During the meeting, Speaker of the Parliament G.Zandanshatar and Speaker of the House of Representatives Tony Smith noted the successful development of relations between the two countries and agreed the importance of expanding cooperation in trade and economic sectors.

Speaker of the Parliament G.Zandanshatar said that Mongolia had made significant efforts and works to comply with the recommendations of Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and to be removed from the “Grey List” in a short time, and expressed his hope that Australia

He will travel with Johan Ernst Nilson, a Swedish explorer, who has said he will push the 41-year-old actor to his limit.

But don't worry too much for his wellbeing during the 10-day journey to Lake Hovsgol. The party will include instructors and a personal chef.

DiCaprio secured the trip with his bid at a star-studded charity auction held by the American Foundation for Aids Research last week.

Mr Nilson told the New York Post the expedition would include horse riding, hunting with falcons and eating with a nomadic family. They will sleep in a Mongolian Ger – the traditional domed structure used in Mongolia.

“When I do these trips, I take people out of their comfort zone in terms of the inner journey and get them doing things they normally wouldn’t do,” said Mr Nilson.

“If you push your limits, the reward will be much higher. It’s going to be amazing.”

The incredible filming locations of The Revenant

DiCaprio is hotly tipped to win an Oscar for his portrayal of Hugh Glass – a frontiersman left for dead after being mauled by a grizzly bear - in The Revenant.

He won a Bafta for the role on Sunday night and is now considered a 1/50 odds-on favourite by Willam Hill for his first Academy Award.

He described it as his most physically demanding role, requiring him to struggle through snow and ice, repeating the scenes day after day to get the best lighting conditions.

He said: “It was quite possibly the most difficult professional undertaking that I’ve ever had, and I think I can say the same for everyone that was involved in the movie.”

Mongolrostsvetmet LLC exploits fluorspar ore from the Bor-Undur underground mine in 200 meters below ground and Khukh Del /Tuv ungent and Zuun unegt/ open pit mine. The fluorspar ore from these mines are processed in the Bor-Undur ore dressing plant and produce fluorspar acid concentrate and metallurgical concentrate as final products. The Bor-Undur concentration plant is considered to be the largest fluorspar concentrate processing plant in Mongolia, as reported by the Mongolrostsvetmet LLC.

With daily extraction capacity of around 390 tons of fluorspar ore, which totals 300 thousand of ore annually, the Bor-Undur mine plant has resumed its exploration activities in 2017, which was halted for more than two years, and made some upgrades in its technology and equipment.

The fluorspar content of the Bor-Undur mine is currently 26.76 percent and the concentration processing increases the recovery up to 90-95 percent. With current capacity, the Bor-Undur mine has the potential to operate another three years from its known deposits.

During the PM’s visit to the mine, specialists pointed out that once the technical and economic feasibility is approved of the Zuun Tsagaan Del’ fluorite deposit, whose license is held by Mongolrostsvetmet LLC, the mine exploration potential is estimated to be around 10-15 years. The deposit is located in Ikh-Khet soum of Dornogobi aimag, covers 141.8 hectares.

The Cabinet Secretariat of Government of Mongolia also reported that the profits of Bor-Undur mine totaled MNT 34 billion last year.

-According to the National Statistics Office, the volume of a hidden economy has slightly dropped from the previous year. What is the effect of the informal economy on the Mongolian economy?

-For Mongolia, the hidden economy result is relatively good, equaling about 10 percent of GDP. And it is doubtful that this volume is less than expected.

-Parliament had recently approved a bill on canceling a one-time repayment of pension loans. What is the commercial banks’ verdict on the decision?

-As for the commercial banks, they have no right to make a decision, but to serve in line with the regulations. However, as far as I’m concerned, canceling debt is an inappropriate action of the Government, interfering with the commercial banks’ transaction. It also creates a high expectation among people which can lead to negative consequences. To some extent, it is discrimination
against different social classes.

-What are the main economic challenges in 2020?

-Undoubtedly, the recent rise in mineral product prices and its export in the global market have been spurring Mongolia’s economy in recent years. It shows the country’s dependence on commodity prices. Also, the fiscal discipline, which indicates any country’s economic outlook, is likely to be violated in 2020.

-IMF had stated that the debt canceling plan is violating the 2017 bailout deal. How will the cooperation between the IMF and Mongolia proceed further?

-Well, the uncertain situation has been made following the IMF statement. It is hard for me to comment on behalf of the Mongolian side. But in terms of fiscal discipline, the potential budget cost needs to be as low as possible.

"China ranked first with a market share of 89.1 percent of Mongolia's total exports in 2019," Dorjdamba Baasan said during a news conference.

"Goods exported from Mongolia to China last year were mostly led by mining products. Specifically, coal and copper concentrates accounted for 44.4 percent and 26.4 percent of the total exports to China, respectively," he said.

Mongolia's exports amounted to 7.6 billion U.S. dollars last year, up 8.7 percent year on year, according to the statistician. Enditem

With support from its US and Irish HQ’s, Facebook will provide 24-hour monitoring of content – including posts and advertising, using AI to identify and delete fake accounts.

Mongolia has banned candidates from distributing money and other ‘incentives’ to the voters. In addition, candidates have been banned from defaming others during the election campaign. Candidates face expulsion from nomination if these rules are proved to have been violated.

Candidates must register their social accounts with the Communications Regulatory Commission of Mongolia (CRC). The CRC is expected to actively cooperate with Facebook company during the election.

Deputy Speaker U.Enkhtuvshin, said that the ‘Zamyn-Uud FEZ was first discussed in 1995, the law regulating its activity was approved in 2002 and amended in 2015. However, it has not been finalized due political uncertainty. Over the years, there have been concerns about some of China’s intentions; on one occasion Mongolian women MP’s were concerned about Beijing’s idea of to set up a gaming and casino centre in the zone and the local impact. It should be remembered, however, that China’s economic miracle, under Deng Xiaoping, the establishment of a chain of FEZ’s provided a major stimulus for growth. China has also been keen to show Mongolian specialists its mega zone in Shenzhen. The Zamyn-Uud FEZ has often been discussed in the context of establishing an Economic Corridor between Mongolia, Russia and China’.

Currently, 58 enterprises have obtained licenses to implement nearly 70 projects in Zamyn-Uud FEZ; ten of them are already under construction. The Free Economic Zones in Mongolia are expected to contribute 20-40 percent to Mongolian GDP.

Iron ore shipped from Australia’s Pilbara region in 2019 was 327.4 million tonnes, the company said, well within its forecast of 320 million tonnes to 330 million tonnes.

The company said it made up for the disruptions in the first half by way of higher iron ore production and shipments than a year earlier. However, in the fourth-quarter, shipments of the steel-making material dipped 1% to 86.8 million tonnes.

The global miner has benefited from a jump in iron ore prices following a supply squeeze due to a fatal dam collapse in Brazil early last year. But with global production now stabilizing, the prices are off their highs.

The company expects iron ore shipments, which accounts for more than 60% of its profit, to be between 330 million tonnes and 343 million tonnes in 2020.

Rio Tinto has been shipping out higher volumes of a lower grade, 60 percent SP 10 product, as it struggles with operational bottlenecks at its new Koodaideri mine in Western Australia, from where it expects to produce ore in late 2021.

The London-based miner posted a 28% jump in bauxite production in 2019 and said it expected aluminium production to be between 3.1 million tonnes and 3.3 million tonnes in 2020.

It also set 2020 target of 530,000 to 580,000 tonnes of mined copper.