Brazil to auction mining rights for about 1,000 areas this year

Brazil is offering a carrot to encourage domestic production of fertilizer while at the same time, reaching a little deeper into the pockets of iron ore miners. A Mining Ministry official from the South American powerhouse said Thursday that Brazil plans to boost taxes on iron ore while cutting the levy on fertilizers as part of a plan to overhaul mining regulations, Bloomberg reported: The government is studying a plan to double the royalty on iron ore to 4 percent of gross revenue from 2 percent of net sales now, Claudio Scliar, the ministry’s secretary for geology and mining, said today in an interview. The levy on fertilizers may be reduced from 3 percent to prompt producers to increase domestic output of the crop nutrients, he said, declining to specify the size of the cut.

Shares in London-listed Antofagasta, the copper giant controlled by Chile’s Luksic family, jumped 7% in afternoon trade on the FTSE, one of the best performers on a good day for miners. CEO Marcelo Awad earlier told Dow Jones Newswires the slump in copper prices in the last few weeks is a market overreaction and it hadn't seen any of its customers cancel or delay shipments. Copper has slumped over 30% since peaking at an all-time high of $10,190/tonne in February and Awad added that European customers of Antofagasta – after Thursday's move upward worth £10 billion again – are nevertheless reluctant to commit to 2012 orders thanks to all the uncertainty in the eurozone. The Luksics could do with a bit of a boost: analysts say Chile's richest family may have lost their way after buying control of Latin America’s largest container shipping company last month.

Westminster Resources ("Westminster" or "the Company") has now compiled results for the recent 2,000 metre drilling program at the Company's Sonora, Mexico properties.

The strike at Peru's Cerro Verde mine is getting nasty, reports MarkeWatch, with workers aiming to "paralyze the mine." MarketWatch reported Wednesday there are no negotiations underway to end the walkout, which began Sept. 29th over demands for higher wages and safety issues.

Guyana Goldfields (TSE:GUY) got a nice bump today after the company announced an agreeement with the Guyana government for developing its Aurora gold project. The stock was up around 8.5% on nearly-double average volumes on the Toronto exchange.

As the price of copper drops to a 14-month low on speculation of sluggish demand for industrial metals, the chief executive of Codelco — the world's largest copper producer — said buyers in China should take advantage, Bloomberg reported.

An illegal work stoppage at La Arena Gold Oxide Mine has been resolved and mining operations have resumed, Rio Alto Mining (CVE:RIO) said on its website today.

Argentina may be salivating over an abundance of natural resource riches, but getting it out from under the ground could push local water supplies to the breaking point.

Rio Alto Mining (CVE:RIO) said that an illegal work stoppage at La Arena Gold Oxide Mine forced it to suspend mining operations. The company's stock opened down 6.82% to $2.46. The company, issuing a statement on Thursday, says that it is in discussions with government representatives, community groups and others to resolve the issue.