China has scrapped a quota system aimed at restricting exports of rare earths, a group of 17 metals used in high tech sectors, as it moves to comply with a World Trade Organisation (WTO) ruling last year, official Chinese media reported on Monday.
Basic Materials
Holcim faces pressure to get better terms for Lafarge deal
Swiss company Holcim (HOLN.VX) came under pressure on Monday to secure improved terms for its shareholders in a planned merger with France's Lafarge (LAFP.PA) that would create the world's largest cement maker.
Top China cotton producer resists reforms in restive Xinjiang
China's top cotton producer, a quasi-military body formed 60 years ago to settle the far west Xinjiang area, is resisting a government policy that could force it to cut output in an industry employing hundreds of thousands in the restive region.
Argentina: What the tampon rumpus says about the troubled country
Argentines have been complaining for a while now about the country's product shortages. And, until recently, the government has managed to brush aside such protests, which have centered around Argentina's import restrictions.
UAE's RAK Ceramics says to sell stake in Laticrete venture
United Arab Emirates-based RAK Ceramics RKCE.AD, one of the world's biggest makers of floor and wall tiles, said on Sunday that it would sell its stake in a joint venture with U.S. firm Laticrete for an undisclosed sum.
Latest News
Brent oil extended losses into a fourth session on Tuesday, with prices hovering close to a more than five-year low above $57 per barrel, as persistent worries about a global supply glut offset concerns about output disruptions in Libyan.
Oil prices rose on Monday, after dropping for the past two sessions, as escalating clashes in Libya stoked worries about supply from the OPEC member.
Russia has agreed on a new deal to supply coal and electricity to Ukraine, which is struggling with a lack of raw fuel for power plants due to a separatist conflict in the industrial east, Russian officials said on Saturday.
Germany's HeidelbergCement AG (HEIG.DE) is negotiating to sell Hanson Building Products Ltd, a maker of concrete and clay building products, to private equity firm Lone Star Funds, according to people familiar with the matter.
Anglo American Platinum has received a 4.5 billion rand ($385 million) offer for its 49 percent stake in the Bokoni mine in northeast South Africa, a source said on Wednesday, pushing its shares higher.
Olam International Ltd (OLAM.SI) will buy Archer Daniels Midland Co's (ADM.N) cocoa business for $1.3 billion, it said on Monday, catapulting the Singapore-based commodities merchant into the top tier of the niche bean processing industry.
Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc (BRKa.N) on Friday said it was buying oil industry logistics provider Charter Brokerage from private equity firm Arsenal Capital Partners.
Top steelmakers ArcelorMittal and Tata Steel are dipping their toes into iron ore derivatives, marking a crucial milestone in developing trade for the world's second-largest commodity after oil.
The U.S. Congress has cleared the way for global miners Rio Tinto (RIO.L) (RIO.AX) and BHP Billiton (BHP.AX) (BLT.L) to swap land with the government, which will allow them to build a long-delayed $6 billion copper mine in Arizona.
