The engine that drives his confidence comes in the form of electric vehicles which, according to investment manager U.S. Global Investors, need up to four times the amount of copper traditional cars need and whose demand is expected to grow so much that, by 2027, 1.74 million tonnes of copper will be needed to meet it. Today’s demand is of 184,000 tonnes.

China is the main consumer of the world’s copper, with imports reaching 17.35 million tonnes in 2017. In its quest to curb pollution, the Asian giant is forecast to become one of the largest EV manufacturers in the coming years, thus increasing its copper needs even more.

Precisely talking to U.S. Global Investors about this topic, Friedland said that within this context people are going “to need a telescope to see copper prices in 2021.” Besides increased demand, he thinks prices could hit higher notes due to global supply disruptions such as those caused by labour negotiations in the world’s No.1 producer -Chile.

Ivanhoe Mines chairman, however, is confident his own project is going to continue to move forward smoothly. Located in an uninhabited area within the Central African Copperbelt, Kamoa-Kakula is set to become the third largest copper mine in the planet, only topped by Escondida in Chile and Australia's Olympic Dam in terms of sheer size. Its resource base was lifted above a billion tonnes and its average copper grade is estimated at 7.3 per cent.

Even though copper experienced a considerable fall this week, it had been on a tear since May 2017, reaching $7,000 a tonne for the first time in three years. Together with prices, China’s imports climbed to 17.35 million tonnes in 2017, up 2.3 per cent from the previous year.

A team of banking and technology managers, and US regulatory commissioners who launched the digital currency claim it would provide users with a safe haven from cryptocurrency volatility.

RT talked to Alexandre Kateb, president of Competence Finance SAS, to understand if the new digital currency could one day become a real safe haven like gold.

“OilCoin will try to replicate the movement of oil prices, very much like a financial instrument called an oil future,” said Kateb, who explained that this contrasted with bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, the value of which is determined by supply and demand for the tokens in circulation, and the cost of issuing new tokens.

He added that OilCoin would have to be backed by physical oil inventories, unlike oil futures, which have to be rolled over periodically and is purely a financial instrument.

Kateb said that “very much like a traditional currency, it is possible to back a cryptocurrency by a physical asset” but expressed doubts that OilCoin could become a real safe haven.

He believes “commodity-backed currencies are a thing of the past, because in the modern world it is technological innovation that drives the economy, not the supply of physical commodities.”

Talking about the possibility of a new cryptocurrency affecting oil prices, Kateb said gigantic quantities of physical oil and other oil-related assets would have to be bought in order to have any such impact.

“It has been said that oil futures can affect oil prices, but according to the studies conducted by the IMF and other financial watchdogs, financial instruments backed by oil may affect the volatility of oil prices but not their level which is determined by the traditional supply and demand for the physical commodity,” he explained.

The economist said that OilCoin would be as volatile as oil itself, adding that it would also have the same kind of cost as oil, namely the "carry cost" incurred by storing physical oil.

“Therefore, the real value of an OilCoin could be subject to a continuous depreciation as time goes by. This is akin to the so-called "contango" effect, which is normally observed with oil futures,” said Kateb.

Former Politburo member Dinh La Thang was found guilty of economic mismanagement over losses in state oil firm PetroVietnam.

The former head of the firm was sentenced to life imprisonment.

The trial is part of a crackdown on corruption that involves high-profile energy and banking executives.

Twenty other people were sentenced on Monday in Hanoi, receiving jail terms ranging from three years suspended to nine years.

The trial is seen as a showcase of the Communist Party's fight against corruption but also an act of internal purging, correspondents say.

Representatives of the Ministry of Environment and Tourism, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Justice and Home Affairs, the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Science and Sport, the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Light Industry, the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection, the Ministry of Energy, the National Emergency Management Agency and the Institute for Strategic Studies of the National Security Council joined the US representatives from the Department of State, Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Homeland Security, US Agency for International Development, and U.S. Embassy in the Annual Bilateral Consultations .

The meeting was co-chaired by State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ts.Davaasuren and the US Acting Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Susan A.Thornton.

During the meeting, Mongolia reported on the activities of the Government, foreign policy priorities, latest developments in political, social and economic spheres, implementation of the International Monetary Fund’s Extended Fund Facility program and measures taken to attract foreign direct investment and restore investors’ trust.

The sides noted how bilateral relations advanced in 2017 in the margins of the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations. In particular, bilateral relations have seen developments such as the re-selection of Mongolia as eligible country for a Second Compact Agreement of the Millennium Challenge Corporation, launch of USD 10 million project to boost Mongolia’s meat export, the first consultation on energy policy, re-establishment of Mongolia group in the US Congress, addition of Mongolia to the list of countries eligible for the H-2A/B visa program and implementation of LEAD and FLEX programs.

The meeting agenda included bilateral trade and economic cooperation, US investment into Mongolia, broadening of cooperation in defense, peacekeeping, agriculture, energy and security, finalization of the Second Compact Agreement and cooperation within the H-2A/B visa program.

Moreover, the meeting also touched upon on global issues, including security in the Asia Pacific region and the Korean Peninsula, and the US’ policy in the Indo-Pacific region.

The annual consultations have been held since 1998 in Ulaanbaatar and Washington in turn, with an aim to review the bilateral relationship and determine the future directions and priorities in bilateral relations.
Kh.Aminaa

The new office, which will expand to 80 staff this year, will support the company’s exploration program and local services units, as well as focus on growing relationships, the miner said in a statement on Monday.

“Today we are demonstrating the deepening of our commitment to Mongolia through the establishment of a new country office under new Mongolian leadership,” Rio Tinto chief executive Jean-Sebastien Jacques said.

“Mongolia is one of Rio Tinto’s most strategically important markets and we are here to stay.”

Rio Tinto operates the Oyu Tolgoi copper and gold mine, which is jointly owned by the government of Mongolia, with 34 percent, and Turquoise Hill Resources with 66 percent. Turquoise Hill is in turn 51 percent-owned by Rio Tinto.

The company had invested more than $7 billion in Mongolia since 2010, including salaries, supplier payments, investment in the community, and $1.5 billion in taxes, royalties and other payments to the government, Jacques said.

Earlier this month Oyu Tolgoi said it was evaluating a bill for about $155 million from Mongolia’s tax authority following an audit of payments made between 2013 and 2015.

Munkhtushig Dul has been appointed as Rio Tinto’s country director and will lead the new Rio Tinto office. He will work in coordination with the Oyu Tolgoi LLC team, led by managing director Armando Torres.

Dul has previously worked in senior roles within the Noble Group’s Mongolian operations, as well as the Mongolian Stock Exchange and the Executive Office of the National Security Council.

The export increased by USD 1.3 billion or 26.1 per cent whereas import went up by USD 977.3 million or 29.1% compared to the same period of the previous year.

Foreign trade balance surplus reached USD 1.9 billion, showing an increase of USD 307 million or 19.7 percent against 2016.

USD 1.3 billion increase in export was influenced by mineral products' export which raised by USD 1.4 billion in 2017, of which coal export up by USD 1.3 billion.
E.Altanzul

Please review the following MBD business offers package number 16 and feel free to visit www.mongolianbusinessdatabase.com for more information on each offer and contact us.
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Mongolian immigration officers last week raided the giant copper-gold mine on suspicions workers at the project, which is a joint venture between Rio and the local government, did not have the correct visas.

About 40 workers, including Australians, Americans and Canadians, had their passports confiscated last Friday and were unable to return home on flights scheduled for Monday.

Since then, most of the workers were found to be working illegally and have been told to get out of the country.

The stoush in one of the most inhospitable places on earth was part of a wider crackdown by Mongolia on ex-pats working in the country.

Rio said the affected workers were employed by contractors, not directly by the mining giant.

“We are aware immigration officials in Mongolia have conducted visa checks at a number of businesses,” a company spokesman said.

“The responsibility for ensuring the correct visa has been applied for and issued sits with the contracting company. If found to hold an incorrect visa they may be asked to pay fines and leave the country in a matter of days, consistent with immigration law in many countries, including Australia.

“We are working closely with the contracting companies, the contractors, who remain on site, and the Mongolian immigration department as they work to complete their review. The department has been working through this in a timely manner. We expect it to be resolved quickly.”

Hofmann Engineering managing director Erich Hofmann would not comment on the situation other than to say the company was working to ensure its staff could get home as soon as possible.

A Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade spokesman said Canberra was “aware of the situation and is making inquiries with the relevant Mongolian authorities”.

Oyu Tolgoi is one of the most remote mine sites in the world. The sprawling project is 550km south of Mongolia’s capital, Ulaanbaatar and 80km north of the China border.