The UK banking sector reporting season kicks off in earnest on Tuesday with full-year results due from global giant HSBC PLC (LON:HSBA), ahead of numbers from Barclays PLC (LON:BARC), Lloyds Banking Group PLC (LON:LLOY), and Royal Bank of Scotland PLC (LON:RBS) later this week.While it may be listed in the UK, HSBC is far from a UK operation, with 70% of its profits coming from Asia.HSBC's reporte...Read More

MOSCOW/LONDON, Feb 16 (Reuters) - A power struggle over Norilsk Nickel (Nornickel) resurfaced on Friday as billionaire Vladimir Potanin offered to buy Roman Abramovich's stake in the mining group, and a third businessman - Oleg Deripaska - tried to block the deal.The fight between the billionaires revives a long-running battle for control of Nornickel, a $33 billion mining company, which competes...Read More

* Graphic: World FX rates in 2018 * Graphic: Trade-weighted sterling since Brexit vote (Updates prices)By Jemima KellyLONDON, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Sterling edged lower against the dollar and euro on Monday, holding off 10-day highs hit last week, as traders awaited key wages data due later this week for clues to the pace of monetary tightening from the Bank of England. Markets have moved to price in...Read More

(Kitco News)- Although the silver market has struggled to find momentumsince the start of 2018, one investment firm is not giving up on the whitemetal.In a recent report, Maxwell Gold, director of investmentstrategy and research at ETF Securities, said that he still expects silver tooutperform gold this years, as investors adjust to growing industrial demanddue to renewed global economic growth.Th...Read More

BRASILIA, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Eunicio Oliveira, the head of Brazil's Senate, said on Monday that the federal government's military intervention in Rio de Janeiro would, by the rules of the country's constitution, block any vote on pension reform or any other measure requiring a constitutional amendment. President Michel Temer last week ordered Brazil's army to take command of all security forces in...Read More

By Bruno FederowskiSAO PAULO, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Brazilian stocks rose on Monday on thin trading volumes following a heavy batch of corporate updates.The benchmark Bovespa stock index rose 0.3 percent, supported by shares of state-controlled oil company Petr??leo Brasileiro SA on the heels of rising crude prices.Shares in electronics and appliance retailer Via Varejo SA rose 1.1 percent following...Read More

BRUSSELS, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Spanish Economy Minister Luis de Guindos said he would defend the independence of the European Central Bank after being chosen as its new Vice President from June by euro zone ministers."I have been a minister, but to be a minister is something that does not limit the defence that I make on the independence of the European Central Bank. I will defend the independe...Read More

RIGA, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Latvia's anti-corruption agency released central bank Governor Ilmars Rimsevics from custody on Monday after accusing him of soliciting a bribe.Video footage from Latvian news portal Delfi showed Rimsevics rejecting the allegations as he was released. "I disagree with it categorically," Rimsevics told reporters. (Reporting by Gederts Gelzis; Editing by Catherine...Read More

While the United Nations' International Seabed Authority (ISA) in charge of issuing mineral exploration licences has granted 26 so far, Papua New Guinea remains the only country to have granted an operating permit for ocean floor mining.Canada's Nautilus is on track to start operations at its Solwara gold, copper and silver project in the Bismarck sea off PNG in early 2019, making it the first und...Read More

While the United Nations' International Seabed Authority (ISA) in charge of issuing mineral exploration licences has granted 26 so far, Papua New Guinea remains the only country to have granted an operating permit for ocean floor mining.Canada's Nautilus is on track to start operations at its Solwara gold, copper and silver project in the Bismarck sea off PNG in early 2019, making it the first und...Read More

While the United Nations' International Seabed Authority (ISA) in charge of issuing mineral exploration licences has granted 26 so far, Papua New Guinea remains the only country to have granted an operating permit for ocean floor mining.Canada's Nautilus is on track to start operations at its Solwara gold, copper and silver project in the Bismarck sea off PNG in early 2019, making it the first und...Read More

Bleeding U.S. dollar.Two sides of a reserve currency's international appeal.Europe's triumphant comeback. The U.S. dollar has been bleeding recently, despite all the Fed's tightening efforts and the passage of Trump's tax cuts. An accelerating economy, rising interest rates and pro-growth reforms should logically drive the value of the American currency. But they didn't. Given the strong negative...Read More

(Bloomberg) - Glencore Plc and Randgold Resources Ltd. are among major mining companies in the Democratic Republic of Congo clubbing together in a bid to stop sweeping legal reforms, claiming their interests were poorly served by the existing industry body.In a letter sent to Congolese President Joseph Kabila on Feb. 8 and seen by Bloomberg, investors requested a meeting "to once again put forwar...Read More

(Bloomberg) - Glencore Plc and Randgold Resources Ltd. are among major mining companies in the Democratic Republic of Congo clubbing together in a bid to stop sweeping legal reforms, claiming their interests were poorly served by the existing industry body.In a letter sent to Congolese President Joseph Kabila on Feb. 8 and seen by Bloomberg, investors requested a meeting "to once again put forwar...Read More

By Elizabeth Piper and Paul SandleLONDON, Feb 19 (Reuters) - British universities must offer students value for money, Prime Minister Theresa May said on Monday, launching a review that could reduce fees and restore grants in a bid to entice younger voters who helped punish her party at an election last year.In a speech designed to show her programme for Britain is more than just its departure fro...Read More

Feb 19 (Reuters) - Battery and technology metals developer Australian Mines Ltd said on Monday it signed a deal with Korea's SK Innovation Co Ltd to supply cobalt sulphate and nickel sulphate from its flagship Sconi project.The commodity off-take agreement, which is for an initial period of 7 years, is for SK Innovation's newly developed battery manufacturing plant in Hungary and Korea, the compan...Read More

BRUSSELS, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Euro zone ministers on Monday chose Spanish Economy Minister Luis de Guindos to succeed European Central Bank Vice President Vitor Constancio at the end of May, they said in a statement."The Eurogroup today gave its support to the candidacy of Luis de Guindos for the position of Vice President of the European Central Bank," the ministers said.The nomination w...Read More

Feb 19 (Reuters) - Petra Diamonds Ltd said core earnings fell 8 percent in the first half of the year, hurt mainly by a strike at its South Africa operations and the blocking of a consignment of diamonds in Tanzania.The miner issued a profit warning and cut its production forecast last month after it faced a string of issues, including a three-week strike at its South Africa operations and the blo...Read More

Feb 19 (Reuters) - Petra Diamonds Ltd said core earnings fell 8 percent in the first half of the year, hurt mainly by a strike at its South Africa operations and the blocking of a consignment of diamonds in Tanzania.The miner issued a profit warning and cut its production forecast last month after it faced a string of issues, including a three-week strike at its South Africa operations and the blo...Read More

LONDON, Feb 19 (Reuters) - The value of global mining and metals deals hit a four-year high in 2017, according to accountancy firm EY, as financial distress abated and companies sold off non-core assets.Mining and metals deals totalled $51 billion last year, up 15 percent from 2016 and dominated by coal and steel transactions, although the volume of transactions fell 6 percent."The focus for...Read More