Xstrata’s coal unit declares force majure on Rollestone mine shipment

Amplats also said it had cut some 3,700 jobs to reduce spending ahead of the demerger.

South32 said in February it had agreed to sell the business in New South Wales state for $1.65 billion.

The company's Blackwater and Daunia mines in Queensland, which it recently purchased from BHP, produced 4.8 million tonnes.

China's imports of major commodities are often viewed through the prism of the performance of, and outlook for, the world's second-biggest economy.