This historic blue diamond is expected to fetch up to $5.3 million

Embattled SouthGobi Resources (TSX:SGQ) shed over 4% on Wednesday bring its losses since April to 40%, after announcing its Mongolian subsidiary SGS has filed a notice of investment dispute with the government of the Asian country.

Worries about China and the possibility of a hard landing weighed on markets and commodities.

Despite concerns that China may be slowing—or worse—aluminum giant Alcoa still sees robust demand in China for its products and pegs growth at 11% this year.

After months of intense debate among mining companies, environmentalists, local groups and church leaders, the government of the Philippines has decided to increase royalties from mining companies.

As Papua New Guinea's sometimes shambolic elections drag on into a third week, already nervous miners with projects in the country would not have been encouraged by news of another miner falling foul of the country's authorities.

Suspected New People’s Army (NPA) rebels operating in northeastern Mindanao have released three personnel of a mining firm abducted from a site in Agusan del Sur. Earlier reports said the NPAs sought P25 million for the release of Christopher Ocite, operations manager of VPO Mining; Gani Altaya, assistant operations manager; and Joel Jayuma, the company’s security chief.

The National Post reports that June home sales hit a 10-year low.

The company announced today that it plans to exit Papua New Guinea following receipt of a formal notice that the licence renewal for its non-core Kili Teke property was denied.

A parliamentary inquiry released an unfliching report on the Fukushima nuclear disaster, calling the disaster manmade, wholly forseeable and even laying blame at the feet of Japanese culture itself.