Esther Tanquintic-Misa

Qatar's first cargo of liquefied natural gas (LNG) has been released bound for China to PetroChina's newly-commissioned LNG receiving terminal at Rudong in Jiangsu province.

Prices of major commodities remained uneasy as Eurozone leaders continued to debate on how to address their financial crises.

Africa, hungry for acceptance into the big league of nations with high economies, has sprung on every possible merger and acquisition (M&A) it can hold or get into, a strategy very reminiscent of China two decades ago.

Queensland Mining Corporation has gained approval from major shareholder Tulla Resources to push through company works towards the development of the White Range Copper Project.

As the world fiscal crisis continues to shake developed economies, emerging economies are left to fend for themselves.

Prices of iron ore continued its 13th straight day winning streak, in what seems to be a rosy picture again for producers, encouraged on by strong demand from top buyer China.

Global miners BHP Billiton Ltd, Rio Tinto Group and Vale SA had received requests from China Steel Corp (CSC) to suspend or reduce the deliveries of iron and coking coal because of a slow output requirement for the raw materials.

China has been given the go-signal to resume the construction of its nuclear power plants that were discontinued earlier this year prompted by Japan's Fukushima crisis in March.

Afghanistan's mining ministry has shortlisted the number of foreign investors interested to explore its iron ore rich Hajigak mine, and it is likely the mine will go to an Indian firm.

Help for Flinders Mines continue to pour in as it announced on Wednesday it has entered into a non-binding agreement with an independent rail provider to scout possible solutions to transport iron ore on a multi-user rail line from the Pilbara to nearby ports on the Western Australian coast.

Chilean copper producer Antofagasta and Canada's Barrick Gold have been denied a mining lease application by Pakistan's Baluchistan province over the Reko Diq copper-gold project.

At least four foreign resource firms have expressed interest to conduct talks with Mumbai-based firm Varun Industries after it announced the discovery heavy minerals reserves at its blocks in Madagascar.

Falling global prices of iron ore as well as internal country problems had hurt India's mining industry as exports of its iron ore dropped 25 per cent to 35.38 million tonnes from April to October, the Federation of Indian Mineral Industries (FIMI) said in a statement.

A unit of the Bank of China (BOC) is arranging to enter the iron ore swaps business next year to exploit the growing demand for hedging from steel mills and traders.

Global miner BHP Billiton Limited is set to embark on two multi billion projects over the next three years.

On Wednesday, US oil prices jumped to five-month highs triggered by a US pipeline stake sale that traders surmise could potentially reduce transport blockages and boost demand for US and Canadian crude.

After it successfully bought a majority stake in Australia's Legacy Iron Ore in September, India's largest iron ore miner NMDC Ltd. pursues its aggressive expansion plans of acquiring overseas mines, this time eyeing companies in Brazil and the US.

London-listed company African Minerals recently achieved a remarkable milestone with its shipment of a first batch of iron ore from its mine in central Sierra Leone, the country's first export of the commodity after almost 30 years.

Gold traders in India are preparing for a deluge of customers eager to buy the yellow metal as this year's annual wedding and festival season is expected to further boost sales of gold jewelry around the country.

Atlas Iron Limited has announced it has acquired for A$2.1 million in cash a 90 per cent stake from Gondwana Resources Limited to own the Corunna Downs DSO Project in the North Pilbara in Western Australia.

World industries dependent on rare earth elements, so named because of their scarcity and high value, will be facing an uncertain future as supply could be disrupted by technical, environmental and financial factors.

The spot inspections that China started last week over the production of rare earth metals in the country will likely affect global supply quotas next year.

A regulatory filing report by Astenbeck Capital Management LLC had revealed the firm had recently bought shares in rare earth metals and uranium mining companies, presumably in a bid to take advantage of the two commodities' foreseen boom.

Pressured to augment India's persisting coal shortages that fail to supply its power plants, Coal India Ltd. (CIL) has committed to produce some 448 million tonnes of coal for fiscal year 2012.

Australian miner Guildford Coal reported an initial JORC Resource of 63.1 million tonnes of coal with coking potential at its South Gobi project in Mongolia.

At least two major Chinese investors in Australia's resources sector expressed having second thoughts of furthering investment plans in the country's mining industry due to the escalating regulatory risks imposed by the mining and carbon tax laws.

Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. may need to realign projections and production timetables at its Oyu Tolgoi copper-gold mine project to accommodate the construction of a coal-fired power plant.

Market interest in Lynas Corp. has been steadily rising after it announced it is close to its first production output of rare earth metals from its Mount Weld Rare Earth Project.

The continuing fiscal crisis affecting the eurozone, coupled with the alterations in Italy's political landscapes along with brewing conflicts in the Middle East, led prices of crude oil to withdraw on Monday.