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JP Morgan Cazenove says Swiss commodity trading giant has to start off-loading inventory to slash its $48 billion debt pile and keep its credit rating.

BHP Billiton is today celebrating the 130 year anniversary of the incorporation of BHP and its significant contribution to the Australian economy and society for more than a century.

The company's action on spending follows sharp falls across commodity prices this year.

The company, which runs the massive Grasberg mine in Papua, has stopped exporting since last month.

But gold is, so far, profiting from the situation, heading for its longest winning streak in three months.

Bellwether copper price falls to fresh six-year low after China devalues currency, but new report says market reaction is a knee-jerk one.

The decision of the People's Bank of China (PBOC) to devalue the yuan by 1.9% sent most mining stocks and commodities down the slippery slope.

Stock markets in Canada and the United States fell sharply on the news that China had allowed the yuan to drop 2%.

Simon Moores, managing director of London-based Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, and the firm's analyst, Andrew Miller, provide insight into minerals that they say need to shed their labels as traditional commodities and embrace their future as niche, raw-material solutions for a growing list of technology manufacturers.