Present at the press conference to brief journalists were D.Davaasuren, Chief of the Head commission, D.Bayanduuren, Deputy Chief and members N.Ankhbayar and L.Bazarsad.

Out of 7209 registered overseas voters for the 2017 Presidential election, 4816 partook in the election, successfully organized by 45 sub-commissions set up in 33 countries on June 10-11. Voter turnout was 44.6 percent at 2PM on Ulaanbaatar time on June 11.

In the 2013 Presidential election, out of 6233 Mongolian nationals that were registered, 4248 people voted.

According to preliminary Chinese customs data released last week, the country imported 22.2 million tonnes of coal (both thermal and met coal) in May. Volumes were down 10.5% from April, but still up 16.6% year on year. Total import for the first five months of 2017 jumped 30% compared to the same period last year to 111.7 million tonnes.

The steelmaking raw material is now trading more than $160 a tonne below its mid-April peak when the price of Australia free-on-board premium hard coking coal jumped to highest since the second quarter of 2011.

That price spike was also the result of flooding in Queensland that saw quarterly contract prices negotiated at an all time high of $330.

The wild swings in the price of coking coal is forcing a rethink of the industry's long-standing quarterly contract pricing system. In its monthly review, The Steel Index says Japanese steel mills are considering using the monthly average of daily coking coal spot prices and are also looking to diversify their coking coal supply sources:

Buyers have looked to other coking coal basins to cover their needs, with Mozambique and the US likely to be the biggest beneficiaries. Mozambique is currently on track to increase its annual coking coal production levels to 8 million tonnes, a 100% increase on 2016.
A survey of economist and investment bank analysts by FocusEconomics show prices are expected to stabilize through to the end of the year.

The median forecast is for met coal to average $152 per tonne in Q4 2017 and $134 during the final quarter next year. Coking coal averaged $121 a tonne in 2016 recovering from a slump to below $80 a tonne in February last year.

Iron ore's decline – down 42% from its February peak – took a breather on Monday. The Northern China import price of 62% Fe content ore added 1% to $54.40 a tonne according to data supplied by The Steel Index.

The Strengthening Fiscal and Financial Stability Project will work across sectors to improve the quality of expenditure management, bolster financial sector stability, increase fiscal discipline, and strengthen the social protection system. Comprehensive support will be provided to strengthen budget preparation in all stages, starting from preparation to execution.

“With its vast natural and human resources, Mongolia’s long-term prospects are promising, but vulnerabilities to external shocks such as commodity market fluctuations pose risks. The World Bank is committed to partnering with Mongolia in deepening and sustaining reforms that can promote sustainable growth,” said World Bank Country Manager for Mongolia James Anderson.

Reform measures will include the application of the latest econometric tools to improve government capacity in macro-economic forecasting, and the upgrading of the financial information system in order to strengthen management, accountability, and transparency.

The project will also support the implementation of a financial sector strategy and the strengthening of the public investment management system, so that growing investment leads to better living standards across the country.

Existing social welfare programs will be strengthened to ensure that social welfare support provided by the government benefit the poorest. Mongolia has a relatively large number of small but fragmented social assistance programs that are cash-based. The project will support the government’s efforts in implementing their pension reform program.

The project will be funded on concessional terms by the World Bank’s International Development Association.

Moreover, it costs MNT120 million to assemble one wagon, which means they are much cheaper than the imported wagon from Russia or the Commonwealth countries that costs USD80-100 thousand or from China for USD79.5 thousand. The assembled wagons have a carrying capacity of 88 cubic meters and 72 tons with a speed of 120 km/hour.

We will study possibilities to produce some parts of wagons at home and buy some parts from private companies, putting a goal to manufacture wagon in the country, not only being limited to assembling, said Minister of Road and Transport Development D.Ganbat. “- Erdenet Mining Corporation has full potential to manufacture some parts of wagons and supply to the Ulaanbaatar Railway. We have some Mongolian private companies, which manufacture rubber products. Therefore, I assigned relevant officials to stop rubber product import from Russia. The Government supports job creation and private companies through a policy and the Ministry will back domestic production that replaces import products and gives benefits to the Mongolian people, not only in the transportation sector, but also in any sector related to the ministry”, Minister D.Ganbat emphasized.

The above-mentioned drill hole, 60m north of the Midfield zone, also included 20m at 7.2g/t gold, and contained visible gold at 144m.

Erdene said this visible gold represented the “most strongly mineralised comb-textured vein observed to date” at the project.

Results are still pending for two step-out holes north of Midfield where visible gold was also observed in the core.

The latest assays also identified a previously untested area for exploration, with BKD-118 returning 10m of 12.8g/t gold, 90m east of the Striker zone.

The two rig, 20,000m programme is continuing and Erdene said more detailed drilling would then be done before establishing a resource estimate.

Investor confidence in the company is growing with Erdene’s share price up more than 245% in 12 months.

The company said Friday that it has offered $2.55 billion for the mines that are near coal operations already owned by Glencore – outbidding Yancoal which had offered to buy Rio's interest in Coal & Allied Industries Limited (C&A) for $2.45 billion in January.

Details of the transaction, which is pending until Rio accepts the offer, include a US$2.05 billion cash payment upon deal completion, plus $500 million in deferred cash payments, payable as $100 million installments over five years. The deal will expire on June 26 if a binding sales agreement is not reached.

The offer must come as a snub to Yancoal. In April Australia's Foreign Investment Review Board approved its deal with Rio Tinto – the largest acquisition by a Chinese government-controlled firm of Australian assets – which left Rio with just two producing coal mines in the country. The terms of that deal, however, allowed Rio to negotiate with other firms for a better offer.

In a statement, Glencore explained the rationale for the mega-buy, saying that the C&A assets are long-life, low cost mines that in 2016 produced 25.9 million tonnes of quality thermal coal and semi-soft coking coal. It also noted that C&A has substantial landholdings and owns a 36.5% interest in Port Waratah Coal Services, a coal export terminal located at the Port of Newcastle, the world’s largest coal export facility.

"The addition of the C&A assets to our existing portfolio in the Hunter Valley would unlock large scale mining and operating synergies. Glencore’s combined portfolio of mines in the Hunter Valley would have production capacity of 81 million tonnes per annum of high energy coal that feeds increasing Asian demand for high efficiency, low emission coal."

Glencore has also offered to buy minority stakes in the Hunter Valley operations from Mitsubishi for $920 million cash. In an effort to limit its debt, the company would sell $1.5 billion worth of assets, possibly including up to half of its stake in the C&A mines.

In May Glencore (LON:GLEN) announced it had begun a sale process for its Tahmoor coking coal mine ahead of plans to halt operations next year, potentially throwing hundreds of Australian miners out of work.

The firm had announced last year its intention to stop mining at Tahmoor in 2018, but improved coal prices made it reconsider such plans and instead opted to sell the asset.