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

* U.S. dollar enjoys bounce after recent falls* Euro slips below $1.24; yen down slightly* Trading lighter than normal with U.S., Asian holidays* Graphic: World FX rates in 2018 By Tommy WilkesLONDON, Feb 19 (Reuters) - The dollar enjoyed a small rebound on Monday as investors bought back the greenback after its plunge to three-year lows, although analysts said any recovery looked set to be brief...Read More

JOHANNESBURG, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Anglo American Platinum (Amplats), the world's top platinum producer, announced its first dividend in seven years on Monday as full-year headline earnings more than doubled and said it was not committing capital to major projects in 2018.Amplats' investment stance highlights the fragile state of platinum mining in South Africa, home to around two-thirds of known re...Read More

By Anshuman Daga and Jacob Gronholt-PedersenSINGAPORE/COPENHAGEN, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Private equity firm EQT has put Denmark-based Nordic Aviation Capital (NAC), the world's largest regional aircraft lessor, up for sale just 2-1/2 years after buying a majority stake in the company, two sources familiar with the matter said. Swedish private equity firm EQT acquired a 54 percent stake in NAC in Augu...Read More

The value of global mining and metals deals hit a four-year high in 2017, according to accountancy firm EY, boosted by a jump in money raised on stock exchanges to a six-year high.Mining and metals deals totalled $51 billion last year, up 15% from 2016. Activity was dominated by coal and steel transactions. However, the volume of deals fell 6% as M&A focus in the sector started shifting from dives...Read More

The value of global mining and metals deals hit a four-year high in 2017, according to accountancy firm EY, boosted by a jump in money raised on stock exchanges to a six-year high.Mining and metals deals totalled $51 billion last year, up 15% from 2016. Activity was dominated by coal and steel transactions. However, the volume of deals fell 6% as M&A focus in the sector started shifting from dives...Read More

The value of global mining and metals deals hit a four-year high in 2017, according to accountancy firm EY, boosted by a jump in money raised on stock exchanges to a six-year high.Mining and metals deals totalled $51 billion last year, up 15% from 2016. Activity was dominated by coal and steel transactions. However, the volume of deals fell 6% as M&A focus in the sector started shifting from dives...Read More

* Rand weakens along with emerging markets* Markets await budget speech on Wednesday* Stocks down amid low trading volumes (Adds latest figures, analyst quotes)JOHANNESBURG, Feb 19 (Reuters) - South Africa's rand weakened along with other emerging currencies on Monday as the dollar regained ground it lost last week and investors awaited details of new president Cyril Ramaphosa's plans to revive th...Read More

JAKARTA, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Indonesia issued the local unit of copper miner Freeport McMoRan Inc with a quota to export 1,247,866 wet metric tonnes (wmt) of copper concentrate up to Feb 15, 2019, a mining ministry official said on Monday.Medco Energi Internasional unit Amman Mineral Nusa Tenggara was also issued with a quota to export 450,826 wmt of copper concentrate over same period, Minerals Di...Read More

(Adds comments, background)By Polina Nikolskaya and Zlata GarasyutaMOSCOW, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Real wages in Russia rose more than expected in January but real disposable incomes could be lower than official statistics show ahead of a presidential election on March 18, analysts said on Monday. The oil-dependent economy grew 1.5 percent last year after two years of recession, missing an official for...Read More

BRATISLAVA, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Slovakia began trading of state bonds on the MTS trading platform on Monday, in an effort to increase liquidity in its secondary market and lower its risk premium, the country's debt management agency said.The central European country, a member of the euro zone since 2009, has enjoyed a comfortable borrowing position with declining budget deficits and an economy outp...Read More

(Adds CEO comments)By Carolina MandlSAO PAULO, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Shares in Brazilian insurance holding company BB Seguridade fell on Monday after management said raising profit will continue to be a challenge this year as interest rates reach their lowest level ever in the country.Shares were down 3.2 percent in mid-morning trading in Sao Paulo at 30.72 reais after BB Seguridade missed fourth-qu...Read More

Major gold-backed exchange traded products, such as the SPDR Gold Shares GLD, -0.33% and the iShares Gold Trust IAU, -0.31% are sporting solid year-to-date showings. Some market observers, however, are voicing concerns about the yellow metal after it declined during the volatility spike earlier this month. Gold's lack of positive response to the surge in the CBOE Volatility Index, also known as th...Read More

RIGA, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Latvia's ABLV Bank said on Monday it had never violated sanctions, rejecting an assertion by the US Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FCEN)."We don't participate in any illegal activities," Deputy CEO Vadims Reinfelds told a news conference. "There are no violations of sanctions."The bank said depositors had withdrawn around 60...Read More

Mosaic Co, the world's largest producer of finished phosphate products, on Monday reported a 12 percent rise in net sales driven by higher potash and phosphates prices.Plymouth, Minnesota-based Mosaic sold 2.5 million tonnes of diammonium phosphate in the fourth quarter at an average price of $348 per tonne, up from $317 per tonne a year earlier.The U.S. fertilizer company's average potash selling...Read More