AngloGold cash flow, output jump in third quarter www.mining.com

South African AngloGold Ashanti (JSE:ANG) (NYSE:AU), the world’s third-biggest producer of the precious metal, said Monday it saw cash flow and production jump in the three months to September 30.

Mitsubishi and other trading houses raise full-year forecasts www.asia.nikkei.com

TOKYO -- Japan's seven major trading houses have reported their half-year results through September.

Overall, the outcomes -- all announced by Monday -- were encouraging, thanks mainly to a recovery in resource prices. More than half the companies raised their full-year forecasts, with some even deciding to increase shareholder dividends.  
Mitsubishi Corp. on Monday revised up its forecast for full-year group net profit through March 2018 by 50 billion yen to 500 billion yen ($4.39 billion). That would mark a 14% increase on the previous year and exceed the trading house's all-time high of 471 billion yen posted during the year through March 2008 -- a time when the global economy was buoyed by the rise of emerging countries.

Sumitomo Corp., Itochu and Toyota Tsusho also expect to log record-high profits for fiscal 2017. Sumitomo has raised its net profit projection now to 280 billion yen. 

Mitsui & Co., on the other hand, is unlikely to renew the record profit posted for the year through March 2008. It will, however, at least see its highest earnings since adopting international accounting standards in the year ended March 2013.

Soaring resource prices have been the biggest contributing factor behind the strong performances. Prices of coking coal used in steel production have risen around 80% from the average during the first half of the previous year. Copper and iron ore prices have followed suit.

Car sales, construction machinery leasing, food and food products are also performing well at all the trading houses, largely supported by a strong global economy, especially in Asia.

By sector, Mitsubishi's metal business, which includes coking coal, will likely see a 32% increase in profits to 195 billion yen, while earnings at its machinery division, which includes car sales, are expected to almost triple to 75 billion yen.

"The boom in resource prices tends to be highlighted, but this is the result of consistent efforts to enhance other [machinery and food] businesses," said Kazuyuki Masu, chief financial officer at Mitsubishi, during a briefing on Monday.

Some trading houses are looking to use the extra cash from the enhanced profit forecasts to increase dividends to shareholders. Mitsubishi, Sumitomo and Toyota have raised their payouts for this fiscal year. Itochu and Mitsui have so far kept the amount unchanged, but will likely either increase dividends or launch a buyback scheme during this fiscal year.

The leading trading houses appear to be generally expecting the positive outlook to continue for the time being. "Resource prices could drop within a short space of time, but over the long term, they will return to an upward trend," said Mitsui's CFO Keigo Matsubara.

Koichi Takahata, Sumitomo CFO, is also optimistic about the near-future forecast for resource prices. "For the next 12 months or so, we will not see sharp ups and downs," he said.

Geopolitical risks could pose one of the few uncertainties for the rest of the fiscal year. Results could depend on whether the trading houses are able to rebalance portfolios to secure new revenue sources while the business environment remains favorable.

Government to fight against illegal acts related to special licenses www.montsame.mn

Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/ Prime Minister U.Khurelsukh stated that the Government will fight vigorously against illegal trading of land ownership and mining licenses, during his speech to the Parliament last Friday in connection with a discussion of 2018 State Budget Bill.

‘Steppe Gold’ files for IPO www.news.mn

Toronto-based Steppe Gold is a precious metals exploration and development company focussing on opportunities in Mongolia. The company has filed a preliminary prospectus in connection with a proposed initial public offering (IPO) of its common shares.

Greenhouse farming technology to be introduced in Mongolia www.montsame.mn

Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/ “Mongolia has a lot to study experiences from Greece; in particular the country is interested in naturalizing Greece solutions of greenhouse farming technology that are fit to Mongolia’s climatic conditions,” said B. Batzorig, Minister of Food, Agriculture and Light Industry, during the November 3 meeting with the Non-Resident Ambassador of the Hellenic Republic.

Affordable housing prototype in Mongolia’s suburbs www.domusweb.it

Designed by Rural Urban Framework, Ger Plug-In is a traditional Mongolian building, a portable structure made of timber, felt and canvas. It is located on the edge of Bayankhoshur, one of Ulaanbaatar’s ger districts – sprawling settlements comprised of a mixture of gers and low-cost detached homes. It is estimated that over 700,000 people live in the ger districts, accounting for over 60% of the city’s population. The numbers are constantly growing with new migrants moving from the countryside to the city daily. It is likely the only city in the world where the poorest people own the majority of the land. The city has expensive new development plans to bring services and apartments to the residents of the ger districts. However, they do not reach the fringe areas where Zulaa and Urangua live. The project tackles the problem from the basic unit of habitation – the one thing that all residents own – the ger itself.

Water Quality in Mongolia: Better Infrastructure Needed www.borgenproject.org

Bordering Russia and China, Mongolia, the landlocked country in northeast Asia, has been experiencing more severe and frequent effects of climate change. Among several of these issues, water quality and scarcity are at the top of the list. Mongolia’s unique landscape is comprised of sparse rivers, lakes and springs that flow from the wooded northeast, leaving most of the east and south with a desert climate.

Invest Mongolia Tokyo 2017 www.mongolianbusinessdatabase.com

"Invest Mongolia Tokyo" 5th Conference will be held on November 24 this year. On the same day, Japan-Mongolia "Business Matching Event" for the representatives from Mongolia will be held at the same venue of “Invest Mongolia Tokyo” conference. About 40 distinguished speakers and 300 guests are attending the Conference and the Business Matching Event on the day. As you will have the opportunity to hear different opinions from Japanese investors and experts on Mongolia through the presentations and panels, you will obtain the most updated and accurate information on Mongolia from Japan after the Conference.

November 06, 2017 trading report www.mse.mn

On November 03, 2017, 68,792 shares of 21 firms listed as Tier I, II, and III were traded. 8 firms’ shares increased in price, 12 decreased and 1 remained unchanged. Durvun-uul JSC /DRU/ was the top performer, increasing 15.00 percent, whereas State Department Store JSC /UID/ was the worst performer, decreasing 13.20 percent.

Paradise Papers: Everything you need to know about the leak www.bbc.com

What are the Paradise Papers?
The Paradise Papers are a huge leak of financial documents that throw light on the top end of the world of offshore finance.
A number of stories are appearing in a week-long expose of how politicians, multinationals, celebrities and high-net-worth individuals use complex structures to protect their cash from higher taxes.
As with last year's Panama Papers leak, the documents were obtained by the German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung, which called in the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) to oversee the investigation. BBC Panorama and the Guardian are among the nearly 100 media groups investigating the papers.
The Paradise Papers name was chosen because of the idyllic profiles of many of the offshore jurisdictions whose workings are unveiled, including Bermuda, the HQ of the main company involved, Appleby. It also dovetails nicely with the French term for a tax haven - paradis fiscal. Then again, the Isle of Man plays a big part.
Who is being exposed?
The offshore financial affairs of hundreds of politicians, multinationals, celebrities and high-net-worth individuals, some of them household names, have been revealed. The papers also throw light on the legal firms, financial institutions and accountants working in the sector and on the jurisdictions that adopt offshore tax rules to attract money. The top stories so far include:
Apple has protected its low-tax regime by using the Channel Island of Jersey
Formula 1 champion Lewis Hamilton avoided tax on his £16.5m luxury jet, the papers suggest
The Queen's private estate invested about £10m offshore including a small amount in the company behind BrightHouse, a chain accused of irresponsible lending
One of President Donald Trump's top administration officials kept a financial stake in a firm whose major partners include a Russian company part-owned by President Vladimir Putin's son-in-law
A Lithuanian shopping mall partly owned by U2 star Bono is under investigation for potential tax evasion
How three stars of the hit BBC sitcom, Mrs Brown's Boys, diverted more than £2m into an offshore tax-avoidance scheme
One of the world's largest firms loaned a businessman previously accused of corruption $45m and asked him to negotiate mining rights in a poor central African nation
The Isle of Man passed a law that would help tax evaders, the documents show
A key aide of Canada's PM has been linked to offshore schemes that may have cost the nation millions of dollars in taxes, threatening to embarrass Justin Trudeau
Lord Ashcroft, a former Conservative party deputy chairman and a significant donor, may have broken the rules around how his offshore investments were managed. Other papers suggest he retained his non-dom tax status while in the House of Lords, despite claiming to have become resident in the UK
How questions were raised about who is controlling Everton FC
An oligarch with close links to the Kremlin may have secretly taken ownership of a company responsible for anti-money laundering checks on Russian cash
How a UK company exploited an anti-tax avoidance law to actually save itself tax
This is by no means everything - more will be coming out over the next few days.
You can find our stories on the revelations here.
Where do the Paradise Papers come from?
There are more than 1,400GB of data, containing about 13.4 million documents. Some 6.8 million come from the offshore legal service provider Appleby and corporate services provider Estera. The two operated together under the Appleby name until Estera became independent in 2016. Another six million documents come from corporate registries in some 19 jurisdictions, mostly in the Caribbean. A smaller amount comes from the Singapore-based international trust and corporate services provider, Asiaciti Trust. The leaked data covers seven decades, from 1950 to 2016.
What is Appleby?
A law firm that helps corporations, financial institutions and high-net-worth individuals set up and register companies in offshore jurisdictions.
Founded in Bermuda and with a history dating back to the 1890s, it has become one of the largest and best known of about 10 major companies involved in the specialist arena. The leak shows the US dominates Appleby's client register, with more than 31,000 US addresses for clients. There were more than 14,000 UK addresses and 12,000 in Bermuda.
Graphic showing facts & figures about Appleby. The company has 470 employees, 200 lawyers and 60 partners. It operates from 10 offices wordwide in the Cayman Islands, British Virgin Islands, Bermuda, the Isle of Man, Jersey, Guensey, the Seychelles, Mauritius, Hong Kong and Shanghai. The company was started in the 1890s in Bermuda by Major Ronald Appleby. Over 125 years and through a process of mergers and expansion, is it now ranked as one of the world's largest providers of offshore legal services.
Who are Appleby?
Who leaked the Paradise Papers?
As with 2016's Panama Papers, German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung obtained the original material and was the stepping off point for this investigation. In the case of the Panama Papers, the originator of the leaks, named only as John Doe, issued a manifesto a month after the publication date. A simple statement this time says: "For their protection, Süddeutsche Zeitung does as a general policy not comment on its sources!"
Who is working on the leaks?
As with the Panama Papers, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, a global network of investigative journalists, was called in to work on the project. Along with the BBC's flagship Panorama programme, there are nearly 100 media partners involved in 67 countries, including the Guardian and the New York Times.
Why is it in the public interest?
The media partners say the investigation is in the public interest because data leaks from the world of offshore have repeatedly exposed wrongdoing. The leaks have led to hundreds of investigations worldwide, resulting in politicians, ministers and even prime ministers being forced from office.
Why is this leak different?
The $64m question, or probably more if you are in a tax haven, or offshore financial centre as the industry prefers to call it. It is indeed the fifth major leak of financial papers in the past four years and, yes, last year's Panama Papers were bigger in size - 2.6TB to 1.4TB - but the scale of the information in the Paradise Papers and how it lifts the lid on sophisticated, upper-end offshore dealings, many linked to the UK, is unprecedented.
Graphic: How big is the Paradise Papers leak compared to other recent data leaks? The Panama Papers in 2016 was 2.6 terabytes (TB) of data. The Paradise Papers is 1.4 terabytes. Offshore leaks in 2013 amounted to 260 GB. Bahamas leaks, 2016 was 38 gigabytes (GB). Luxembourg leaks in 2014: 4.4 GB Swiss leaks, 2015: 33 GB. Wikileaks, 2010: 1.7 GB.
As Gerard Ryle, who oversees member journalists at the ICIJ, says: "This leak is important because it's the high end of town. People may have dismissed the Mossack Fonseca leaks as they were rogue players who would take any client. Most of the offshore world is not like that at all. Here you have the gold-plated company."
The documents were tougher than the Panama Papers too. Mr Ryle says: "They came in different formats and it took us a long time to decipher them. There were nice surprises along the way but it was a much more difficult data set."
What exactly is a tax haven?
It's hard to pin down an exact definition. Tax haven is the term usually used in the media and public, whereas the industry would prefer the term offshore financial centre (OFC). It is essentially a financial jurisdiction outside the regulations of your own nation used by companies and individuals to lower their taxes on profits or assets. They are usually secretive and stable. They are also often small islands, many of them UK Crown Dependencies or Overseas Territories, but not exclusively so. Nations such as Switzerland, Ireland and the Netherlands have similar tax reducing mechanisms, while the UK and the US are leading nations providing services that facilitate the use of OFCs.

Paradise Papers
The papers are a huge batch of leaked documents mostly from offshore law firm Appleby, along with corporate registries in 19 tax jurisdictions, which reveal the financial dealings of politicians, celebrities, corporate giants and business leaders.
The 13.4 million records were passed to German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung and then shared with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ). Panorama has led research for the BBC as part of a global investigation involving nearly 100 other media organisations, including the Guardian, in 67 countries. The BBC does not know the identity of the source.