollars worth of mining investment by advancing regulatory and legal frameworks which would allow 'companies to pool infrastructure and resources in the Andes Mountains. The Mining Integration and Complementation Treaty will be discussed by officials from both countries on Thursday. This 1997 agreement was revived in July following decades of slow progress. They are looking to move forward a new generation copper projects. Both the conservative Chilean president Jose Antonio Kast (who took office in March) and the libertarian Argentinean President Javier Milei are attempting to increase private investment. Chile's Mining minister...

The gold?prices eased Wednesday as they were on track to end a three-session winning streak. However, the focus now shifts to the U.S. Inflation data that will be released later in the afternoon for any indications on the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy. Spot gold dropped 0.8% by 1114 GMT to $4,618.03 an ounce, after prices rose to their highest level since May 14, on Tuesday, following the U.S. Treasury Department?s recent bond buyback announcement. U.S. Gold Futures fell 0.4% to $4673.90. Nikos Tzabouras is a senior market analyst at Jefferies owned Tradu.com. He said that gold prices were subdued...

Australia's Lynas Rare Earths announced on Wednesday that it planned to expand its global supply chain. Discussions were held to secure new?mine supplies from project developers all over the world, and to set up a magnetic processing facility in the United States. Comments were made after the largest producer of rare earths in the world outside China, reported a sharp increase in annual profits, aided by record-high average selling prices for Rare-Earth Oxide and strong demand. However, it missed market expectations. Shares of the company fell up to 8%. Interim CEO Pol Le Roux'said Lynas was in discussions with project...

A U.S. official said that President Donald Trump sent Congress a proposal for an agreement between the United States and Saudi Arabia to develop civil nuclear energy. The official also stated that the agreement would only be approved after Saudi Arabia normalized its relations with Israel. According to a U.S. official who declined to identify himself, the agreement was signed in July, and it would allow U.S. firms to export civil nuclear technology to Saudi Arabia. It was then sent to Congress. The Saudi Embassy in Washington didn't immediately respond to our request for comment. Trump's intentions were not made...

Two?sources who are familiar with the situation said that the head of China Iron Ore at Radiant World is leaving the company. The trading 'company' has been under scrutiny and many counterparties have stopped doing business with it. Sources said that Leon Jin was on his last day of work at the trading house, Monday. According to 'his LinkedIn profile', he joined Radiant World after spending more than 10 year with Trafigura. The sources requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak with media. Some banks have frozen accounts of 'Radiant World,' and some trading houses have cut ties...

On Monday, copper fell on the Shanghai Futures Exchange, after bets that U.S. interest rates would rise for a longer period of time offset supply concerns. Earlier, the metal had seen a monthly increase in August. The SHFE's most traded copper "contract" fell 0.2% to 108.400 yuan (16,129.27 dollars) per ton. The London Metal Exchange was shut on Monday due to a British public holiday. Analysts at Chinese broker Galaxy Futures stated in a report that the hawkish comments by U.S. Federal Reserve chairman Kevin Warsh about interest rates are pushing down copper prices. Warsh said in a speech at...

Zinc reached a four-year peak near $4,000 on Friday, and was on track for its largest monthly gain since January. Available stocks at the London Metal Exchange were shrinking as investors renewed their concerns about market tightness. The benchmark three-month Zinc on the London Metal Exchange rose 1.6% to $3,947 per metric tonne as of 0900 GMT. It had earlier reached $3,955, which was its highest level since May 2022. Zinc is used to galvanize steel and was expected to gain 8.2% in August. This would be its strongest month since January. This week, it is up by 3.2% and...

IDB Invest will provide up to $700 million in financing to a unit of South Korea's Posco Holdings for the expansion of lithium production at the Sal de Oro Project in Argentina. The lender announced this on Friday. The funding would strengthen?Argentina’s role in global battery supply chains as automakers and tech companies compete for lithium, an essential?raw-material for electric vehicle batteries. According to a statement from IDB Invest, the project in the northwest, on the border of the Salta province and Catamarca, will?produce?about 48, 000 metric tons of Lithium a year when fully operational, and create 620 jobs. The...

After concerns about availability, copper prices rose on 'Friday. Benchmark 'three-month' copper on the London Metal Exchange rose 0.39% to $14,338 per metric ton at 0700 GMT and has risen by 0.86% this week. The SHFE's most traded copper contract ticked up by 0.47%, to 108.900 yuan (16,203) per ton. Copper available in LME registered warehouses Exchange data showed that the copper stock was 107,050 metric tons on Thursday. This is down from 166 775 tons one week prior. Stocks of copper in SHFE-monitored storage facilities The weekly total of 72,428 tonnes fell by 19.1%. Craig Lang, principal analysts at...

Zinc prices dropped - and were about to end a six day winning streak on Thursday. A firm dollar weighed down the support of a 'thin supply outside China', while also pulling other industrial metals down. The benchmark three-month price of zinc at the London Metal Exchange fell by 0.96%, to $3.855.5 per metric ton as of 0700 GMT. The most traded zinc contract at the Shanghai Futures Exchange was down by 0.44% to 26,140 yuan (US$3,889.71) per ton. As the market prepares for U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh's awaited speech in Jackson Hole, the U.S. Dollar Index has?gained...

The thin supply outside China and the exchange position boosted zinc prices for a 7th consecutive session on Thursday. Benchmark three-month Zinc on the London Metal Exchange?was?up 0.92% to $3,929 per metric ton at 0300 GMT. The most traded zinc contract at the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 1.69% to 26,700 yuan (US $3,972.68) per ton. On Wednesday, the LME reached its highest level in over four years. The metal is mainly used for galvanising steel. The impressive rally of the metal, which was boosted by a 'waning stock outside China', echoes last October. The LME's cash-to-3-month spread The physical availability...

The copper price rose to its highest level in six months on Wednesday, boosted by supply concerns over dwindling LME inventories and a positive economic outlook. By 0300 GMT, the benchmark three-month price of copper at?the London Metal Exchange had risen by 0.49% to $14,419.5 per metric tonne. The price of a ton reached $14,437 earlier in the day, its highest level since January 29. The Shanghai Futures Exchange's most traded copper contract rose by 1.11%, to 109 360 yuan (16,272.36) per ton. Non-traditional copper players, such as hedge funds and speculative traders trading on volatile LME inventory figures, have...

Copper prices fell on Tuesday due to a stronger dollar and the uncertainty surrounding U.S. rates of interest. Benchmark three-month?copper?on the London Metal Exchange?was down 0.2% to $14,245.50 per metric ton at 0915 GMT after adding 0.4% during the previous session. EwaManthey, commodities analyst at ING, said that the recent drop in copper is more of a cooling down from an extreme situation than a deterioration of 'fundamentals. Investors are awaiting new policy signals from the U.S., but the LME inventory levels have reduced the current tightness. Stocks in warehouses are not registered with the LME Stocks have recovered by...

The copper price?fell on Thursday, as more stocks arrived at?warehouses. However, losses were minimal due to the weaker dollar following a move by the U.S. Government?to calm down bond markets. Benchmark 'three-month' copper on the London Metal Exchange fell 0.4% to $13,988 per metric ton at 1025 GMT after adding 0.5% the previous session. LME copper reached a six-month high on Monday due to concerns about low inventories. However, since then the price has eased as metal is now flowing into storage facilities. The Treasury's announcement of yesterday's copper buyback helped stop the decline that we saw as inventories began...

Prices of copper fell on Wednesday as a large increase in warehouse stocks pushed supply concerns that had supported prices to the background. By 0300 GMT, the benchmark three-month copper contract on the London Metal Exchange was down 0.06% to $13,978 per metric tonne. The Shanghai Futures Exchange's most traded copper contract fell by 1.02%, to 106 880 yuan per ton. Ed Meir, Marex consultant, wrote that copper was "tripped" by a surprise increase in inventories at the LME. The LME data on Tuesday and Monday showed total copper stock The number of large parcels delivered to warehouses increased by...

The fact that China's steel production dropped to its lowest level this year in July supports the idea that the world's second largest economy struggles for growth momentum. As usual, the devil lies in the details. Steel demand is unevenly distributed across the economy. The world's biggest producer of industrial metal saw its steel output fall to 76.93 metric?tons during July. This is a 3.6% drop from the same period in 2025, and it was the lowest July since 2017. China's first seven months of the year saw a production volume of 577.04 millions tons, down by 3.1% compared to...