ANGLO AMERICAN PLC

SANTIAGO, Jan 2 - Chile's state copper giant Codelco said on Monday it exercised a disputed option to buy a stake in Anglo American's south Chile mining assets, but is willing to consider taking a smaller stake if Anglo proposes a formula that safeguards its full value.

SANTIAGO, Jan 2 - Chile state copper giant Codelco on Monday said it had exercised a $6 billion option to buy mining assets in southern Chile, but global miner Anglo American defied the move, setting the stage for a lengthy legal battle.

Global miner Anglo American said on Monday it was not obliged to sell any of its shares in its southern Chilean properties to state copper giant Codelco, as a battle over a disputed option contract deepened.

Anglo American Platinum, the world's top miner of the precious metal, will hand over a 10 percent stake in its Unki project in Zimbabwe to locals, the first step towards an empowerment law, state radio said on Wednesday.

Anglo American Platinum, the world's top miner of the precious metal, will hand over a 10 percent stake in its Unki project in Zimbabwe to locals, the first step towards an empowerment law, state radio said on Wednesday.

South African stocks posted their biggest one-day loss in five weeks on Wednesday, dropping 2.3 percent as fears about the outlook for Italy's debt crisis pushed investors to sell off recent gainers such as miners and banks.

t the closing of the deal, Anglo-American will have an 85 percent in stake in De Beers, the largest diamond distributor in the world.

Anglo American Platinum Ltd., the world's biggest platinum producer, said Thursday that its third-quarter attributable refined platinum production rose three percent on a year-over-year basis.

Voters in a sparsely populated district of rural Alaska have narrowly passed a ballot initiative that could block development of the controversial Pebble Mine, local officials said late Monday.

Several hundred South African former miners have launched court proceedings against Anglo American Plc in London, the latest in a wave of lawsuits and compensation claims over lung disease that could cost the gold industry billions.

Diamond producer De Beers expects global demand growth for rough diamonds to set a new record this year on the exceptionally strong performance of its key U.S. market and robust demand in China and India, the head of the company's distribution arm said.

A drive by Peru's leftist president to raise mining royalties should not derail multibillion-dollar investments, industry executives said, but they added that the final law must reflect the spirit of negotiations with companies.

Diamond producer De Beers said on Friday it had signed a new 10-year contract for the sorting, vaulting and sales of the diamond production of Debswana, its joint venture with the government of Botswana.

Miners helped Britain's bruised FTSE 100 stage a recovery on Monday, with Randgold Resources boosted by bullish gold prices and broker comment, and Anglo American up as it considered a bid for Australia's Macarthur Coal.

Shares of large gold mining companies took it in the neck Thursday, falling along with the broader stock market even as the price of gold notched a fresh record.

China will probably not yield to demands to ease export restrictions on rare earths, unlike its flexibility in some previous trade disputes, even after the World Trade Organization ruled against it in a related case.

U.S. stocks rose Tuesday, clawing back some of the previous day's losses as positive earnings news helped buoy shares. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 65.16 points, or 0.53%, to finish near the day's highs at 12266.75. The Standard & Poor's 500-stock index added 7.48 points, or 0.57%, to 1312.62 while the Nasdaq Composite gained 9.59 points, or 0.35%, to 2744.97. The gains came one day after the Dow fell 140 points on credit-ratings firm Standard & Poor's decision to lower its ...

U.S. stocks suffered a rout after Standard & Poor's cut its outlook on the U.S. government debt, warning that the U.S. fiscal profile may become meaningfully weaker than that of other triple-A-rated countries if policy makers can't tame the budget deficit. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 140.24 points, or 1.14%, to 12201.59, led lower by Bank of America and Caterpillar, which each fell 3.1%.

De Beers, the world's largest diamond producer, returned to a profit in 2010 as production rose 34 percent and diamond prices recovered to pre-crisis levels, although it remains cautious about the market this year.

Anglo American's thermal coal unit is keen to expand its operations in South Africa and beyond, but is waiting for price of acquisitions to come down first, the unit's head said late on Wednesday.