This Month
Truck crashes on MinRes’ iron ore haul road pile up
A fifth road train has rolled over on the private haul road network, two days after the miner dismissed the possibility of another accident.
- Mark Wembridge
Commodities on verge of ‘breakout’ after two-year slump
The sector is trading back at levels last seen during the 2022 boom, led by a surge in precious metal and agriculture prices.
- Alex Gluyas
Fortescue heart-to-hearts make unionisation redundant: Forrest
Chairman Andrew Forrest reckons his staff are unlikely to unionise, as workplace reforms bring unions back into the nation’s most lucrative export industry.
- Primrose Riordan and Mark Wembridge
January
Fortescue offers $254m for nearby Pilbara iron ore deposit
Billionaire Andrew Forrest’s Fortescue has secured the backing of deposit owner Red Hawk’s board with an all-cash offer.
- Elouise Fowler and Mark Wembridge
Fortescue posts record tonnes as tariff threat hangs over iron ore
Shares in Australia’s top three iron ore miners have fallen since US President Donald Trump threatened to impose 10 per cent tariffs on China.
- Elouise Fowler
Commodity relief as Trump avoids ‘shock and awe’ tariffs
Strategists are now hopeful the US president will increase levies on China only gradually, which would help stabilise the iron ore and base metal markets,
- Alex Gluyas
Investors bank on iron ore saving dividends in 2025
An unexpectedly strong start for the steel-making commodity has raised hopes that the major miners will provide a larger source of income for investors in 2025.
- Joanne Tran
Iron ore could collapse 30pc as Rio Tinto floods market
The latest rally in iron ore prices is expected to be short-lived, with Westpac warning the commodity could plummet 30 per cent from current levels.
- Alex Gluyas
Rio Tinto says China property market shows signs of ‘stabilising’
The mining giant believes demand for iron ore has peaked but remains healthy, and expects demand for the steel-making material will hold steady in 2025.
- Elouise Fowler
The China commodities super-cycle is over. Will there be another boom?
China’s massive industrialisation and urbanisation drove a huge commodities boom that has run its course, but some executives are hopeful it will be replaced.
- Leslie Hook, Joe Leahy and Wenjie Ding
FIFO mining camp operator bleeds cash as losses mount
French company Sodexo’s expansion into Australian FIFO camps has racked up nearly $177 million in cumulative losses over the past nine years.
- Peter Ker
Spotlight falls on outliers as miners embrace paid parental leave
Miners are sweetening benefits to attract female employees. Yet Macmahon, a major employer, is resisting paid time off for new parents.
- Elouise Fowler and Mark Wembridge
Resources fundies reveal top picks ahead of ‘stellar’ 2025
Some portfolio managers are chasing the elusive surge in copper stocks or braving the lithium sector, while others plan to ride the rally in bauxite and silver prices.
- Alex Gluyas
The billionaire, the mine, the minority stake and her lover
It’s 14 years since Gina Rinehart transferred ownership of a company to her late lover. The company controls a stake in her next big mine, but who controls it?
- Peter Ker
December 2024
Iron ore faces ‘riot point’; Airliner crashes; Bushfire threat rises
Read everything that’s happened in the news so far today.
Iron ore faces ‘riot point’ in 2025 as Rio Tinto floods the market
The mining giant’s Simandou project will bring a fresh wave of supply late next year, further exacerbating growing stockpiles of the steel-making ingredient at Chinese ports.
- Alex Gluyas
Chalmers’ low iron ore forecasts open door for more spending
The government’s mid-year budget continues to price in iron ore at $US60 next year, offering scope for revenue upgrades and even more government spending.
- Alex Gluyas
Iron ore to average 10pc less in 2025: Goldman
Goldman Sachs’ Aurelia Waltham sees two years of declines ahead for iron ore, with the steel-making material potentially averaging below $US80 a tonne in 2026.
- Timothy Moore
- Opinion
- Governance
I sent Andrew Forrest 50 hard questions. He invited me to have a talk
After months of reporting, and only carefully worded written responses from Fortescue, I found myself with the iron ore billionaire on the company jet in the Pilbara.
- Primrose Riordan
Fortescue’s Game of Thrones moment
When the firm’s troubled Iron Bridge mine blew its budget and fell behind schedule, Andrew Forrest called a meeting likened to the series’ “red wedding” scene.
- Primrose Riordan