ZCCM Investments Holdings Plc, Zambia’s majority state-owned mining investor, is considering selling a stake in the company that holds minority interests in most of the country’s major copper mines, its CEO Kakenenwa Muyangwa announced.
The potential sale aims to comply with the local stock exchange’s requirement that at least 25% of ZCCM’s shares be readily tradable. Other shareholders, including the national pension fund, may also reduce their holdings to meet this threshold. Muyangwa indicated that any stake sale could take place within the next year or two.
ZCCM is owned 77.5% by the Zambian government, 15% by the national pension fund, and 7.5% by minority investors. The company holds minority stakes ranging from 10% to 49% in several of Zambia’s largest copper mines, including assets operated by Vedanta Resources and First Quantum Minerals, alongside investments in electricity generation.
The timing of this move coincides with record-high copper prices, which support significant investment in Zambia, Africa’s second-largest copper producer. Muyangwa also revealed plans to revive trading of ZCCM shares in London, currently suspended due to delayed financial statements. The company expects to resolve the filings within weeks, viewing London as a strategic market for its future growth.
Looking ahead, ZCCM aims to grow its market capitalization from approximately US$1 billion today to US$7 billion over the next decade, reflecting its ambitions to expand and deepen its role in Zambia’s mining sector.
“London’s established mining investment market will be crucial for our growth plans,” Muyangwa said. “We are confident that by increasing market liquidity and enhancing transparency, we can unlock significant value for all shareholders.”
https://africanminingmarket.com/zambias-state-mining-giant-eyes-partial-divestment/26802/
South Korean steelmaker POSCO could face the first strike in its 58-year history, as the company's labor union has set September 9 as the final deadline for wage negotiations and announced plans for a 48-hour partial strike if the talks fail to produce an agreement, according to media reports.
The POSCO labor union, affiliated with the Federation of Korean Metalworkers' Trade Unions, has notified management that it intends to proceed with the partial walkout unless the company changes its position by the deadline. If the strike takes place, it would end POSCO's record of avoiding a labor strike since the company was founded in 1968.
Over 92 percent of union members back industrial action
The union has already secured strong support from its members for industrial action. The union also secured the legal right to strike after mediation by South Korea's National Labor Relations Commission ended on August 18 without an agreement.
The union is seeking a 7.1 percent increase in base salaries, incentive payments equivalent to 600 percent of monthly salary, 50 POSCO shares for employees and a 200 percent holiday bonus, among other demands. It is also seeking improvements regarding staffing shortages, working hours, workplace safety, employee health and welfare.
The union stated that the dispute is not solely focused on wage increases, arguing that longstanding problems involving insufficient staffing, excessive working hours and safety conditions also need to be addressed.
POSCO estimates union demands would cost KRW 1.4 trillion
POSCO has estimated that accepting the union's overall demands would require approximately KRW 1.4 trillion ($1 billion) in additional resources and has said that such a burden would be difficult to accept under current steel market conditions.
The company pointed to deteriorating conditions in the steel industry, including an influx of low-priced Chinese steel products and increasing global protectionism, as factors weighing on its ability to meet the demands.
POSCO prepares emergency response plan ahead of possible strike
POSCO stated that it would activate an emergency response system to minimize operational disruptions if the planned 48-hour partial strike goes ahead. At the same time, the steelmaker said it remains focused on reaching an agreement through negotiations before the September 9 deadline.
The Shangai Composite Index gained 33 points or 0.83 percent on Monday to close at 3985 points.
Gains were led by China Coal (5.40%), Bank Of China (5.01%) and Bank Of Beijing (4.91%).
Biggest losers were Hua Xia Bank (-5.04%), LONGi Green (-3.54%) and Poly Real Estate (-3.47%).
News Stream
The Shanghai Composite Index Closes 0.17% Lower
The Shanghai Composite Index fell 7 points or 0.17 percent on Tuesday to close at 3980 points. Leading the losses are China Coal (-4.94%), Shaanxi Coal (-3.16%) and Poly Real Estate (-1.41%). Top gainers were Yonghui Superstore (6.17%), Shanghai International Port (5.70%) and China Pacific Insu (3.59... more
2026-09-01
Stocks in China Hit 7-week High
SHANGHAI increased to 3994.00 Index Points, the highest since July 2026. Over the past 4 weeks, Shanghai Stock Exchange Composite Index gained 4.8%, and in the last 12 months, it increased 3.48%.
2026-09-01
China Stocks Open September Lower
The Shanghai Composite fell 0.16% to close at 3,979.9 on Tuesday, while the Shenzhen Component lost 1.02% on the first trading day of September, as escalating tensions in the Middle East overshadowed improving signals from China's manufacturing sector. The US and Iran exchanged strikes for the first time in nearly a month, with American forces targeting an island in the Strait of Hormuz and Iran retaliating with attacks on the UAE and Jordan. The latest hostilities clouded the outlook for restoring normal shipping operations through the strategic waterway. On the domestic front, a private survey showed China's manufacturing PMI rose to 51.5 in August from a four-month low of 50.9 in July, exceeding forecasts of 51.0. This followed official data showing the manufacturing PMI increased to 49.8 from 49.2, also surpassing market expectations of 49.7. Notable decliners included Foxconn Industrial Internet (-2.93%), SMIC (-2.01%), CATL (-1.50%), and NAURA Technology (-4.59%).
2026-09-01
Iran's Revolutionary Guards said the tanker had been attempting to pass through the waterway illegally when it was struck by two mines and caught fire.
Vessels in the Strait of Hormuz are visible near the beach of Bandar Abbas, Iran, on Aug 27, 2026. (File photo: Reuters/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Majid Asgaripour)
31 Aug 2026 12:56PM (Updated: 31 Aug 2026 04:29PM)
A supertanker caught fire and was brought to a complete halt after being struck by two naval mines in the southern Strait of Hormuz, Iran state TV reported on Monday (Aug 31), citing a statement by the Revolutionary Guards.
Iran's Revolutionary Guards said the tanker had been attempting to pass through the waterway illegally. It did not identify the vessel or provide information about its crew.
It warned that other ships violating its security rules would face the same fate and said compliance with its regulations for passage through the Strait of Hormuz was mandatory.
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/world/iran-strait-hormuz-supertanker-struck-mines-6351441
BELGRADE – The United States has extended the operating license for the Petroleum Industry of Serbia (NIS) until 30 September, Serbian Minister of Energy Dubravka Đedović Handanović announced on Friday.
The decision by the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) allows NIS to continue its operations and the Pančevo oil refinery to remain operational.
Russian shareholders hold a 56.15% stake in NIS, of which 44.85% is owned by the state-controlled Gazprom Neft.
Hungarian oil and gas company MOL and Gazprom Neft signed the key terms of a framework agreement in mid-January, with the possibility of bringing in a company from the United Arab Emirates as a minority partner, although the potential involvement of a third company has barely been mentioned in recent months.
MOL and the Serbian government signed a shareholders’ agreement on 16 June concerning the future management of the Petroleum Industry of Serbia.
Đedović Handanović said negotiations on the sale of NIS between Hungary’s MOL and majority shareholder Gazprom Neft were in their final stages, Radio Television of Serbia (RTS) reported.
“The latest extension of the licence is a signal that progress is being made and that there is a willingness to provide the additional time necessary to complete this complex transaction,” the energy minister said.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić also expressed hope on Thursday that the issue surrounding NIS could be resolved during September.
“For the first time, it seems to me – and I am optimistic and hopeful – that we could bring the entire NIS issue to a close in September,” Vučić told reporters.
https://europeanwesternbalkans.com/2026/08/31/us-extends-nis-operating-licence-until-30-september/
PetroChina Co.’s rising profits from trading and chemicals point to how China’s oil majors are adjusting to a new era of declining demand for gasoline and diesel.
Chemicals profits more than doubled and international trading helped drive a 50% jump in marketing profits, PetroChina said in an exchange filing on Sunday. While that was a fairly small part of an overall 22% increase in first-half profits, it shows new avenues for growth as the accelerating shift to electric vehicles and higher crude prices erode demand for gasoline and diesel.
PetroChina has invested heavily over the last few years in petrochemical facilities to convert oil byproducts into everything from fibers to plastics, areas where it expects demand to keep rising even as fuel consumption shrinks. Its ability to source feedstock domestically helped it outperform Sinopec, which lost money in its chemicals business in the first half.
Sinopec's growth
Sinopec, China’s largest oil refiner and PetroChina’s sister company, said last week that the US-Iran War and the country’s own clean energy innovations had probably helped tip oil demand into decline, with the country’s consumption likely peaking last year.
Overall net income for PetroChina rose to 103.9 billion yuan ($15.5 billion) for the six months through June, compared to 85.2 billion yuan in the first half of last year. Revenue climbed 5.3%.
Much of that was due to higher oil prices caused by the Iran war. Brent crude averaged about $87 a barrel from January through June, compared with around $71 in the same period in 2025. The global benchmark touched a four-year high above $126 a barrel in late April, but has since given up most of its gains. The outlook remains uncertain though, given the conflict has now been going six months with no sign of ending.
Refining, Trading
PetroChina also operates a large refining operation. For that unit, higher oil prices translate to more expensive feedstock costs. The company wasn’t able to pass those along to consumers, as the government curbed fuel exports and capped domestic prices to curb inflation.
Still, the oil major was shielded from some of the impacts of global volatility, as its robust domestic production network meant it wasn’t as exposed to higher freight and insurance costs linked to shipping disruptions, Morgan Stanley analysts including Jack Lu said in a note.
PetroChina itself marked a 5.8% drop in fuel sales in the first half of the year and shrunk its fleet of gas stations.
It has also become a more nimble international trader. Investments in clean energy as well as oil and gas storage have allowed the country to become more flexible in terms of imports, and PetroChina has been particularly aggressive at re-selling its liquefied natural gas cargoes to other markets when prices are advantageous.
The company’s shares rose as much as 2.1% in Hong Kong on Monday.
©2026 Bloomberg L.P.
By Andrew J Quinn Westminster Correspondent
Published 31st Aug 2026, 15:42 BST Updated 31st Aug 2026, 19:21 BST
Sir Mel Stride and Dame Priti Patel were ousted as shadow chancellor and shadow foreign secretary on Monday.
Kemi Badenoch has moved Andrew Bowie as her shadow Scotland secretary as part of a shake-up of her frontbench team at Westminster.
The Conservative party leader has also ousted Sir Mel Stride and Dame Priti Patel as shadow chancellor and shadow foreign secretary on Monday.
Andrew Bowie and Kemi Badenoch | PA
They have been replaced by Andrew Griffith and Tom Tugendhat.
Mr Bowie, the MP for West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine, has been replaced as shadow Scotland secretary by Gordon and Buchan MP, Harriet Cross. He will remain in Ms Badenoch’s frontbench team, replacing Claire Coutinho as shadow energy secretary - who will replace Mr Griffith as shadow business secretary.
The Conservative leader is carrying out a reshuffle of her shadow cabinet before Parliament’s return on Tuesday, and before the party’s conference in October.
It comes after Sir James Cleverley, the former foreign secretary and home secretary, announced he would be standing down from the shadow cabinet to run for the Tory London mayoral candidate.
Sir James announced on Saturday he will stand down as shadow housing secretary to take a run at the Tory candidacy for London mayor.
A senior Tory source said Mr Griffith had been appointed because of his “incredibly impressive financial and business background”, pointing to his work as a former Sky executive and as chairman of Just Eat.
They added: “While the Labour front bench has almost no private sector experience, Andrew’s experience means he not only knows but understands the many issues that businesses face and has a wealth of contacts in the business community.”
Mrs Badenoch paid tribute to Sir Mel’s work as shadow chancellor, and said: “Like Priti, Mel came into the job at an exceptionally difficult point for the Conservative Party.
“He brought experience, seriousness and stability when those things were badly needed. He helped us steady the ship, rebuild economic credibility and become an effective opposition, and I am genuinely grateful for his contribution.
“The Conservative Party would not have got where we are without his work and his very effective skewering of Rachel Reeves and her disastrous time as chancellor. Mel has been very supportive of the new economic team and the party, and been exceptionally loyal, and I will always be grateful to him for the work he has done.”
Sir Mel described his time in the senior Tory role as a “great honour”, and added: “The Conservative party must continue to champion an approach which is both radical and deliverable.
“It is essential that the next Conservative government does things very differently, backing business like never before and getting government out of the way. The Conservatives have a good story to tell on this now and one that I know will continue to grow stronger and stronger under Kemi’s leadership.
“I am now looking forward to continuing to make a real contribution to the Conservative team in Parliament and beyond, to build and amplify our vision for Britain, from the back benches.”
New shadow business secretary Ms Coutinho is currently on maternity leave. Her role will be covered by Conservative former minister Julia Lopez until the new year.
By Michael Kern - Aug 31, 2026, 2:00 PM CDT
Two days after President Trump called his new Venezuela agreement “the biggest oil deal in world history,” the story has already moved past the barrels themselves. A Pentagon spokesman contradicted the reported ownership structure. The company positioned to run the fields changed hands under murky circumstances just weeks before the deal was announced. And the revenue figures Caracas released over the weekend fall apart under basic math.
Trump announced the deal Friday on Truth Social, saying Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had negotiated with Venezuela's interim President Delcy Rodriguez to secure majority U.S. control of more than 65 billion barrels of Venezuelan oil reserves.
Rodriguez called it “historic” in a televised address Saturday night, describing a 25-year agreement covering 17 oilfields with a production target of 1.5 million barrels a day. Neither side has released the text of the agreement.
As for the oil market, it isn't behaving like anything historic just happened.
Brent crude jumped more than 2% Monday morning, not over anything related to Venezuela, but because the U.S. struck Iranian rocket launchers positioned near the Strait of Hormuz.
Whatever is actually moving oil prices this week, it isn't this deal.
The U.S. Government Can't Agree On What It Signed
A U.S. official told PBS the arrangement gives Washington a 55% effective interest in a newly formed private company that will run the 17 fields, with the right to buy oil at cost for the Strategic Petroleum Reserve…
By Saturday, the Wall Street Journal was reporting something different: a 35% passive stake in North American Blue Energy Partners, a firm already pumping around 200,000 barrels a day in Venezuela, financed through Pentagon “penny warrants” rather than a direct equity purchase.
The Pentagon denied that version within a day…
Spokesman Sean Parnell said its Office of Strategic Capital “does not take equity stakes in private companies.”
Nobody has reconciled the two accounts, and no contract text exists publicly to settle it.
The company at the center of that confusion, NABEP, is run by Alejandro Betancourt, a Venezuelan oil trader with longstanding political connections in Caracas.
Weeks before that announcement, a buyer linked to Betancourt took over a minority stake in NABEP that had belonged to Florida oil trader Harry Sargeant III, a figure accused by U.S. allies of propping up the former Maduro government. Days after that sale closed, the Treasury Department froze Sargeant's offshore holding company.
None of that proves the new deal is corrupt. But it's the same kind of opaque dealmaking that has defined Venezuela's oil sector for years, playing out again around the largest oil announcement in the country's history.
The Reason Exxon And Conoco Aren't Signing Anything
Washington has been trying to get major oil companies back into Venezuela since Maduro's capture in January, and the pitch keeps hitting the same obstacle…
Venezuela never paid what it already owes.
Exxon and ConocoPhillips were pushed out of the country during Hugo Chavez's 2007 nationalization wave and later won international arbitration awards that Caracas never fully honored. Conoco alone is still owed somewhere between $10 billion and $12 billion, and its CEO, Ryan Lance, has said collecting that debt isn't a side issue, it's a condition for putting any new money into the country.
Add up every unresolved nationalization claim and defaulted bond, and Venezuela is carrying something close to $170 billion in legacy liabilities that predate this deal, debt that ranks ahead of whatever a new investor might put in.
That's part of why the companies actually operating in Venezuela today are a narrower group…
Chevron, which never fully left, along with smaller independents and oilfield service firms willing to accept more risk. Exxon has called the country uninvestable more than once. Even setting the debt aside, the oil itself is difficult to produce.
Much of what sits in the Orinoco Belt is extra-heavy crude that has to be blended with lighter diluent before it can move through a pipeline, and Rystad Energy said in July that raising output just 17% by 2028 would take “higher drilling activity, extensive workover campaigns, improved infrastructure and significantly greater rig availability”.
Francisco Monaldi of Rice University's Baker Institute told NPR that many of the fields in this deal are still undeveloped and will take years to produce anything, calling a near-term jump in output highly unlikely.
Venezuela's $209 Billion Number Doesn't Hold Up
Rodriguez's revenue estimate rests on oil holding at $65 a barrel for the next 25 years, a price crude hasn't traded near this year, with Brent now above $90.
Under her numbers, Venezuela collects $19 for every barrel produced, adding up to $209 billion over the life of the deal. That sounds substantial until it's measured against what the country used to get.
Under the fiscal terms Hugo Chavez put in place, Venezuela's government collected more than 75 cents of every dollar of oil extracted, through royalties, taxes and PDVSA dividends.
Economist Francisco Rodriguez has pointed out that $209 billion spread across 25 years works out to about $8.4 billion a year, less than the $18.4 billion Venezuela brought in during 2025 alone, when it produced barely 941,000 barrels a day. He's also flagged what a flat $19-a-barrel figure is worth by the time the deal ends: adjusted for inflation, $19 in 2051 is worth roughly $9 today.
None of this erases the fact that Venezuela's reserves are real, or that controlling access to them carries genuine strategic weight. But two days in, the U.S. government still can't describe its own deal consistently, the companies with the technical experience to actually develop these fields are staying out over debts nobody has addressed, and the number Caracas is using to sell the deal back home is a lot smaller than it sounds.
Kyiv • UNN August 31 2026, 07:57 PM • 4908 views
Trump will meet with oil refiners to increase oil-refining capacity. Gasoline prices in the U.S. have risen to $4.08 per liter.
The White House said that on Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump will meet with representatives of large and small oil refining companies to discuss ways to increase America’s capacity to refine oil into gasoline, UNN reports, citing AP.
Details
The meeting will take place against the backdrop of the war with Iran, which has driven the national average price of gasoline up to $4.08 per liter, 28% higher than a year ago, according to AAA data.
The White House said that increasing the number of oil refineries and expanding the capacity of existing facilities would ultimately lower prices for consumers. The administration also sees a need for more refineries to process oil from Venezuela.
The meeting will also be attended by Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, and Jarrod Agen, director of the White House National Energy Dominance Council.
https://unn.ua/en/news/trump-to-gather-oil-refiners-amid-spike-in-us-gasoline-prices
Copper traded above $14,800 per tonne on Monday– equivalent to about $6.72 per lb. – and was close to its record high.
Traders took profits and reassessed the outlook for U.S. interest rates after Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh’s comments on Friday raised expectations of another rate hike.
The pullback follows a surge driven by tight physical supply, heavy U.S. imports ahead of possible tariffs and a sharp squeeze in available LME metal, factors that continue to underpin bullish sentiment despite the softer start to the week.
Red metal shipments into the United States have sped up in advance of a potential tariff decision from the Trump administration, ING Think commodities strategist Ewa Manthey said in a note this month.
COMEX inventories were at a record high, and “copper imports exceeded 200,000 tonnes in July alone – the highest monthly level in at least 12 years,” Manthey said. Mine supply growth remains tight, while demand from electrification, power grid investment and AI infrastructure is supportive.
https://www.northernminer.com/news/copper-price-nears-record/1003894412/
ArcelorMittal, one of the world’s largest steel producers, is raising prices for long products (bar steel, reinforcing bars and wire rod) by a further €20/t. This is the second increase following a €25/t rise in July, which has brought the total price increase to €45/t. This was reported by Kallanish, citing market sources.
The main factor behind the price revisions was the sharp rise in energy costs. Instability caused by the conflict in the Middle East has triggered a surge in gas and electricity prices, which is having a critical impact on manufacturers using electric arc furnaces (EAFs). According to market participants, electricity costs have reached a critical level. Steelmakers are left with two options: to pass on the increase to the final cost of their products or to significantly cut production in Europe over the coming months.
The situation on the European long products market remains extremely subdued due to the holiday season and the abnormal heatwave, which have virtually brought business activity to a standstill. Scrap prices remained relatively stable in August, whilst energy prices continue to rise.
Experts note that the previous price rise in July proved insufficient to cover production costs. Consequently, other European producers of long products are also expected to raise their prices in the coming weeks, in the hope of a revival in sales in September. Trade in rebar and wire rod in both northern and southern Europe remains sluggish at present due to general market uncertainty.
As reported by GMK Center, ArcelorMittal reduced its steel output by 5.5% year-on-year in the first half of 2026, to 27.6 million tonnes. Deliveries of steel products in January–June this year totalled 26.2 million tonnes (-4.3% year-on-year).
