Short Business News
(Mineweb)

- BHP Billiton Friday temporarily closed operations at Escondida, the world’s biggest copper mining operation, and ended negotiations with striking workers who have blocked all access roads to the mine located in Chile’s Atacama Desert. BHP Billiton spokeswoman Emma Meade told Australian press that “this heightened union activity means we no longer feel that we are able to unequivocally guarantee the health and safety of our people or the integrity of the operations infrastructure.”

- Facing historically low nickel inventories and a “genuine material shortage,” the London Metal Exchange Wednesday imposed trading restrictions on the metal. Given the myriad of uses of nickel in construction, public facilities, households, and electronics, an acute nickel shortage has potential impacts for First World and developing nations. Analysts speculated that a trader may hold a very large short position. The Financial Times reported Monday that the latest LME update shows that one participant or group holds from 30 to 40% of the short nickel positions on the exchange. The position may have been building since mid-July.