South America

The creditors lining up to receive proceeds from an auction of Citgo Petroleum parent PDV Holding in a U.S. Court began the examination process in front of experts, advisors, and an executive of Elliott Investment Management whose subsidiary Amber Energy emerged as the winner of the bidding round. Amber Energy's bid of $5.9 billion for Citgo parent PDV Holding, recommended by a court official last month as the winner of the auction to compensate 15 creditors due to debt defaults and expropriations from Venezuela. The bid is defined by a $2.1billion payment agreement with holders a defaulted PDVSA bond that...

Petrobras, the state-owned oil company of Brazil, has announced that it has hired Engeman Industrial Services to manage fertilizer plants in Bahia e Sergipe. Petrobras announced in a press release that the contract for the operation and maintenance of nitrogen fertilizer plants had been signed on Friday, following the completion of an auction. Petrobras says that the plants will be operational again by the end this year. The contract value was not disclosed. According to its website, Engeman provides services in several sectors, including mining, oil and gas and energy. The two plants, if they were to be put back...

Anglo American, the state-run Chilean copper giant Codelco and their Chilean neighbours have finalised a joint operation agreement for their Chilean copper mines. The aim is to extract at least $5 billion from their key assets. The mining plan is based on the memorandum signed in February by both Codelco and Anglo American. It relates to the Andina Mine of Codelco, as well as the Los Bronces Mine of Anglo American in central Chile near the capital Santiago. Codelco Chairman Maximo Pacheco said, "We are now able to maximise the potential of Andina-Los Bronces without major investment and with much...

The U.S. Climate Prediction Center said that a transition from El Nino/Southern Oscillation neutral to La Nina will likely occur in the next few months. There is a 71% probability of La Nina between October and December. Climate Prediction Center reported on Thursday. The U.S. forecaster said that "La Nina will be favored in the future, but chances of it occurring are expected to decrease from 54% between December 2025 and February 2026." Why it's important La Nina is a part of El Nino-Southern Oscillation, a climatic cycle that affects the water temperatures in central and eastern Pacific Ocean. La...

In a Wednesday filing, Judge Leonard Stark stated that a Delaware court was inclined to deny the motion filed by Gold Reserve last month to disqualify an affiliated hedge fund Elliott Investment Management's bid to purchase Citgo Petroleum, a Venezuelan-owned refiner. Next week, the court will begin the final hearing in the court-organized sale of shares to pay creditors who have been owed money for expropriations or debt defaults that Venezuela has made. The hearing follows the selection of the $5,9 billion bid by Elliott's Amber Energy affiliate as the best offer in the auction. This choice was met with...

Petrobras, the state-run Brazilian oil company, has priced a $2 billion global notes offering through its wholly-owned subsidiary Petrobras Global Finance B.V. in two tranches. This was disclosed in a filing of securities on Wednesday. The first tranche is $1 billion of global notes with a 5.125% interest rate due 2030. They are priced at 99.024% and yield 5.350%. The interest payments will begin in March 2026 and continue every 10th of March until September 2020. The second tranche includes a $1 billion of 6.250% global bonds due in 2036 priced at 97.784%, yielding 6.550%. Interest payments will begin in...

According to documents filed by the officer overseeing sale, a $5.89 billion offer from an affiliate hedge fund Elliott Investment Management was recommended as the winning bid in a U.S.-court-organized auction for shares of the Venezuelan-owned refiner Citgo Petroleum. Robert Pincus, a court officer, made the recommendation despite an attempt by a Gold Reserve subsidiary to sweeten their $7.4 billion deal earlier in the week. Pincus, in a ruling earlier this month said that an improved offer from Elliott's subsidiary Amber Energy was superior. The court then gave the Gold Reserve Group three days to match the bid. Pincus stated...

Brijendra Singh, chairman and managing director of India's National Aluminium Company said that the company will invest $3.43 billion in a new coal power plant and a smelter over the next five-year period. Singh, a New Delhi-based reporter, said that the state-owned aluminium company will spend around 180 billion rupees on the construction of the smelter proposed in Odisha in eastern India. He added that the project would be funded by a combination of internal accruals and debt. Singh stated that the remaining 120 billion rupees would be used for a coal-fired power plant. Coal India and NTPC are in...

Braskem reported in its Friday securities filing that talks for Brazilian firm Novonor (formerly Odebrecht) to sell a majority stake in the petrochemical Braskem company to a Nelson Tanure-backed fund continue despite a 90 day exclusive negotiation deadline. The exclusivity period has ended without an agreement between the parties that would have exempted the fund from paying damages in a suit that claims that the firm's mines of salt caused the ground to sink in Maceio, and that forced evacuations were a result. Petroquimica Verde, the Tanure-linked fund of investment, has a source who says that they will not sign...

The Swiss Attorney General has fined Swiss bank J. Safra Sarasin SA $4.3 million in a corruption and money-laundering case that lasted for years, involving Brazilian state oil company Petrobras. The highest Swiss prosecutor's office issued a statement in which it said that the bank settled with Petrobras - a claimant - for 16 million Swiss francs. It added that there was no need to pay any further compensation. Safra stated that the "ordinance" of the prosecutors does not represent an admission of guilt, or an acceptance of criminal or civil liability by the bank or its representatives. The statement...

China Concord Resources Corp. has started developing two Venezuelan oilfields. The company plans to invest over $1 billion into a project that will produce 60,000 barrels of crude oil per day by the end of 2026. The project is a rare investment made by a Chinese private firm in an OPEC nation that has been struggling to attract foreign capital because of international sanctions against the Maduro administration. This is the first time that the investment amount and production plan have been reported. Beijing is a major ally of Maduro, as well as his predecessor, late President Hugo Chavez. It...

Empresas Copec, a Chilean conglomerate of industrial companies, reported a 21% decline in its second-quarter profits despite revenue exceeding expectations. The forestry giant is facing falling pulp prices as well as trade war impacts due to the U.S. and China. The net profit for the quarter ended June was $228 million, which is in line with expectations of LSEG's analysts. Revenues were down 1% at $7.18 billion. The revenue of Copec, the owner of a large forestry company, as well as fuel distribution and mining operations, was higher than analysts' estimates at $6.84 billion. Copec attributes the drop in sales...

The new Chilean finance minister said on Wednesday that the country will have a budget for 2026 with a "responsible increase" while the state-run Codelco tries to recover from production problems. Nicolas Grau, who was appointed by President Gabriel Boric in August, told reporters in his Santiago office that the budget for 2026, which is due to Congress, will have a "limited" increase in spending. Boric will announce the exact amount, but budget increases have been declining since 2023, when they grew by 4.2%. Grau stated that the average annual growth rate would be around 2% with this budget. He...

The new Chilean finance minister said on Wednesday that the country will have a budget for 2026 with a "responsible increase" while the state-run Codelco tries to recover from production problems. Nicolas Grau, who was appointed by President Gabriel Boric in August, told reporters in his Santiago office that the budget for 2026, which is due to Congress, will have a "limited" increase in spending. Boric will announce the exact amount, but budget increases have been declining since 2023, when they grew by 4.2%. Grau stated that the average annual growth rate would be around 2% with this budget. He...

In August, the gap between China's steel industry and its appetite for iron ore imports widened. This highlights the difference between hope and reality. China, which produces just over half the world's steel, saw its output fall for a third consecutive month in August, to 77.37 millions metric tons. The month was the weakest since December and was down by 0.7% compared to August and 2.9% compared to the 79.66 millions tons recorded in July. The steel output in the first eight-month period was 671.81 millions tons, which is a decrease of 2.8% compared to the same period last year....

The Globe and Mail, citing sources familiar with this matter, reported that Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney had told Anglo American it would have to move its headquarters from the United States to Canada if its proposed acquisition by Teck Resources was to be approved. Anglo American, based in London, and Teck, based in Canada, announced last week a merger worth $53 billion. This is the second largest M&A transaction in the mining sector. The merged entity will be headquartered in Canada, with a primary listing in London. The Globe and Mail reported that Carney had made it clear in...

Embraer's CEO said that the Brazilian planemaker expects to achieve 100 commercial aircraft deliveries annually in 2028. He added that supply chain problems will likely prevent Embraer from reaching that milestone sooner. As part of its recovery after the industry crisis caused by the pandemic, the world's third largest planemaker increased annual deliveries. It expects between 77-85 commercial jet deliveries in 2019, up from 73 last year. Embraer's CEO Francisco Gomes Neto warned that supply-chain snags could limit Embraer's production plans. The company last delivered 100 commercial jets annually in 2017. In an interview with a newspaper on Wednesday, he...

Investors worried about the health of the British economic system prompted a rebound in UK shares on Wednesday, after the session before had seen the worst day for nearly five months. Both the blue-chip FTSE 100 index and the domestically focused midcap index closed at 0.7%. Investors' anxiety over the UK's ability get its finances in order led to a lower closing of the stock market on Tuesday. In Tuesday's session, the yield on 30-year gilts rose to its highest level since 1998. Andrew Bailey, Governor of the Bank of England, told a hearing of a committee that it is...

China's net copper imports fell to an all-time low in July, as the world's biggest buyer competed with the United States for the metal. China's warehouse stocks are now included in the scramble to export copper to the U.S. before threatened tariffs. In the first seven month of 2025, China "exported 121,000 metric tonnes of copper to the U.S." The shipments began after President Donald Trump announced in February a national-security investigation into U.S. dependence on copper imports. Since U.S. Customs only counted 15 tons of Chinese refined copper in the first half 2025, we can conclude that China's so-called...

The Financial Times reported that Brazil's Competition Authority has opened an investigation into Anglo American’s plans to sell its nickel operations in the country. The FT reported that CADE, Brazil’s antitrust regulator confirmed it had opened a investigation into the $500-million deal Anglo concluded in February with MMG Singapore Resources in response to a complainant. The FT reported that "based on a complaint, a Administrative Procedure for Investigation of an Act of Economic Concentration" was initiated by CADE. The newspaper reported that CoreX Holding, a global industrial group, had lodged an objection to the deal. It cited a source with...

In an interview, Alvaro Garcia, the newly appointed Economy minister of Chile, said that he expects Codelco - a state-owned copper producer – and SQM - a local miner – to complete a major partnership deal with lithium before 2026 when the current administration leaves. Some presidential candidates have stated that they will review or cancel the deal if it is not completed before President Gabriel Boric leaves the office. This puts pressure on the administration to complete the crucial pillar in its pledge to increase the role of the state in lithium production. This is our immediate goal. "We...

TechMet, a U.S.-government-backed investment vehicle, is launching an arm to trade critical minerals following further investment by commodity trading house Mercuria. This was announced on Wednesday. TechMet, a private company, owns stakes in 10 different companies including Brazilian Nickel, Cornish Lithium, and Rainbow Rare Earths. According to a press release, TechMet SCM will be a new trading unit that will concentrate on specialty metals from its portfolio companies as well as third parties. Mercuria has increased its investment to make possible the launch the trading arm. It did not specify how much Mercuria had invested. TechMet stated that "it will......

Hochschild Mining, a British company, slashed its full-year production estimate for the Mara Rosa mine in Britain by over half on Wednesday. This comes months after the mine was shut down due to a lackluster gold output. Shares fell nearly 20%. The first gold mine of Hochschild in Brazil has been affected by contractor and weather related disruptions. This led to production delays, reduced output and increased costs. The mine's production of gold is expected to be only 35,000-45,000 in ounces, down from the previous prediction of 94,000-104,000. The FTSE 350 index of precious metals, mining and minerals fell 2.3%...

Fortescue, an Australian company, reported on Tuesday its lowest full-year profit for six years. The results met analyst expectations and the dividend was maintained. Fortescue also reaffirmed its commitment to renewable energy following a refocus of its growth strategy. According to the fourth largest iron ore mining company in the world, net profit attributable after taxes was $3.37 billion during the year ending June 30. This is down from $5.68billion a year earlier. This compares to the average analyst estimate of $3.43billion, according data compiled by LSEG. Fortescue has had its worst performance since fiscal 2019. Fortescue has been pushing...