Top iron ore producer forecasts 50% fall in price; Vital Metals to become Canada’s first rare earths miner; Vale sells New Caledonia nickel assets to Trafigura

Whoever replaces Simon Thompson as chairperson of Rio Tinto Group will face a raft of complex and problematic global issues.

Company had refused to pay Perth-based MSP Engineering for building a lithium hydroxide plant, saying the project ran over budget.

Ramp-up to full production is expected to take up to two weeks.

For those seeking evidence of a new commodity supercycle, and for the sceptics of a sustained boom in natural resources, Australia’s government forecaster has it covered.