Sydney Index Up 1.2%; Rio in Bauxite Expansion

Chandrasekhar Atreya
13 Sep, 2010
New York City

Stocks in Australia gained after a positive economic data from China and the Australian dollar gained. Rio Tinto seeks permission to expand bauxite operations in Queensland. The number of LNG floating projects in the northern waters is expected to surge.

[R]6:00 PM Sydney, Australia – Stocks in Australia gained after a positive economic data from China and the Australian dollar gained. Rio Tinto seeks permission to expand bauxite operations in Queensland. The number of LNG floating projects in the northern waters is expected to surge.[/R]

Stocks in Australia traded higher after China reported better than expected economic data on the weekend.

The ASX 200 Index in Sydney added 1.2% or 54.6 to close at 4,614.90.

The Australian dollar climbed to its strongest level in more than four months after signs of growth in China and the U.S.

The dollar traded at 93.09 U.S. cents at 4:14 p.m. in Sydney after reaching 93.20, the most since April 30.

Total personal finance commitments fell 0.7% in July after seasonal adjustment to A$6.833 billion, down from the A$6.882 billion in June, according to data provided by the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Monday. Total commercial finance rose 8.2% in July after seasonal adjustment to A$29.785 billion from A$27.537 billion in June.

Lease finance was up 3.2% in July to A$386 million compared with A$374 million in June.

The decision of the Queensland Coal Industry Rail Group to pull its bid left the coal companies facing exactly what they wanted to avoid, their crucial coal rail networks being controlled by a listed company.

The rapid emergence of Queensland’s liquefied natural gas industry is set to drive a surge in investment in gas pipeline to A$10 billion.

Australia’s northern waters could have as many as seven floating LNG projects in development or under production within 10 years.

BAE Systems, the giant defense contractor, said Monday it is planning to sell parts of its commercial aircraft and vehicle systems for as much as A$2.2 billion.

Shares in mineral testing service provider Ammtec have been placed in a trading halt pending an announcement concerning the hostile takeover bid by Campbell Brothers.

Rio Tinto Group is seeking approval to expand its Weipa bauxite mining operations in Queensland state for A$900 million which would include two new processing plants, and a new port, the London-based company said in a filing Monday to the federal department of the Environment.

The new operation upon approval, will have capacity of 50 million tons a year and the bauxite would be exported from the new port between Boyd Point and Pera Head, Rio said in the filing.

Climate Change Minister Greg Combet said he will fight to protect jobs in the coal industry as he pursues a price on carbon, the Australian Newspaper reported, citing an interview with Combet.

The former coal engineer’s three reform objectives are the pursuit of renewable power, energy efficiency and a carbon price, the newspaper said.

Resources news

Mount Gibson said it issued a new resource and reserves statement for its tenements in control.

Tap Oil notes that its Mawar-1 oil well in block M of Brunei has penetrated its targeted reservoirs at a total depth of 1,292 meters.

Stanmore Coal said Monday its Range project in Queensland has been found to be “economically and technically viable.”

Rex Minerals said Monday it received the preliminary results from the Parara project, 10 kilometers north of its Hillside copper project in South Australia.

Geopacific Resources said it completed helicopter geophysical surveys at its projects in Fiji.

Western Desert Resources said Monday assay results from initial drilling found extended zone of high-grade iron mineralization in the iron ore project of its flagship company Roper Bar.

Gainers & Losers

Sundance Resources Ltd led the gainers in the ASX 200 with a gain of 25% to A$0.25 followed by Biota Holdings Ltd 17.42% to A$1.045 and Mincor Resources NL 10.67% to A$1.97.

Virgin Blue Holdings Ltd led the decliners in the index with a fall of 5% to A$0.38 followed by Elders Ltd 3.57% to A$0.675 and Envestra Ltd 2.83% to A$0.515.