Continued improvement in demand, a company-wide focus on effectively managing the ramp-up through the Caterpillar Production System, and focused cost management drove third-quarter sales and revenues and profit for Caterpillar Inc. The company today reported third-quarter 2011 profit per share of $1.71, up 40 percent from $1.22 per share in the third quarter of 2010. Profit was $1.141 billion, an increase of 44 percent from $792 million in the third quarter of 2010. Sales and revenues of $15.716 billion, an all-time record for the company, were up 41 percent from $11.134 billion in the third quarter of 2010.

Stock in US coal giant Peabody Energy and India's ArcelorMittal surged on Monday after their joint bidding vehicle secured a 59.85% stake in Australian metallurgical-coal miner Macarthur Coal and raised its offer for the whole of the company to $5.1 billion. The deal comes despite the planned introduction of an onerous carbon tax next year which should put further pressure on Australia's miners already dealing with rising labour costs thanks to the strong Aussie dollar. The takeover is also amid falling coking coal prices which according to a new report is set to pull back to $240/tonne towards the end of next year from historic highs of $330/tonne.

Clancy Yeates from Business Day writes that mining businesses need to take a more proactive approach, and train workers to fill their job vacancies, rather than poaching workers from other industries.

[The] rise [in] temporary migration is hardly surprising when unemployment is falling, which it did in the year to June. But it should also be kept in mind when business groups call for higher levels of migration and more public support to meet labour shortages. On top of 457 visas, miners also have access to enterprise migration agreements, a new special visa class that allows the mass importation of skilled workers for the biggest projects. So while training has gone backwards in the epicentre of the boom, miners have more and more options for using skilled workers from overseas.

Silvercorp Metals, China’s biggest silver miner, was changing hands for $9.72 in Toronto on heavy volumes shortly after the open Monday, up almost 19% after a report by the forensic accounting arm of KPMG showed no truth to allegations of $1 billion in accounting fraud at the company. Shareholders who held onto their Silvercorp stock during the rollercoaster ride that started on September 2 when the company had to go public with the accusations, believed to be the work of shortsellers that had built up a massive position in the stock, are now able to show a handsome profit for their loyalty. The company is suing two New York-based websites – Chinastockwatch.com and Alfredlittle.com – for spreading false information and is seeking punitive and compensatory damages.

Support for the favourite gold bug conspiracy theory – that a cabal of western central bankers is secretly determined to manipulate the world’s markets by rigging gold prices – has come from an unexpected quarter.

Alacer Gold (TSE:ASR) reports no injuries or damage occurred at the Çöpler Gold Project after a 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck the southern part of Turkey. Over 200 people are confirmed dead with hundreds of more casualties expected. Structural damage near the earthquake is extensive. The U.S. Geological Survey reported the epicenter was in the village of Tabani, about 410 kilometers southeast of Çöpler.

Molycorp (NYSE:MCP), the only rare earth producer in the Western hemisphere, announced on Thursday that it plans to spend $114 million to accelerate by three months the start-up of its rare earth processing facility. Molycorp's stock slid on Thursday after the news. After hitting a high of $40.45 on Wednesday, the stock dropped as low as $36.59 before recovering to close at just under $38. The company's estimated 2012 production will rise by 3,500 metric tons to between 8,000 and 10,000 metric tons annually. The new spending will help the company achieve full phase one production of 19,050 metric tons per year of rare earth oxide equivalent three months earlier than previously planned.

Helicon Group, an Australian medical company, will spend $3 million to develop a cancer therapy that relies on magnets and iron ore. Nanoparticles of iron ore are injected into a tumour while a magnet is used to heat the tumour and destroy it. Fabio Pannuti, Helicon Group's chief executive, said the treatment is still in its early stages.

Boss Power (CVE:BPU), which successfully settled a lawsuit on Thursday with the Province of British Columbia, is now looking at ways to spend […]