Madagascar’s nickel and cobalt miner Ambatovy has shut down a pipeline supplying ore from its mine in the country’s east to a processing and refinery plant due to damage, its major shareholder Sumitomo Corp said…As Ambatovy continues to assess the impact on operations and the timeline for recovery, traders said that the incident could tighten supplies in the cobalt market if the stoppage goes on for more than two months…The cause of the damage to the slurry pipeline, which occurred on Sept. 25, is being investigated, Sumitomo said in a statement on Monday, adding that no injuries were reported…The Japanese trading house has been struggling to stabilize production and improve profitability at the Ambatovy project, which launched in 2005…It did not disclose its cobalt production. According to Darton Commodities, Ambatovy produced 3,390 tons of cobalt last year.

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, good afternoon, everyone. It’s a great pleasure to be here with my friend Espen – friend, colleague – and also for me, for the United States, our partnership with Norway on so many things, especially in moments of challenge, is deeply appreciated, deeply meaningful…As NATO founding members, our countries have an extraordinary history, a longstanding history, of working to address global challenges – not just the bilateral relationship, but between Norway and the United States, one that focuses on regional issues but also on global issues…In April, we agreed to tackle one of the greatest threats to our national and economic security by working to secure our critical mineral and clean energy supply chains. And this is something that’s animated both of our countries for some time, and I think the work that we’ve done together reflects the intense importance that we attach to this…Today’s signing of this Memorandum of Cooperation demonstrates a shared commitment to economic security in both a timely and tangible way. Developing secure, transparent critical mineral supply chains is essential if we’re going to achieve our global clean energy goals, but it’s also an essential aspect of our national security…We also work together to accelerate investment in global supply chains alongside our 13 other partners in the Mineral Security Partnership, which, through the leadership of Under Secretary Fernandez, now consists of 32 projects around the world. Global demand for critical minerals, we know, is only going to increase. It’s going to expand dramatically as we build and deploy technologies that will drive the 21st century clean energy economy. No country, we know, can meet this demand alone. No country should control the world’s supply of these materials.

Global commodity price reporting agency Argus is expanding its suite of cobalt prices with the launch of a new daily Rotterdam assessment for Chinese-origin cut cathode. The launch will bring much-needed clarity to the cobalt market at a time when there has been an influx of Chinese material to Europe…China’s exports of unwrought cobalt metal to the Netherlands jumped to 5,478t in January-August from 1,989t a year earlier, both because of over-production and as a result of weaker-than-expected demand from China’s domestic battery industry. Europe has borne the brunt of China’s increased cobalt exports because US consumers are often unwilling to use Chinese cobalt within their supply chains…The flood of Chinese-origin cobalt moving to Europe has become problematic for existing Rotterdam price mechanisms, which have failed to sufficiently distinguish between standard chemical-grade metal, alloy-grade metal and Chinese-origin cut cathode. Conflating Chinese cut cathode with either of the other products can be problematic, because the material is typically much cheaper than other cathode, and more prone to variations in grade.

It was 1982, and the geology graduate found himself on forested slopes in the remote, humid highlands of southeastern China. The bet paid off. The deposit his team eventually discovered became the nation’s biggest gold mine — and the foundation for a $67 billion state-owned behemoth that is today driving copper supply growth and gaining ground on some of the most established names in the global resources industry…After a three-decade exploration and acquisition blitz, Zijin Mining Group Co. digs up gold, copper and lithium across multiple continents. A state-run company on paper, it has more frequently behaved like a private firm, with relatively few employees and a flexible, risk-tolerant approach to investments that has put it on track to join BHP Group Ltd. this decade among the very top ranks of copper producers…Established Western names like Anglo American Plc limited spending over the past decade after the splurges of the last commodities boom, and most have yet to fully loosen the purse strings — but Zijin and peers like CMOC Group Ltd. have pressed ahead through the sector’s wilderness years. The result is that China, long dominant in refining and smelting, has now been able to dramatically expand its access to mined copper…Zijin’s production of the metal has more than tripled over the past five years as new operations ramp up in Africa, the Balkans and at home. On an equity basis, it was the sixth-largest copper miner last year…To a certain extent, the expansion tracks the nation’s broader rise to global growth engine and top commodity consumer. But Zijin is emblematic of a coterie of Chinese companies — both private and state-owned — changing the global metals landscape by generating a wave of mine supply, outpacing others with innovation and billions of dollars of investment, often in less-than-prime locations…"They’re the fastest-growing copper miner and they fly a bit under the radar. They’ve ramped up mines internationally very successfully," said Colin Hamilton, managing director for commodities research at BMO Capital Markets…Resistance to Chinese acquisitions is growing across Western markets, and Canada’s curbs on foreign investment in mining have had particular significance for Zijin. The company has done more than $4 billion worth of deals with Toronto-listed companies since 2015….“All of this is quite regrettable,” Chen said, adding miners would feel the absence of Chinese capital. Firms like Zijin, which can take a longer, strategic view on raw material investments, have long been an important funding source for the junior mining sector….“In order to have better options, we go to places with the richest resources in the world, even in places with relatively low development levels, or to places that many international mining companies consider problematic,” Chen said. “This is our differentiation.”…In reality, deals have mattered almost as much, accelerating after a 2003 Hong Kong listing. From 2006 until last year, Zijin spent at least $7 billion on acquisitions, most of them completed overseas and in the past decade…But it’s the early-stage swoops that Zijin stands out for. It’s been enough to ensure the company is worth close to nine times more than it was a decade ago and can credibly target the position of top three copper miner…One such risk was a 2015 gamble on Canadian maverick Robert Friedland and his Kamoa project. Then, most of the industry was in debt and this was at best a promising project, tucked away in a remote corner of the Democratic Republic of Congo…Now it’s one of the world’s biggest. Zijin bought into the mine and took a near-10% stake in Friedland’s Ivanhoe Mines Ltd, later increased. Today, Zijin and Ivanhoe both have a share in the operation of just under 40%...“They are unburdened by the self-imposed constraints that Western mining companies — which are very risk adverse — face,” Friedland said. “It's difficult to conceive of a future where Zijin doesn't continue to have world leading growth.”

Tesla said Wednesday that its global sales of cars and trucks rose 6.4 percent in the third quarter, the first quarterly increase the company has reported this year and a sign that demand for electric cars may be recovering as interest rates fall…The automaker delivered 463,000 vehicles from July through September, up from 435,000 a year earlier, offering hope to investors that the company’s sales have stabilized after falling in the first half of the year…Tesla boosted sales in part by offering 2.5 percent financing to qualified buyers in the United States, well below the market interest rate. It will be easier for the company, which is led by Elon Musk, to offer cheaper financing after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates by half a percentage point in September, the first of what is expected to be a series of cuts. Central banks in Europe, China and elsewhere have also been lowering rates…Interest rates determine the size of monthly car payments and are often more important to buyers than sticker prices. That’s why many analysts think car sales in the United States in particular could rise as the Fed cuts rates more…Tesla’s share of electric car sales has fallen as rivals like General Motors, Hyundai, Ford Motor and BMW have offered more battery-powered models. But Tesla still accounts for almost half of electric car sales in the United States and sets the tone for the market here and in other countries…Sales of electric cars, while still growing, have fallen short of expectations and prompted G.M., Ford, Volvo and others to scale back or slow down investment in electric vehicle production…On Tuesday, G.M. said sales of its electric models in the United States in the third quarter jumped 60 percent from a year earlier, to more than 32,000. The company’s U.S. sales of all vehicles fell about 2 percent in the quarter.

Toyota Motor said Wednesday it will invest another $500 million in Joby Aviation to support certification and commercial production of Joby’s electric air taxi…The Japanese automaker's new funding is on top of $394 million in prior investments it made in Joby and is part of a strategic alliance on commercial manufacturing…Electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft (eVTOL) have been touted as the future of urban air mobility, though they face hurdles to win over regulators…Joby said it continues to make progress towards commercialization and certification and recently broke ground on an expanded facility in California…Toyota engineers are working side-by-side with the Joby team in California and last year the two companies signed a long-term agreement for Toyota to supply key powertrain and other components for Joby aircraft.

Toyota Motor will postpone the start of electric-vehicle production in North America to the first half of 2026 due to design adjustment and slowing EV sales, the Nikkei business daily reported on Thursday…The Japanese automaker recently told suppliers the start date for production of its first battery EV model at its factory in the U.S. state of Kentucky - a three-row SUV - will be delayed by several months, the Nikkei said…Production is now likely to begin in early 2026 rather than late next year, Toyota spokesperson Scott Vazin said…He said Toyota planned to introduce five to seven battery electric vehicle models in the U.S. over the next two years.

As global powers vie for control over critical mineral trade routes, China plans to spend US$1 billion to refurbish a key railway line connecting Zambia's copper belt region with the Tanzanian port of Dar es Salaam under its Belt and Road Initiative…On Wednesday, China's ambassador to Zambia Du Xiaohui handed over a proposal to rehabilitate the Tazara railway to Zambian Transport Minister Frank Tayali, saying the US$1 billion investment would be done through a public-private partnership (PPP) over the coming years…Du said China would work with its "Zambian brothers and Tanzanian sisters" to strengthen cooperation and benefit the three countries… "The Chinese side wants to use the PPP model to invest over US$1 billion in the coming years," Du said…China is keen to use the Tazara rail line to transport mining exports from Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)…The refurbished Tazara railway will compete directly with a railroad backed by the US and EU to link Zambia's copper belt and the mineral-rich DRC to the Lobito port on Angola's Atlantic coast…The US and EU are eager to secure minerals that are vital for making batteries and advanced electronics - including cobalt, which comes from the DRC and Zambia. Most of these minerals are now exported to China for processing.