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But whether mining houses will continue to be lifted by commodity prices for a second consecutive year is questionable, according to analysts.  Read More

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has recently reissued a new version of the report on commodity trade misinvoicing which caused such controversy last summer. Read More

The year 2017 will be the 150th anniversary of the discovery of diamonds in South Africa. Actually, that may not be strictly accurate, as diamonds might have been discovered earlier although not put to commercial use. But the discovery of a diamond on the banks of the Orange in 1867 sparked off mining all over the country. Read More

The Chamber of Mines South Africa raised some concerns after the revised version of the Draft Reviewed Mining Charter was released in late 2016. Read More

 A shortage of skilled workers poses a challenge to the country's mining industry. Read More

They call them zama zamas which means ‘those who try their luck’. Wearing his traditional Zulu earrings, looking hirsute with whiskers on his face, this is Dumisani Ngcamu, otherwise known as Ntshebe – ‘the bearded man’. Read More

In a country with unemployment rising above 25 percent, South Africans are increasingly looking for job creation in small-scale mining, an often-informal industry that provides a living for millions across the continent. Read More

South Africa continues to experience slow economic growth of less than one percent. The country is still recovering from the effects of the global financial crisis of 2007/8, while shocks such as Brexit and the decline in commodity prices pose new challenges. Read More

Some 18 months earlier short traders ran Glencore’s stock down 27% using fears about runaway debt for tinder. The response from Glencore was described in November by one analyst as ‘stunning’. Read More

In July, the UN Conference on Trade and Development (Unctad) published a report, Trade Misinvoicing in Primary Commodities in Developing Countries: The cases of Chile, Cote d’Ivoire, Nigeria, SA and Zambia. Read More