Rio Tinto output is hit by China fears January 17, 2012 LONDON-LISTED miner Rio Tinto yesterday reported almost flat iron ore production growth for the fourth quarter, weaker than some market expectations amid concerns that Chinese demand is softening. The company reported a three per cent rise in output between the third and fourth quarters of 2011, down from growth of nearly double that at the [...]
Lean and green but not very mean January 17, 2012 Whenever I see a Toyota Prius, it is travelling in the outside lane on the M6 Toll road at a blistering pace. I have always assumed that the owners are keen to recharge their batteries, or that even worthy eco warriors sometimes like to let loose and cane their cars once in a while, when [...]
CAR TALK January 17, 2012 F1 DRIVERS TAKE TURN OFF PISTE In a display of spectacular silliness Scuderia Ferrari drivers Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa have raced two FF four-seater, four-wheel drive Ferraris down a ski slope in the Italian Dolomite mountains. Alonso said of the 600hp FF: “It’s perfect for everyday use with the whole family in the car.” [...]
Total seals £2.3bn shale gas deal with Chesapeake January 3, 2012 FRENCH oil group Total is ploughing $2.3bn (£1.47bn) into the development of US shale gas reserves in Ohio in the latest example of global energy companies piling into new energy sources made economic by the high price of crude. In a deal with Chesapeake Energy, which the US group announced in November without identifying its [...]
The Range Rover Sport is refined power December 20, 2011 How can a car be comfortable when you’re off-roading?” asks my incredulous co-driver of the latest 2012 Range Rover Sport, as we ascend a rocky river bed, somewhere on the Roxburghe Estate in the Scottish borders. It’s a good question. We’ve just descended a drop to access the river we’re in, that saw the 2.5-tonne [...]
Miners fuel FTSE gains December 16, 2011 The FTSE 100 continued where it left off in the last session with a moderate rally fuelled by positive data from the US. US weekly jobless claims fell to a three-year low suggesting that its economic recovery was still on track. But markets still remain braced for credit rating downgrades for Eurozone countries as agencies [...]
Xstrata sees resources boost December 6, 2011 XSTRATA, the world’s fourth-largest copper miner, expects to benefit from supply troubles hitting the metal globally, it said yesterday, as it reported increased resources and said its own key projects were on track. A drastic fall in output at Chile’s Escondida, the world’s largest copper mine and majority owned by global miner BHP Billiton, as [...]
Banks fuel FTSE gains as investors eye US jobs data December 2, 2011 Banks helped lift the FTSE 100 this morning as a concerted effort by central banks to trigger easier credit among lenders continued to bolster investor sentiment. Despite grim manufacturing data from across the globe yesterday — and a bleak outlook given by Bank of England Governor Mervyn King — markets overall have responded positively to [...]
BHP could sell off diamond mines November 29, 2011 BHP Billiton, the world’s biggest miner, is considering selling all or part of its diamond assets, which include the EKATI mine in northern Canada, as it focuses on large, long-life, scalable assets. BHP said yesterday it had begun a review to examine whether a continued presence in the diamond industry was consistent with its strategy [...]
Audi’s Sportback is worth the price November 29, 2011 IT’S early Sunday morning. I’d rather be asleep but my daughter has discovered insomnia. After two hours of trying everything to get her back to sleep I succumb to the fail-safe car trip in the hope of inducing her slumber. Outside it’s raining sideways. She’s wailing as I run to the car and wet by [...]