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The election of Michael Sata to president of Zambia is not sitting well with copper miners who fear the 73-year-old, known as "King Cobra" for his aggressive style, will pick the pockets of mining companies, Bloomberg reports. Sata swept to power this week on a promise to create jobs and to extract more money from the mining industry in Zambia, Africa's largest copper producer. His win on Sept. 20 ends two decades of rule by the Movement for Multiparty Democracy.

As commodities prices including precious metals were plummetting Thursday on more bad economic news, the Premier of British Columbia provided a glimmer of hope for the BC mining industry. In unveiling the province's job-creation strategy, Clark said the government plans to capitalize on high demand for minerals, especially in Asia, by opening up eight new mines in the next four years and expanding nine more by 2015.

December gold suffered another day of steep losses, dropping $82 an ounce, or 4.7%, to $1,659.50 in New York in noon trade on Friday, as investors were forced to raise cash to cover losses suffered on global stock markets this week. Copper extended its sharp declines on the London Metal Exchange falling as much as 7.3% to $7,115.75 a metric ton. Prices declined for a sixth day in a row losing 14% this week and have now slumped 26% from the record high of $10,190 set in February. Silver was hardest hit on Friday, plummeting 11.2% to $32.48. One metals analyst summed up the day this way: “We’re in a downward spiral, and no one knows when it’s going to end."

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - Sept. 23, 2011) - Dorato Resources Inc. ("Dorato" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE:DRI)(OTCQX:DRIFF)(FRANKFURT:DO5) announces receipt, from Minera Afrodita, of final drill results from the first phase of drilling at the northern-most anomaly at Cobrecon. Results indicate the presence of a large and pervasive mineralized porphyry system, drill-tested over an area of 2km x 1km (Figure 1). Grades can be considered sub-economic at 0.1% to 0.2% copper, but the presence of such a large and pervasive mineralized system is encouraging for the two remaining drill targets (Cobrecon Sur and Cobrecon Este), which are defined by larger, more intense surface geochemical anomalies. Drilling on the remainder of the targets is subject to Minera Afrodita's permitting process.

Canadian Press reported Thursday on the merger of US Gold Corp. (TSX:UXG) and Minera Andes Inc. (TSX:MAI) to form a new corporate entity called McEwen Mining.

Teck Resources Limited (NYSE: TCK) will invest $210 million at its Trail Operations to increase its capacity to recycle end-of-life electronic waste and $475 million in a mill modernization project at Highland Valley Copper. Both operations are located in British Columbia. The No. 4 Furnace Project at Trail Operations includes the construction of a new slag fuming furnace and settling furnace that will integrate into the existing lead smelting process. Construction on the project will begin in 2012 with completion scheduled for 2014.

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Sept. 22, 2011) - Franco-Nevada Corporation (TSX:FNV)(NYSE:FNV) ("Franco-Nevada") and Lumina Royalty Corp. ("Lumina Royalty") have entered into an arrangement agreement whereby Franco-Nevada will acquire all of the common shares of Lumina Royalty by way of a court approved plan of arrangement for US$60 million in Franco-Nevada common shares and US$6 million in listed Franco-Nevada warrants ((TSX:FNV.WT.A) with a C$75.00 exercise price, expiring June 16, 2017). Under the arrangement, Lumina Royalty shareholders will receive 0.03487 Franco-Nevada common shares and 0.01917 Franco-Nevada warrants for each Lumina Royalty common share held.

World markets tumbled overnight as bad news mounts and investors turn pessimistic. The Hang Seng fell 4.95%, the S&P ASX was down 2.63% and the Shanghai composite index is down -2.78%. Even gold, the traditional fear trade, was off three percent and trading at $1,739.

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - Sept. 22, 2011) - Silvercorp Metals Inc. ("Silvercorp" or the "Company") (TSX:SVM)(NYSE:SVM) announced it has acquired a total of 4,468,012 of its common shares at a total cost of $34,949,140 (average price of CDN$7.82 pursuant to its normal course issuer bid ("NCIB") announced on June 17, 2011. Under the existing NCIB the Company intends to acquire up to 10 million common shares. All common shares purchased under the NCIB will be cancelled.