Iraq's powerful Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr on Wednesday called for renewed protests after the nation's politicians missed a deadline he gave to vote on a cabinet of technocrats proposed by Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to tackle corruption.

In a statement received by email, Sadr called for "continuing peaceful protests under the same intensity and even more in order to pressure the politicians and the lovers of corruption."

"Nobody has the right to stop it otherwise the revolution will take another turn," he said in the statement.

Sadr renewed his call for the parliament to vote on the cabinet overhaul and asked MPs that represent him not to take part in any session other than the one to be convened for that purpose.

http://www.reuters.com/article/mideast-crisis-iraq-politics-idUSL5N17N2A3

China will take steps to boost exports, including encouraging banks to boost lending, expanding export credit insurance and raise tax rebates for some firms, the cabinet said on Wednesday, in the latest step to underpin growth.

"Foreign trade is an important part as well as a driving force of the national economy," the State Council said in a statement after a meeting chaired by Premier Li Keqiang.

Banks will be encouraged to lend to profitable trading companies that have received overseas orders, export credit insurance will be expanded and tax rebates for exporters of some machinery products will be increased, it said.

China's exports in March returned to growth for the first time in nine months, adding to further signs of stabilization in the world's second-largest economy but officials have cautioned about the trade outlook.

The government will also implement proactive import policies, supporting imports of advanced equipment and technology, the cabinet said.

The government will step up investment in roads, railways and airports in poorer regions and encourage its less developed western and central provinces to attract investment from more developed eastern provinces.

China's economic growth slowed to 6.7 percent in the first quarter, its weakest pace since early 2009, but stronger-than-anticipated activity indicators for March suggested the economy was picking up.

http://uk.businessinsider.com/china-will-boost-exports-2016-4?r=US&IR=T

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Power consumption of China’s four energy-intensive industries dropped 5.8% on year to 381.6 TWh in the first quarter, accounting for 28.2% of the nation’s total power consumption, the China Electricity Council (CEC) said on April 19.

Of this, the ferrous metallurgy industry consumed 104.2 TWh of electricity in the first quarter, falling 14% year on year, compared to the drop of 6.8% from the previous year; while the non-ferrous metallurgy industry used 115.2 TWh of electricity, down 5.7% year on year, compared a 3.1% growth from the year prior.

The chemical industries consumed 104.4 TWh of electricity during the same period, up 3.4% year on year, lower than a 3.6% growth a year ago; while power consumption of building materials industry dropped 4.7% year on year to 57.8 TWh, compared to a 4.5% decline a year ago.

In March, the four industries consumed a total 137.4 TWh of electricity, climbing 2.9% year on year, accounting for 28.8% of China’s total power consumption.

Of this, the ferrous metallurgy industry consumed 37.1 TWh of electricity in March, dropping 5.6% on year; while the non-ferrous metallurgy industry used 43.3 TWh of electricity, increasing 6.3% from a year ago.

http://en.sxcoal.com/0/144683/DataShow.html

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The Ministry of Land and Resources said on Wednesday that it will release a five-year-guidance for providing financing support and tax cut policies to mining companies that are willing to upgrade mining facilities by the end of this year.

"Companies should further seek solutions to boost mining efficiency. The nation is speeding up efforts to protect natural resources during the 13th Five Year Plan," said Yu Haifeng, director at the department of mineral resources under the Ministry of Land and Resources.

Yu said the mining companies that develop major mineral resources, such as cooper, iron and aluminum, are able to get around 40 percent of financial support towards upgrades. While companies that exploit other types of less-widely used mineral resources, are able to get 10 to 25 percent.

In the meantime, the Ministry and State Administration of Taxation will make more efforts to promote resource tax reform. This is to reduce tax burden to cash-restrained companies and encourage them to make investment to improve mining efficiency.

A sample survey conducted by the ministry earlier this year shows that natural resources' exploitation in China is gradually becoming more efficient. The recovery rate for coal mining gauges the level that can be recovered from known coal reserves increased 15 percentage points compared to the levels in 1999.

http://en.chinamining.com.cn/Policies/2016-04-21/1461202586d76172.html

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The Senate passed the first broad energy bill in nine years on Wednesday, legislation containing modest measures popular with both Republicans and Democrats to modernize the power grid and speed the permitting process for liquefied natural gas exports.

The bill, which passed 85-12, attempts to protect the power grid from extreme weather events such as ice storms and hurricanes, and from cyber attacks. It also aims to spur innovations in storage of power from wind and solar energy.

The House of Representatives passed a similar bill last year.

The Energy Policy and Modernization Act would increase U.S. exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG), eventually helping to give European consumers alternatives to relying mainly on Russia for gas.

After disagreements held the bill up for months, senators last week dropped measures from the bill to aid Flint, Michigan overcome a drinking water crisis, in which children have been exposed to dangerous levels of lead, and on offshore drilling.

Lawmakers from both the House and Senate will next iron out differences over the bill. The Senate bill, for instance, requires the Department of Energy to issue a decision on LNG projects within 45 days of an environmental assessment, while the House bill directs the DOE to make the decision on permits after 30 days.

Senator Maria Cantwell, a Democrat from Washington state who co-sponsored the bill, said shortly before it passed that she hoped the chambers would move quickly "so that we can realize the opportunity to help our businesses and consumers plan for the energy future."

The White House has signaled that President Barack Obama would sign the Senate bill.

Energy policy analyst Kevin Book of ClearView Energy Partners said the chances the bill would be signed into law this year were about 65 percent, because the White House has had some differences with the House bill.

Charlie Riedl, the head of industry group the Center for Liquefied Natural Gas, said the vote was a "big step forward" and that certainty about the regulatory process is "crucial" for projects that cost billions of dollars to build.

Rob Cowin, director of government affairs at the Union of Concerned Scientists, a nonprofit group, said the bill falls "far short" of what is needed to promote wind and solar power, but is "better than doing nothing."

The Senate on Tuesday passed several amendments to the bill, including restricting most sales from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve when oil prices are low.

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-energy-senate-idUSKCN0XH1U9

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U.S. Bancorp, the nation’s largest regional lender, said profit dropped 3.1 percent in the first quarter as provisions for bad loans surged 25 percent, driven by a jump in downgrades on energy-related credits.

Net income fell to $1.39 billion, or 76 cents a share, from $1.43 billion, or 76 cents, a year earlier, the Minneapolis-based bank said Wednesday in a statement. The average estimate of 31 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg was for per-share profit of 76 cents.

Oil prices have plunged more than 60 percent since their 2014 peak, forcing banks to set aside billions to cover bad energy loans. Standard & Poor’s said in March that U.S. regional banks could suffer losses if oil prices continue to fall. U.S. Bancorp Chief Executive Officer Richard Davis has relied on fees from credit cards and auto financing to bolster earnings.

“Although the pressures from the energy industry negatively impacted the quarter, we took appropriate measures and remain confident that we are well positioned to continue delivering industry-leading returns throughout the year,” Davis, 58, said in the statement.

Provisions for credit losses increased to $330 million from $264 million a year earlier, and energy-related commercial non-performing assets jumped $257 million from the fourth quarter, the company said. Reserves for the commercial energy sector rose to 9.1 percent of outstanding balances from 5.4 percent at the end of December.

U.S. Bancorp’s loans to energy-related businesses were $3.4 billion as of March 31, about 1.3 percent of the total outstanding.

Revenue rose 2.7 percent to $5.04 billion, while expenses climbed 3.2 percent to $2.75 billion.

U.S. Bancorp shares fell 1.8 percent this year through Tuesday, compared with the 6.4 percent decline of the 24-company KBW Bank Index.

PNC Financial Services Group Inc., the second-largest U.S. regional bank, last week reported profit that missed analysts’ estimates as provisions for bad loans almost tripled from a year earlier. Bank of America Corp. said April 14 that first-quarter net income fell 13 percent on a drop in trading and underwriting revenue, while Wells Fargo & Co., Wall Street’s top oil and gas banker, posted profit that missed estimates as the firm set aside more money for soured energy loans and expenses increased.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-04-20/u-s-bancorp-profit-drops-3-1-as-expenses-compensation-climb

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Diversified miner South32 said on Thursday that the company was on track to achieve its 2016 production guidance for all its operations, following a strong third quarter ended March. 

The BHP Billiton spin-off produced 1.3-million tonnes of alumina during the three months under review, which was up 2% quarter-on-quarter, as well as 240 000 t of aluminium, which was on par with the previous quarter. Energy coal production from South Africa declined by 5% to 7.9-million tonnes in the March quarter, while metallurgical coal production from Australian mines was up by 35% to 1.2-million tonnes during the same period. 

South32 reported that the increase in metallurgical coal production was underpinned by the restart of longwall mining at the Dendrobium operation, at the Illawarra operations, as well as the ramp-up of the new Appin Area 9 longwall, following project completion, at a cost of $565-million. 

Meanwhile, manganese production for the quarter was up by 33% on the previous quarter, to 1.2-million tonnes, while manganese alloy production declined by 27% to 48 000 t. At the Australian manganese operations, South32 benefited from an increase in ore production on the back of optimised concentrator performance and drier weather conditions. 

However, manganese alloy production at the Australian operations reflected a temporary suspension of two of the four furnaces in response to power shortages in Tasmania. The first of the furnaces was suspended in December, and the second one followed in March. The two remaining furnaces are currently operating at a reduced electricity load. All four furnaces were expected to return to full production by the end of June. 

At the South African manganese operations, South32 also reported an increase in manganese ore production, following the extended suspension of operations at the Wessels and Mamatwan mines, in November, in response to the challenging market conditions. Following a completion of a strategic review, mining activities at the South African manganese operations resumed in the March quarter, with South32 saying that the reconfigured operation would have greater flexibility to respond to market demand, having ramped-up production to an optimised 2.9-million tonnes a year. 

However, manganese alloy production from the South African operations also decreased during the three months to March, following the suspension of three of the four high-carbon ferromanganese furnaces in May last year. The one remaining furnace would remain operational until market conditions improved. 

Furthermore, South32 on Thursday also reported that nickel production for the quarter was up 10%, to 9 700 t, while silver production declined by 20% to 4.4-million ounces, lead production was down 24% to 36 900 t and zinc production fell by 17% to 18 500 t. 

Meanwhile, CEO Graham Kerr said that the company was on track to reduce its controllable cost by $300-million during the full 2016, with the restructuring of operations at Worsley Alumina, in Australia, as well as the Australian and South African manganese units largely complete. The restructuring of the Cerro Matoso operation and the Illawarra metallurgical coal operations would be completed by the June quarter. “We are making great progress on our cost-out programme across all operations and have continued to generate cash despite volatile commodity markets,” Kerr said.

http://www.miningweekly.com/article/south32s-2016-guidance-on-track-following-strong-q3-2016-04-21