In an interview as part of the Reuters Latin American Investment Summit in Codelco's copper-coated offices in downtown Santiago, Nelson Pizarro said the company was aiming for medium-term investments in the isolated Asian nation, which appears to have significant untapped copper potential.

"We have a lot of interest. We're learning to milk camels," he said. "We're working to get the first documents that will allow us to advance in that area, and we hope to bring it about in the medium-term if the technicians confirm our initial perspective."

In Chile itself, Pizarro said Codelco was preparing to launch a broad sustainability program called "green copper," which will include broad use of wind and solar power in its operations and the use of water from the ocean rather than Chile's parched Atacama Desert.

As part of that, the company has recently settled on a short-list of bidders interested in constructing a $1.2 billion desalination plant, and hopes to award the contract toward the end of 2017, he said. In northern Chile, miners have increasingly looked to the ocean in recent years to supply the water-intensive process of copper mining without coming into conflict with local communities.

Codelco is also considering new port infrastructure, as its copper exports are being increasingly interrupted by waves hitting Chile's desert coasts, forcing the ports to close, said Pizarro.

"There are months with 10 days in which we can't send out ships ... That's something we've never seen before," he said. "It would seem to be a consequence of climate change. It concretely impacted us last year, and it's strongly impacting us this year."

Still, Pizarro said, Codelco was in line to meet its 2017 copper production target of around 1.7 million tonnes. That number would likely decrease about 3 percent or 4 percent in 2018, he added.

In terms of the global copper market, Pizarro said a number of factors, such as the needs of the burgeoning electric car industry, could mean average 2017 copper prices of above $2.60 per pound, significantly higher than recent years. That trend should consolidate in 2018, he added.

"The copper price, unless there's a great global crisis should be - I don't know if $2.90 - but yes in the $2.60 to $2.70 range next year."

Reporting by Gram Slattery; Editing by Tom Brown

Co-chaired by D.Davaasuren, the State Secretary of the Mongolian Foreign Ministry; and Kong Xuanyou, the Assistant Foreign Minister of China, the meeting considered the bilateral relations and cooperation issues.

The parties noted the Mongolia-China comprehensive strategic partnership relations have been intensively developing recent years, and expressed their willingness to boost the friendly ties and win-win cooperation. They underlined an importance of strengthening the political mutual trust.

Regarding the bilateral trade and economic cooperation, the sides concurred to realize works agreed during high-level cooperation. The Foreign Ministries agreed to collaborate in a project on the Tavantolgoi and Shivee-Ovoo railways and construction of apartments in place of ger areas and in exporting deeply-processed mining products to China.

The Mongolian side emphasized non-refundable aid and soft-loans from the China’s government have contributed to the Mongolian socio-economic development, and expressed its aspiration to accelerate implementation of projects with the loans and assistance.

The countries will focus attention to launching actions of the Humanitarian Council established last May and boosting the cooperation in the culture, education, health and tourism spheres through a specific plan, so the parties agreed to hold the Council’s 1st meeting in fourth quarter of this year. At the meeting, the parties exchanged views on the international and regional cooperation as well. 
B.Khuder

Iron ore's latest rally comes after Shanghai rebar futures – the world's most traded steel contract – jumped to the highest level since March 2013 on Thursday reaching 4,016 yuan ($601) a tonne on Thursday.

Chinese traders are worried about a steel supply crunch as Beijing steps ups efforts to crack down on polluting plants. The country wants to cut output by as much as 50% during winter months.

In Hebei province, China's key producing region, steelmakers have until September 1 to comply with stringent new emissions regulations or would be shut down. Some 120 million tonnes of low-quality steel capacity were shuttered during the first six month of the year.

Beijing's policies to clean up and consolidate the domestic steel industry is playing into the hands of iron ore exporting countries with low grade furnaces – particularly those that use scrap – being forced out of business. Authorities are also clamping down on pollution from sintering plants, a necessary extra step when using low grade ore (domestic Chinese iron content averages only about 20%) to make steel.

A worry for the industry has been high stockpiles in China and inventories at the country's ports remain near all-time highs dipping to 139.2 million tonnes last week compared to the record set June 23 at 141.5 million tonnes according to Steelhome data. However, traders tell Reuters "steel producers are increasingly opting for higher grade iron ore to boost efficiency":

"There isn't a lot of high-grade around and Chinese mills are preferring high-grade because they want to produce more with steel prices rising," said a trader in Jinan in China's eastern Shandong province.

The document was signed on Friday by B.Bat-Erdene, head of the UBDII; and D.Avirmed, chair of the program. Accordingly, the parties will cooperate in developing industrial and innovation sectors as well as import substitution industrialization.

Reflected in the “Happy City” program within the 2016-2020 Action Program of UB Mayor, the UBDII has objectives to boost innovation and industries in settlement areas, to create centers for promoting goods and services and to introduce know-how, progressive technologies, innovation products and industries and franchising.

They held talks with the Mongolian delegation, led by Minister of Food, Agriculture and Light Industry Sergelen Purev.

The two sides discussed measures on cooperation between the two nations, including diplomacy, defense and security, economics, trade and investment, agriculture and natural calamity prevention, science and technology, transport, education, culture, sports and tourism, labor, health and other sectors.

They agreed on cooperative orientations and discussed ways to improve the effectiveness of cooperation to meet their Governments’ demand.

In the future, they will promote exports of advantageous items such as agricultural and aquatic products.

The two sides consented to exchange information and create a favorable environment for their businesses to join international and domestic activities and exhibitions and the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on co-operation in inspections and animal quarantine inked in April 2017.

The same occasion, Minister Nguyen Xuan Cuong met with Mongolian PM Jargaltulga Erdenebat.

The PM hailed the importance of the meeting of the Committee in the context that the two sides are making efforts to consolidate the traditional and friendship relations, which was set up in 1954.

The Premier underlined the above meeting widely discussed the bilateral relations and cooperation, giving an impetus to boosting the comprehensive strategic partnership ties.

“Last May, I visited China and participated in the Belt and Road Summit in Beijing. During this meeting, I shared the bilateral relations and cooperation issues with Xi Jinpin, the PRC President; and Li Keqian, counterpart of China. These meetings contributed to deepening our comprehensive strategic partnership relations in all spheres,” Mr Erdenebat said.

“We aim to realize works agreed during these visits and to provide our people with profits resulted by the high-level visits,” Mr Erdenebat emphasized, and then asked the Assistant FM to support this matter.

Expressed thanks to the Premier for an audience, Mr Kong Xuanyou agreed with an importance of implementing the concurred works, and said he will convey the issue to relevant officials.

Iron ore's latest rally comes after Shanghai rebar futures – the world's most traded steel contract – jumped to the highest level since March 2013 on Thursday reaching 4,016 yuan ($601) a tonne on Thursday.

Chinese traders are worried about a steel supply crunch as Beijing steps ups efforts to crack down on polluting plants. The country wants to cut output by as much as 50% during winter months.

In Hebei province, China's key producing region, steelmakers have until September 1 to comply with stringent new emissions regulations or would be shut down. Some 120 million tonnes of low-quality steel capacity were shuttered during the first six month of the year.

Beijing's policies to clean up and consolidate the domestic steel industry is playing into the hands of iron ore exporting countries with low grade furnaces – particularly those that use scrap – being forced out of business. Authorities are also clamping down on pollution from sintering plants, a necessary extra step when using low grade ore (domestic Chinese iron content averages only about 20%) to make steel.

A worry for the industry has been high stockpiles in China and inventories at the country's ports remain near all-time highs dipping to 139.2 million tonnes last week compared to the record set June 23 at 141.5 million tonnes according to Steelhome data. However, traders tell Reuters "steel producers are increasingly opting for higher grade iron ore to boost efficiency":

"There isn't a lot of high-grade around and Chinese mills are preferring high-grade because they want to produce more with steel prices rising," said a trader in Jinan in China's eastern Shandong province.

Volocopter has designed an electric, flying taxi that will start shuttling passengers around Dubai as part of a five-year testing period with Dubai's Road and Transport Authority. The tests will begin by the end of the year.