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Sources: India is in negotiations with Brazil, Canada France and the Netherlands about critical mineral deals
Sources said that India has been in discussions with Brazil, Canada France and the Netherlands to explore, extract and process critical minerals. Sources who declined to identify themselves because the discussions were confidential said that the focus would be on rare earths and lithium, but also that India would seek to access mineral processing technologies. Mining experts say that India's heavy reliance on its arch-rival China, who dominates the global supply of minerals and has advanced technology in mining and processing, highlights the need to reach out to other countries to reduce emissions as it accelerates?its energy transformation. Mining can take many years to go from discovery to production. Exploration alone takes five to seven year and ends up with no viable mine. One source said that India wants to copy the elements of a "critical minerals" agreement signed in January with Germany. The agreement covers exploration, recycling and processing, as well the acquisition and development mineral?assets both in India and Germany and in tertiary countries. The source stated that "there are requests and we are in contact with France, Netherlands and Brazil. We are also actively considering the agreement with Canada." Sources said that the Ministry of Mines leads the effort. Mark Carney, Canada's prime minister, is expected to visit India early in March and sign agreements on uranium and energy. He will also likely sign deals with India regarding minerals, artificial intelligence, and uranium. When asked for comment, Canada’s Natural Resources Department pointed to a statement from January that said?both parties had agreed to formalise their cooperation on critical mineral in the coming week. The Brazilian embassy in New Delhi and the Indian Ministry of Mines as well as the Foreign ministry have not responded to requests for comments. The Netherlands embassy did not respond to a request for comment, while the French embassy declined. India is scouring the globe for critical minerals. It has signed agreements with Argentina, Australia and Japan and is in discussions with Peru and Chile about broader bilateral deals that include critical minerals. India's growing international engagement coincides with the G7 finance ministers and other major economies meeting in Washington last month to discuss how to reduce China's dependence on rare Earths. India has identified lithium as a "critical" mineral for its energy transformation and rising demands from the industry and infrastructure sectors.
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CCTV reports seven deaths in gold mine accident east China
State-run CCTV reported that seven people died in a gold mining accident?in China's east Shandong Province, and that authorities were investigating. Shares of mine owner Zhaojin Mining Industry fell 6% on Wednesday. CTV reported that the accident happened on Saturday, when a cage fell into a mine shaft. The report said that the emergency management and public security departments investigated the cause of the accident and whether it was possible to cover it up. According to the Qichacha Company Registry, Zhaojin Mining Industry is the owner of this mine. As of 0525 GMT, shares of the company had fallen by 6.01%. Zhaojin's main telephone line was answered by a person who said that the matter "was under investigation" and refused to answer any further questions. On Monday, China's emergency management ministry held a conference on preventing accidents during the Lunar New Year holiday. The ministry announced that it would inspect mines, chemicals companies and other hazardous operations. On Saturday, eight people were killed in an explosion that occurred at a biotech firm in northern China.
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MORNING BID EUROPE - Trump administration prepares to gut climate law
Gregor Stuart Hunter gives us a look at what the future holds for European and global markets. Global stocks are at new peaks, aided by the seemingly indefatigable technology?sector. Meanwhile, new measures by the U.S. Government to shake up the climate policy could mark a pain point for ESG Investors. Environmental Protection Agency announced on Monday that the Trump administration is "set" to reverse the so-called Endangerment Finding this week. The Obama administration's scientific determination that the health of humans is endangered by greenhouse gas emissions, which serves as a legal basis for federal greenhouse gas regulations. This will pave the path for what EPA administrator Lee Zeldin said to The Wall -Street Journal, "the largest deregulation act in the history" of the United States. The dollar has continued to fall ahead of the release several important U.S. reports this week. These include retail sales on Tuesday, delayed payrolls on Wednesday and inflation data on the Friday. The dollar index, which measures greenback strength against a basket six currencies, was near its lowest point for the month. Kevin Hassett, White House economic adviser, said on Monday that job growth could be lower over the next few months due to Trump's immigration policy slowing labour growth while AI increases productivity. FedWatch, a tool of the CME Group, shows that Fed funds futures indicate the market continues to expect the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates at current levels until June. Stephen Miran, the Fed Governor on Monday, said that Trump's trade tariff policy has been more benign than most had anticipated. He reiterated his call for interest rates to be lowered. He defended central banks' independence, but said that it wasn't absolute. In the meantime, global stocks have reached record highs. MSCI's All-Country World Index rose 0.2%, setting a new record. The Nikkei 225 soared 2.5% for the third day in a row to reach a new peak following the election win of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takayichi at the weekend. The yen?also?strengthened a second time, with the last 0.4% stronger against the U.S. Dollar. Early European trade saw pan-regional futures and German DAX Futures?flat, while FTSE Futures rose by 0.1%. The following are the key developments that may influence Tuesday's markets: Earnings of the company AstraZeneca, BP, Barclays, Philips, Kering, Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena, Telecom Italia, Ferrari Economic Events France's unemployment rate for Q4 U.S. retail sales for December Debt auctions: Germany: 5-year government debt UK: 5-year government debt
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Malaysia's Khazanah Nasional Fund reports higher profit and 5.2% investment returns in 2025
Malaysian sovereign fund Khazanah Nasional reported Tuesday higher operating profits. Its investment portfolio is expected to return 5.2% by 2025 despite uncertainties caused by U.S. Tariffs and geopolitical risk. Khazanah is a major shareholder of some of Malaysia’s largest companies. These include CIMB Group (the country's second-largest bank), Tenaga Nasional, the power utility, and Malaysia Aviation Group – the nation’s national airline. According to its website, it invests in energy, healthcare information technology, and real estate. Khazanah, which is owned by the Finance Ministry, has reported an operating profit of 5.6 billion Ringgit ($1.43billion) in 2018, up from 5.1billion ringgit (in 2024), Managing Director Amirul Feisal Wan Zahid informed reporters on Tuesday. He said that its net assets increased to 105 billion Ringgits from 103.6 billion Ringgits a year ago, and the annual dividend it pays to the government will double to 2 billion Ringgits in 2025. Amirul?Feisal stated that he expects Malaysia to continue its resilient growth path, supported by both private and foreign investment. According to estimates released last month by the government, the country's economy will grow 4.9% by?2025. This is higher than official projections. Amirul Feisal stated that "for 2026...?we are going to accelerate execution?as well as plan our Malaysian investment strategy and our global investment strategies," adding that Khazanah will look to diversify risk across asset classes as well as geographically. Amirul Feisal, Khazanah's CEO, said in January that the company plans to invest more money into improving Malaysia's electrical system and local semiconductor companies as artificial intelligence is driving the next investment cycle. The fund was also tasked to develop downstream activities within the rare earths industry through international collaboration. Malaysia has an estimated 16,1 million tons rare earth deposits and is eager to develop the local industry. However, it lacks the technology and knowledge to mine and process these minerals, which are critical to the production of?defence gear, electric vehicles, and other goods. Last year, it was reported that China and Malaysia had been in discussions for Khazanah's partnership with a Chinese firm to develop rare earths refinery. Khazanah said on Tuesday that it was?cautious' about the issue, and that creating a rare-earth ecosystem would be a lengthy process. "In Malaysia, many of the rare earth deposits or?deposits have yet to be validated. Amirul Feisal explained that there are environmental requirements for extraction. There's a great deal of policymaking... and a ton of validation work before we can do anything else.
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Asia stocks rise as Nikkei sets record, dollar drops
Asian stocks advanced for a second consecutive day on early Tuesday trading, led by a rally in Tokyo’s benchmark after Prime Minister Sanae Takayichi's decisive victory in the Japanese election over the weekend. The broadest MSCI index of?Asia-Pacific stocks outside Japan rose 0.7%. Meanwhile, the Nikkei225 gained 2.8% for a third day in a row, reaching a new high. The yen strengthened for a third day. After a two day rally, U.S. equity e-minis have cooled, with S&P500 e-minis down by 0.1%. This partially reverses overnight gains on Wall Street. S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite rose 0.5% on Monday as technology stocks recovered from last week's AI-driven selloff. Kees Verbaas is Robeco's global director of fundamental equity. He added that "the investment programmes of large companies are increasing, not decreasing... which is typically good for economic activity." "A large part of the AI supply chain is only possible because of emerging markets." Kevin Hassett, White House economist and adviser to the president, said that the Trump administration’s immigration policies could slow down labour growth in the months ahead while new AI tools boost productivity. The dollar was last down 0.4% against the yen at 155.265 yen. The dollar last fell 0.4% to 155.265 yen. The U.S. Dollar Index, which measures greenback strength against a basket six currencies, fell 0.2% and was near its lowest level of the month, at 96.799. On Monday, the index recorded its largest one-day decline in two weeks. This was after a Bloomberg News article that stated Chinese regulators had advised financial institutions to reduce their holdings of U.S. Treasury Bonds due to concerns over concentration risks and market volatility. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated on Monday that senior U.S. Treasury officials visited China last Thursday "to strengthen channels" of communication between Washington and Beijing. The dollar last fell 0.1% against the offshore yuan at 6,9058 yuan. In a research note, Alpine Macro analysts wrote that "Elevating renminbi’s global role" is moving to the top of the policy agenda. Beijing's primary goal is to reduce the vulnerability of the dollar, not to challenge its dominance. Last week, the yield on U.S. Treasury bonds 10-years was flat at 4,184%. The Federal Reserve is expected to remain on hold through June, according to market pricing. Fed funds futures are pricing an implied 17.7% chance of a 25 basis-point rate reduction at the U.S. Central Bank's next two day?meeting, on March 18. This compares to an 18.4% probability on Friday. Indonesian markets were calm at the beginning of trading in Jakarta. They rose 1% and remained largely unaffected by FTSE Russell’s decision to delay a scheduled review. Last month, the larger competitor MSCI warned that Indonesia could be downgraded to frontier status due to data transparency concerns. Brent crude fell 0.3% to $68.81 in the commodities market. Silver fell 2% to $81.74 an ounce. Gold dropped 0.7% to $5,030.02 an ounce. Bitcoin fell 1.5% to $69,337.26, and ether dropped 2.9% to 2,060.76. Reporting by Gregor Stuart Hunter, Stella Qiu and Shri Navaratnam Editing by Sam Holmes and Sam Holmes
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Low prices and falling shipments encourage iron ore buyers to buy, thus ending a six-day decline.
The price of iron ore rose on Tuesday, after six sessions of declines, as low prices encouraged steelmills to purchase feedstock. A drop in weekly shipments was also supportive. As of 0256 GMT, the most-traded contract for May iron ore on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange was trading 0.2% higher. It was 763 yuan (US$110.42) per metric ton. The benchmark March ore traded on the Singapore Exchange is now trading at $100.2 per ton. This price is above the psychological $100 threshold. According to a report by the?consultancy Mysteel, the total amount of iron ore that arrived?at 47 Chinese port decreased week-on-week between February 2-8. The low Dalian iron ore price and weak market fundamentals have encouraged steel mills to buy feedstock. Shanghai Metals Market stated in a report that despite 'the recent increase in port discharge rates, and the decline in arrivals, there is still a high level of port inventories. The Shanghai Metals Market said that there is no inflection point yet for destocking, and the high inventory levels would continue to suppress prices. ANZ Research stated that the iron ore industry is likely to experience headwinds in the coming year due to the lack of government support to combat the structural decline. Coking coal and coke, which are used to make steel, also struggled. They fell by 0.92%? and 0.86% respectively. According to the Shanghai Metals Market, market sentiment for coking coal remains subdued because of weak demand for steel products and high inventories. The Shanghai Futures Exchange saw a softening of steel benchmarks. Rebar fell 0.42%; hot-rolled steel dropped 0.56%; stainless steel declined 0.57%. Wire rod rose 0.26%.
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Oil prices fall as traders assess supply risks amid U.S. - Iran tensions
Oil prices fell slightly on Tuesday, as traders assessed the possibility of supply disruptions following U.S. guidance to vessels transiting 'the Strait of Hormuz'. Brent crude oil futures fell 25 cents or 0.4% to $68.79 per barrel at 0102 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude fell 23 cents or 0.4% to $64.13. Prices rose by more than 1% Monday after the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration told U.S. flagged commercial vessels to keep as far away from Iran's 'territorial water' as possible, and to decline verbally if asked to allow Iranian forces to board. A fifth of all oil consumed worldwide passes through the Strait of Hormuz, which is located between Oman and Iran. Any escalation of tensions in this area poses a serious threat to the global oil supply. Iran, along with Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates and Iraq,?exports most of its crude oil via the strait to Asia. The guidance was released despite Iran's top diplomatic official saying last week that nuclear talks between the U.S. and Iran, mediated by Oman, were off to "a good start" with plans to continue. Tony Sycamore is an analyst with IG. He wrote that while the talks in Oman were cautiously positive, there was still a risk premium due to lingering uncertainties about possible escalation or sanctions tightening in the Strait of Hormuz. According to a document that was reviewed by the. The move is part of an effort to tighten sanctions against Russian oil, which is a major source of revenue for Moscow. Indian Oil Corp purchased six million barrels from West Africa and Middle East traders reported, as New Delhi pushed for a deal with Washington. (Reporting by Anushree Mukherjee in Bengaluru)
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PLS, an Australian lithium miner, rises after a deal to supply spodumene with China's Canmax
PLS Group announced on Tuesday it had?signed a 2-year offtake contract to supply 150,000 tonnes of spodumene to Chinese lithium-battery materials maker Canmax Technologies,? sending shares of the Australian miner higher. If gains continue, shares of the lithium mining company could reach their highest trading session since 6 January if they hold. The stock is among the best performers of the ASX 200, which rose 0.3%. PLS, previously Pilbara Minerals said that the parties had agreed on a price floor of $1,000 per ton based upon spodumene concentration containing 6% Lithium (SC6). This semi-processed product is derived by separating lithium bearing minerals from ore. The miner stated that the structure provides downside protection during volatile conditions, while maintaining full exposure to price increases. The lithium demand outlook for this year has been boosted by a boom in battery storage. This is encouraging for producers who have struggled with a?slump' in prices due to oversupply since late 2022. PLS's quarterly production report from last month indicated that its?Ngungaju facility in Western Australia could be restarted due to strong interest in offtake volume. A decision is expected within the next quarter. PLS announced that the agreement for spodumene, which is used to produce lithium chemicals for 'electric vehicle batteries,' will begin in 2026. It also includes an option to extend it for another 12 months. The miner said that the agreement is "conditional" on receiving a prepayment of $100 million in unsecured debt, free of interest. Canmax's latest lithium offtake agreement follows an agreement reached in December with Australian miner Liontown.
US construction spending drops in March
U.S. construction expenditures unexpectedly declined in March, amid large declines in both private and public outlays.
Census Bureau of the Commerce Department reported on Thursday that construction expenditures dropped by 0.5% following a 0.6% rise in February, which was slightly revised downward. The economists surveyed by predicted that construction spending would increase 0.2%, after an earlier reported 0.7% jump.
The construction spending in March increased by 2.8% compared to the same month last year.
The amount spent on private construction fell by 0.6%. Residential construction investment fell by 0.4%. However, new single-family housing projects saw a 0.1% increase in spending.
Homebuilding is being hampered by high mortgage rates and import tariffs. Last month, the National Association of Homebuilders calculated that tariffs on Chinese imports had been increased to 145%, and a 25% tax on foreign steel, aluminum, and other metals. This led to an increase in construction costs of $10,900 for each home.
In March, the expenditures on multi-family housing units remained unchanged. Investments in non-residential private structures such as offices and factories fell by 0.8%.
The spending on public construction projects decreased by 0.2%. Spending by state and local governments also decreased 0.2% while federal government expenditures fell 0.4%. Lucia Mutikani, Andrea Ricci and Andrea Ricci (Reporting)
(source: Reuters)