thyssenkrupp’s Industrial Solutions business area has won a contract to supply a material handling system for the new Oyu Tolgoi underground mine in Mongolia.

The contract value is in the higher double-digit million euro range. thyssenkrupp will supply a total of nine conveyors with a combined length of 9.5 km as well as seven transfer towers operating at a design tonnage of 7100 tph. First production from underground is expected in 2020. The Oyu Tolgoi mine complex is a joint venture between the government of Mongolia and Turquoise Hill Resources, which is majority-owned by Rio Tinto.

From a depth of nearly 1400 m beneath the Gobi Desert in the south of Mongolia, the new underground material handling system is planned to transport 95 000 tpd of copper ore up to the surface. The main components are four high lift conveyors each equipped with 1.6 m wide steel cord belts and dual 5500 kW gearless drives from Siemens. Further conveyors will feed the main incline conveyors and tie the new underground system into the existing process facility.

Torsten Gerlach, CEO of the Mining Technologies business unit of thyssenkrupp Industrial Solutions, said: “This order again proves that thyssenkrupp is a strong player in the mining and materials handling industry. We are proud to contribute to this project with our intelligent belt conveyor technology and our strong global project execution capabilities. The system will help the Oyu Tolgoi mine set standards in terms of productivity and safety.”

The Oyu Tolgoi mine began producing copper concentrate from an opencast operation in 2013. The future underground construction activities will transform Oyu Tolgoi into one of the most significant copper mines globally.

The order given to thyssenkrupp includes the engineering, design, and supply of the new material handling system as well as required site support services during the construction and commissioning phases. It will be designed with an emphasis on ease of maintenance. This includes, for example, the ability to quickly replace chute sections as well as idler rolls and belt cleaners. The drive components are massive in terms of size and weight, so great attention will be paid to safely transporting them underground and to ensuring they can be safely exchanged in the future. Overhead bridge cranes are strategically located to not only service the equipment, but also to aid in the erection of the major structures.

The work scope also includes water and air piping for the required dust suppression equipment, fire protection along all of the underground conveyors and electrical infrastructure to control and power the equipment.

The sides have agreed to review the results of SWAP agreement on exchanging currencies and criteria and legal adjustments for a foreign bank to open a branch in Mongolia.

The Bank of Mongolia has organized a campaign for “Proper Use of National Paper Bills”, involving 14 commercial banks and local branches of the central bank. The campaign appealed people not to offer money for mountains and ovoo (stone cairns) during religious ceremonies. The campaign has been estimated to have reached over one million people.

The Bank of Mongolia is announcing the next campaign called “Gold”. In accordance with the President’s direction issued last December, gold buying price of the central bank has been designated in line with the global market price. At the moment, an ounce of gold costs MNT 333 thousand. Since the price regulation, the central bank’s gold purchase has hit the all-time high by reaching 18.6 tons. The amount of gold submitted to the Bank of Mongolia within the first half of 2017 showed increase of 5.5 percent against last year.

The investment firm he runs, Berkshire Hathaway, is in talks to buy a stake in Latin American reinsurer IRA Brasil Resseguros, according to a Bloomberg News report. The purchase would take place following an initial public offering for the company scheduled to be completed sometime before July 27.

The IPO is expected to raise as much as 2.9 billion reals ($920 million), with the Brazilian government as its biggest shareholder, holding a 27% stake.

The proposed investment in IRA Brasil Resseguros isn't Buffett's first foray into the reinsurance business. Until 2015, he owned stakes in the world's two largest reinsurers — Swiss Re and Munich Re. He's also credited the proceeds from past reinsurance investments with helping build his great wealth.

The deal would be the latest in a flurry of activity for the 86-year-old Buffett, who was approached by Sprint earlier this month to make an investment of more than $10 billion in the wireless-service provider.

Berkshire Hathaway's most recent deal was a $377 million investment in real estate investment trust Store Capital on June 26, giving the firm a 9.8% stake. Store's shares surged as much as 11% following the announcement.

Shares of Berkshire Hathaway are up 5.5% this year.

The market money supply stands at MNT 13.5 trillion, showing a 4 percent increase than the same period of the previous month. MNT savings constitute 53 percent of the money supply whereas foreign currency savings 17.3 percent.

A.Anand, senior specialists at the Research and Statistics Department said, “Foreign currency savings have been continually decreasing in recent months, and it’s because MNT exchange rate against the USD has been increasing”.

He continued, “Credit balance has reached MNT 12.9 trillion”, citing an increase by MNT 872.2 billion than the same period of the previous year. 47.5 percent of total credits are loans to individual and 51.5 percent are loans to private sectors, with the 6.2 percent being expired and 8.8 percent being outstanding. Moreover, 1105 individuals have been granted housing mortgage loans in the last month, making the number of housing mortgage loan holders 91.916.

The specialist continued to report on the balance of payments deficit in the first quarter which stands at USD 63 million. Trade turnover has reached USD 3.9 billion, and increase of oil import by USD 134 million, coal export by USD 796 million and equipment import by USD 146 million contributed to it, the bank reported.

Changes in big emerging markets will be reflected in the IMF's voting structure, and the Fund will need to increase its representation in the region, according to Lagarde.

“Which might very well mean, that if we have this conversation in 10 years' time...we might not be sitting in Washington, DC We'll do it in our Beijing head office,” the Fund’s Managing Director said.

Lagarde highlighted that emerging economies are currently growing larger and more influential.

She added that the IMF's bylaws call for the institution's head office to be located in the largest member economy.

Since its establishment 70 years ago the IMF has always been located in the US. The US government has an effective veto over IMF decisions with a 16.5 percent share of its board votes.

According to analysts, China with growth rates forecast above six percent has a chance to overtake the US in gross domestic product during the next ten years and become the world's largest economy in nominal terms.

However, some experts, including IMF economists, argue that China already contributes more to global growth on a purchasing power parity basis, which adjusts for differences in prices.

The voting structure was last revised by the IMF in 2010, with China's share increased to 6.41 percent. The Fund is planning to set another review next year.

U.S. District Judge William Conley in Madison added $272 million to a $234 million jury verdict the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation won against Apple in October 2015. Conley said WARF is owed additional damages plus interest because Apple continued to infringe the patent, which relates to computer processor technology, until it expired in December 2016.

Apple is appealing Conley's ruling, according to court papers. An Apple spokesman did not immediately return a request for comment.

WARF sued Apple in 2014, alleging processors found in some versions of the iPhone infringe on a patent describing a "predictor circuit," which improves processor performance by predicting what instructions a user will give the system. University of Wisconsin computer science professor Gurindar Sohi and three of his students obtained the patent in 1998.

Cupertino, California-based Apple denied any infringement during a 2015 jury trial and argued the patent is invalid. Apple also urged the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to review the patent's validity but the agency rejected that bid.

WARF brought a separate lawsuit against Apple in 2015, alleging chips in later versions of the iPhone infringe the same patent. Conley said he would not rule in that case until Apple has had an opportunity to appeal the 2015 jury verdict.

“Khukh Mongolyn Udurlug” event, with an aim to promote the Tea Road Project, was held last weekend in Ulaanbaatar, attracting about 400 delegates from China.

The sides exchanged ideas on enhancing tourism along Tea Road through promoting the Tea Road tourism brand. In the ancient times, Tea Road used to be another trade route to connect the three neighboring nations. Now it passes through 10 cities of Mongolia, Russia and China.

During the event, delegates agreed on appointing the Third Ministerial Meeting for Tourism in Ulaanbaatar.

Chinese customs authorities say the country purchased 11.5 million dollars' worth of iron ore from North Korea in June. That's down 1.7 percent from the same month last year.

But, imports in each month from January through May recorded year-on-year increases.

Imports in the first half reached 86 million dollars, 2.4 times the amount in the same period the previous year.

Purchases of iron ore from North Korea are banned in principle by a UN Security Council sanctions resolution, but are permitted if the transactions exclusively serve livelihood purposes.

In February, China announced it would stop buying coal from the North for this year in line with another UN Security Council resolution.

Coal exports have been North Korea's main source of foreign currency.

China's total iron ore imports from the North last year amounted to less than 10 percent of its coal purchases.

NHK's reporter says the North wants to cover the drop in foreign currency earnings generated from coal shipments with exports of iron ore to China.