Wall Street: S&P and Nasdaq close at fresh records www.bbc.com

Toyota announces investment in Indiana www3.nhk.or.jp

Chile seeking economic partnerships without US www3.nhk.or.jp

Oyu Tolgoi releases Q4 Production Report and 2016 Scorecard www.mongolia.goog.mn

Oyu Tolgoi today announced an update on its production for the fourth quarter of 2016 and, released the latest edition of its Performance Scorecard.

Oyu Tolgoi performed better than target on safety in 2016, and continuing to be one of the leading safety performers across Rio Tinto and peers in the broader mining industry.
Armando Torres, Managing Director – Oyu Tolgoi, said, “The Oyu Tolgoi team delivered a strong performance over 2016 despite significant operational and market challenges. Our safety performance continues to be one of the best in Rio Tinto – and indeed, across our global mining peers, achieving an All Injury Frequency Rate of 0.22 for the year. Oyu Tolgoi also achieved record setting performance in the open pit operation, and underground development continues to progress well – establishing a strong foundation for the year ahead.”
Oyu Tolgoi’s open pit mining and concentrator operations in 2016 achieved record levels for material mined and ore treated, and exceeded both copper and gold production guidance for the year. Concentrator performance during the fourth quarter was strong with the highest throughput since production began.
During Q4’16, progress continued in key areas of underground development with the national workforce working on the underground project crossing 2,000 personnel; Shafts 2 and 5 related activities and construction of critical on-site facilities continued, and the bulk excavation component for the conveyor-to-surface work stream was completed. Lateral development rates are progressing well with a further increase expected in 2017, when additional underground crushing capacity is added.
Oyu Tolgoi is expected to produce 130,000 to 160,000 tonnes of copper in concentrates and 100,000 to 140,000 ounces of gold in concentrates for 2017.
Q4’16 Scorecard
Oyu Tolgoi’s total in-country spend since 2010 crossed US$6.1 billion at the end of Q4 – demonstrating a strong, continuing commitment to local content in both operations and underground development, including US$760 million total spend in country in 2016.
The company continued its world-class environment performance, achieving an annual average water recycling rate of 86.2 per cent, and using only 0.423 cubic metres of water per tonne of ore processed – one-third the usage of comparable operations worldwide.
At the end of 2016, 93.5 per cent of Oyu Tolgoi’s total workforce was Mongolian, including 96 per cent Mongolian employees at the open pit mining and concentrator operations; and with South Gobi residents comprising 22 per cent of the total workforce.
Oyu Tolgoi continued its strong contribution to the South Gobi community in 2016 achieving procurement spends of US$69 million, and investing US$9.7 million in sustainable development and community infrastructure projects in the region. Two major infrastructure projects saw significant progress in the last quarter, with the Bayan-Ovoo Primary Health Care Center, a two-story building with 10 beds, a surgery and birthing room, and employing 18 staff, including doctors and nurses completed, and the Khanbogd bulk water treatment plant nearing commissioning.

Presidential election expected on June 26 www.en.montsame.mn

Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/ The Standing Committee on State Structure backed the parliamentary resolution on designating the date of the upcoming Presidential Election. The resolution suggests that voters in Mongolia will cast their ballots in the Presidential election on June 26, 2017.

US exit from TPP may open the door to China www.rt.com

President Trump's decision to pull the US out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) may open the way for China to step in and fill the vacuum.
Earlier this week, Donald Trump signed an executive order ending the participation of US in the trade deal. The President also promised to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) sealed with Canada and Mexico.

Alcoa beats revenue estimates, sees higher aluminum demand www.reuters.com

Alcoa Corp (AA.N) reported higher-than-expected revenue in its first quarterly results after the metals company split into two in November, helped partly by a rise in alumina prices.

Super-rich American ‘preppers’ buying in New Zealand ready for US doomsday www.rt.com

Wealthy Americans are preparing for a possible US collapse or revolt by the poor and buying properties in New Zealand, The New Yorker magazine reported.

Australia and New Zealand to pursue 'TPP 12 minus one' www.bbc.com

Australia and New Zealand say they are hopeful of pressing ahead with the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, despite America's formal withdrawal.
The US-led 12-nation agreement was set to cover 40% of the world's economic output.
Pulling out of the TPP was one of Mr Trump's first executive orders and fulfils a long-held campaign promise.
Australia has already devised a name for a possible new agreement: TPP 12 Minus One.
The country's trade minister Steve Ciobo said Australia would not abandon the TPP just because it would require "a little bit of elbow grease" to keep it alive.
Meanwhile China, which was not part of the deal, hinted it may look to take advantage of TTP's collapse saying it was in favour of "open and transparent regional economic arrangements".
The trade agreement was negotiated by former US President Barack Obama and was aimed at deepening economic ties between member its countries, which were Japan, Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore, Brunei, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Mexico, Chile and Peru.

Mr Ciobo was in Switzerland last week to discuss new deals at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

"I've had conversations with Canada, with Mexico, with Japan, with New Zealand, with Singapore, Malaysia," he told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) from New York on Monday.
"I know that there's been conversations that have been had with Chile and with Peru. So there's quite a number of countries that have an interest in looking to see if we can make a TPP 12 minus one work," he said.
Mr Ciobo also said the original architecture of the TPP was designed to enable other countries to join.
"Certainly I know that Indonesia has expressed a possible interest and there would be scope for China if we were able to reformulate it to be a TPP 12 minus one for countries like Indonesia or China or indeed other countries to consider joining and to join in order to get the benefits that flow as a consequence," he said.
New Zealand: Hopeful for TPP, but eyeing one-on-one deals
New Zealand Prime Minister Bill English has said he is hopeful of keeping a free trade deal alive with remaining members of the TPP agreement, while the country's trade minister Todd McClay told local media he expected TPP ministers would meet in the coming months to navigate a way forward.

Like his Australian counterpart, Mr McClay said he had met with a number of TPP member countries in Davos.
"New Zealand's economy depends upon fair access to overseas markets. We will continue to advocate for the benefits of trade liberalisation on the world stage," he said.
The country is also looking to hammer out bilateral deals with other countries and has recently been to the Middle East, promoting key New Zealand products including dairy.
Last week, Mr McClay confirmed New Zealand and Sri Lanka would move ahead with discussions on new trade and investment opportunities, including a free trade agreement between the two countries.
And the minister has said trade relations with the UK are in good shape, with an agreement in place to try and ensure there is no disruption to bilateral trade between New Zealand and Britain in the wake of Brexit.

Any hope of resurrecting the TPP will surely depend on Japan, the world's third largest economy.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has reinforced his trust in President Trump's leadership and said he hopes to continue talks with the US around free trade.
"I believe President Trump understands the importance of free and fair trade, so I'd like to pursue his understanding on the strategic and economic importance of the TPP trade pact," said Mr Abe during a parliament session on Monday.
Prime Minister Shinzo in parliamentImage copyrightKYODO NEWS
Image caption
Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has repeatedly said he has trust in US President Donald Trump
Japan's finance minister Taro Aso reiterated this stance on Tuesday and told reporters that plans were being put in place for Mr Abe to visit the US and meet Mr Trump.
Trade Minister Hiroshige Seko said he would now be closely watching for any changes to the North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta) - which includes Canada, Mexico and the US - and how that might impact Japanese companies.
China: Left out in the cold, is Beijing now rejoicing?
China, which was left out of the TPP deal, has its eye on its own regional trade pacts.
It has suggested a Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific and is supportive of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), which could see a free trade deal between countries including Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand.

Chinese president Xi Jinping defended free trade at the World Economic Forum in Davos last week
In Davos, President Xi Jinping defended the notion of free trade and said protectionism was akin to "locking oneself in a dark room".
The Chinese leader's comments were widely viewed as a reference to Mr Trump's "America first" policies and a clear signal that Beijing saw the move as an opportunity to play an even larger role in world trade - filling the vacuum left by the US.
At a press conference on Tuesday, a Beijing spokesman avoided answering questions about whether China would look to join the TPP.
China had been advocating open transparent trade routes in the Pacific region "along with win win solutions," he said.
"We believe in regional economic integration. We are for open and transparent regional economic arrangements. The economies of the Asia Pacific region are diverse. It's important to behave in a open way. We're ready to work with all sides to provide impetus for the Asia Pacific and the global economy."

Faraday Future accused of defaulting on $1.8 million in payments to visual-effects company www.businessinsider.com