Despite a healthy economic growth, Canada’s economy lost 2,800 jobs in February, with at least 18% of those positions belonging to the mining sector.

Molycorp and Neo Material Technologies Thursday announced the signing of a definitive agreement under which Molycorp will acquire Neo Materials for approximately CDN $1.3 billion. This will create one of the most technologically advanced, vertically integrated rare earth companies in the world.

Xstrata's relentless appetite for coal, particularly the metallurgical variety, was again evident on Thursday after it bought Talisman's Peace River deposit for $500 million.

China, the world’s largest supplier of rare earth, may almost double exports this year, meeting quotas set by the government as lower prices continue to stimulate demand.

Mongolia's plans, first mooted in 2010, to sell a stake in its Erdenes Tavan Tolgoi coal-mining company  to the public faces more delays over politics and regulatory problems while talks with companies to developed the western block of the largest coking coal deposit on the globe are also on ice.

Ivanhoe announced on Thursday its Australian project is producing copper and gold ahead of schedule. Last week the company said Ivanhoe Australia is on the chopping block as its mega-mine in Mongolia requires all its financial resources.

Positive stress test results have been successful in calming anti-nuclear sentiments, following protests against nuclear energy that stemmed from the Fukushima disaster in March 2011, according to a new report by English energy research company GlobalData.

Peru's Madre de Dios gold-rich region is losing US$560,000 a day as a result of informal miners' protests happening in the area since Monday, said the country’s president of the regional chamber of commerce, Roman Meza.

Mexico’s exploration expenditures are the highest in Latin America, reaching a record high of almost US$1 billion in 2011, says the latest report released by the Metals Economics Group’s (MEG), a think tank based in Halifax, Canada.