Page 101 - Min News Today

Gold was set on Friday for its worst week in five months, as bullion prices were hammered by increasing bets that the U.S. Federal Reserve would accelerate the pace of stimulus tapering and raise interest rates sooner to curb rising inflation.

Gold gained on Friday, as concerns over the spread of a newly identified coronavirus variant boosted the metal's safe-haven appeal, although bullion was set for a weekly drop on bets of U.S. Federal Reserve turning more hawkish.

Japan's Nikkei slumped on Friday to its lowest level in a month as a new coronavirus variant found in South Africa raised an alarm, while the news that Beijing has asked Chinese hailing giant Didi to delist from New York also soured the mood.

Tsingshan Holding Group, the Chinese firm that shook the nickel world by rapidly boosting output in Indonesia, is among the latest entrants to the white-hot lithium sector, potentially making it a one-stop shop for electric vehicle (EV) battery ingredients.

Financial conglomerate Grupo SURA said shareholders had authorized its directors to seek a strategic partner to take a non-controlling stake in Colombia's largest holding company.

Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japparov told the COP26 global climate summit this month that his Central Asian nation would achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 - but right now his government is urging citizens to burn more coal.

Physical gold demand picked up in major Asian hubs this week helped by a retreat in prices, with dealers in India prepared for a likely spurt in buying as the wedding season gathers pace.

A possible ban on exports of bauxite from Indonesia as soon as next year will have little impact on China's aluminium industry because abundant alternative supply from Guinea is available, state-backed Chinese research house Antaike said.

Gold steadied on Friday, taking a breather after an over 1% rally sparked by a rush into safe-havens as concerns over a new coronavirus variant rattled risk appetite.

China's state planner said on Wednesday that the amount of coal stored by power plants in the country reached 147 million tonnes as of Tuesday and may hit an all-time high by the end of this month.