Mining companies say they do not fear a plan by China's CATL to make an electric vehicle (EV) battery without lithium or other key metals.

China imported a further 158,000 tonnes of primary aluminum in June, bringing the half-year tally to 744,000 tonnes.

Base metal prices have surged to multi-year or record highs in 2021 on recovering demand from the pandemic.

“Dr. Copper is supposed to give a good reading of how the economy is doing, and I think we are in limbo phase right now,” said WisdomTree analyst Nitesh Shah.

More than 2,000 union members rejected owner BHP Group Ltd's latest contract offer at the end of last week.

A new administration led by Pedro Castillo, an elementary school teacher, is seeking to increase taxes on miners to fund social programs.