According to Didi, “the government seeks to support the development of the real economy sectors with innovative financial services.” Didi’s peak for daily ride-sharing orders has surpassed 30 million, said the company’s CEO Cheng Wei in early June, adding that the bike-sharing business saw daily orders reach 10 million.

China’s central bank set up a research team six years ago to explore the possibility of launching its own digital currency. In May, the bank revealed plans to have the digital yuan ready in time for the 2022 Winter Olympics. Limited trials are already underway in four cities across the country.

The digital yuan, which is projected to replace paper money, will be linked to the holder's smartphone number, with transactions taking place through an app. Users will be able to transfer money between accounts by tapping phones, much like having physical cash change hands. The currency will be legal tender, so it could be exchanged without needing a bank as an intermediary.

“It’s logical to expect gold to outperform most assets in an environment of unparalleled central-bank easing, and we foresee the precious metal maintaining the upper hand in most scenarios,” Bloomberg Intelligence senior commodity strategist Mike McGlone wrote.

According to him, slow economic recovery is going to put pressure on commodities, except for gold, which will head to its record high of $1,900 an ounce. “Depression-like global conditions should press the BCOM [Bloomberg Commodity Index – Ed.] below the 2016 trough and gold above its all-time high, about $1,900 an ounce,” he said.

Gold has been trading above its new base level of $1,700 an ounce since mid-April. “Every day that passes above this level builds a firmer base for the metal to make the next move in its stair-step rally,” McGlone said.

“The coronavirus is creating almost perfect conditions for commodity price deflation, central-bank easing and rising gold prices… Gold stands to be a primary beneficiary.”

The strategist added that, “Enduring US-China trade tension and an unlikely V-shaped global economic recovery keep our price view as unfavorable for broad commodities and favorable for gold. We see little to prevent the metal from reaching all-time highs and the Bloomberg Commodity Spot Index from extending its 2016 low.”

“We are exceptionally pleased with drill results from the new Midfield Southeast Zone, including one metre of 582 g/t gold within an intersection of 5.5 metres grading 126 g/t gold, in a near-surface region of the Bayan Khundii deposit,” said Peter Akerley, President and CEO. “A second intersection, 40 metres north, of 15 metres of 26 g/t gold, including one metre grading 338 g/t gold, confirms the existence of a new high-grade zone in an area that is currently classified as waste or low-grade material that could add meaningfully to resources during the early stages of the project.

“While we are rapidly advancing the Bayan Khundii development, with results of the project’s bankable feasibility study anticipated in the coming weeks, over the past six months we have demonstrated the potential of the Khundii gold district, with high-grade intersections at Bayan Khundii and Altan Nar, and the discovery of the Dark Horse prospect,” Akerley continued. “Further results are forthcoming from recent work at Striker and Dark Horse, where multiple instances of visible gold were encountered. We are developing follow-up drilling campaigns, prioritizing near-mine expansion opportunities that are expected to add to our established resource base.”

Intersected 5.5 metres of 125.9 g/t gold, including one metre of 581.6 g/t gold, in BKD-288, beginning 11.5 metres downhole; drilled 15 metres of 25.6 g/t gold, including one metre of 338 g/t gold, beginning at 14.9 metres, in BKD-274, 40 metres north of BKD-288; intersected anomalous gold mineralization in 16 of 18 holes, all within 25 metres from the surface;

Interpreted as the intersection of the stacked northwest-trending quartz adularia veins, with a north-south-trending conceptual feeder structure; target area classified as waste or low-grade stockpile material in the current resource; projected to be mined in year one of the current mining schedule.

Erdene has a mining licence for the Bayan Khundii deposit and plans to start producing gold in late 2021.

This is the first time Prime Minister of Mongolia appointing ministers of the cabinet in accordance with the recent amendments to the Constitution of Mongolia, which were adopted on November 14, 2019. The parliament, on July 7, approved the cabinet to have a total of 14 ministries, including 6 ministries of general function and 8 sectoral ministries. The newly-appointed cabinet members are:

Deputy Prime Minister - Ya.Sodbaatar
Head of Cabinet Secretariat - L.Oyun-Erdene
Minister of Environment and Tourism - D.Sarangerel
Minister of Defense - G.Saikhanbayar
Minister of Foreign Affairs - N.Enkhtaivan
Minister of Finance - Ch.Khurelbaatar
Minister of Justice and Internal Affairs - Kh.Nyambaatar
Minister of Labor and Social Protection - A.Ariunzaya
Minister of Construction and Urban Development - B.Munkhbaatar
Minister of Education and Science - L.Tsedevsuren
Minister of Road and Transport Development - L.Khaltar
Minister of Culture - S.Chuluun
Minister Mining and Heavy Industry - G.Yondon
Minister of Food, Agriculture and Light Industry - Z.Mendsaikhan
Minister of Energy - N.Tavinbekh
Minister of Health - T.Munkhsaikhan

As the Constitution of Mongolia reads, a member of the government shall be appointed or dismissed after presenting to the State Great Khural and President of the Mongolia, Prime Minister Khurelsukh presented the new ministers to President Kh.Battulga today, and afterwards, the ministers took the oath to the Parliament during today’s plenary session of the parliament.

Also the Constitution now allows only Prime Minister and up to 4 members of the government to hold the position of parliament member concurrently and to comply with this, following four members of the 17 ministers are current members of the parliament.

• Minister of Environment and Tourism D.Sarangerel

• Minister of Justice and Internal Affairs Kh.Nyambaatar

• Minister of Finance Ch.Khurelbaatar

• Head of Cabinet Secretariat, Minister L.Oyun-Erdene

When appointing the cabinet members, it is said the principle to fill the positions with professional appointment based on the nominees’ qualifications and professional standards has been followed

The company made its first gold sales starting on 23 April. Gold and silver is being produced and sold every 14 days. To date, Steppe has now sold a total of 15,389 oz gold and 4,978 oz silver in six separate deliveries. This has generated net cash flow, after royalty payments, of USD 25.3 million. Average achieved gold price for the sales to date is USD 1,725/oz.

As of 30 June, Steppe Gold has mined, crushed and stacked approximately 715,000 tonnes of ore onto Cell 1 where leaching continues. A further 160,000 tonnes of ore has been delivered to the ROM pad and is being crushed and stacked. Stacking of ore at Cell 2 has already commenced and leaching will begin in July.

Regular grade reconciliations continue to show strong outperformance to the published resource estimate with average grades of 2 g/t gold and some evidence of higher grade zones. Daily mining of ore continues from the ATO1 open cut with the ATO4 open cut being brought on-line in the coming months. Both the mining and stacking rates are being scaled up.

Despite the COVID-19 travel restrictions and border closing, Steppe Gold is continuing its operations without any material changes affecting the company. The company remains on track to produce approximately 60,000 oz gold in its first year of production at cash costs of circa USD 500/oz from the ATO mine.

With strong cash generation from the ATO mine, the company is now working on expanding the open pit and processing facilities to increase gold production to a targeted 150,000 oz gold per annum.

Exploration drilling continues at ATO1, ATO4 and the Mungu discovery with two rigs. Steppe Gold has also begun exploration at its Uudam Khundii Project with a trenching program underway and followed by an initial drilling program. (resource world)

Elixir managing director Neil Young said the identification of fully gas-saturated coals suggest a “potentially very energy-intensive per acre resource” has been found. The company has also recommenced its field programme at the South Mongolian production sharing contract with the drilling of Nomgon-2 due to start “shortly”.

According to the company, full gas saturation for a CSG play can mean “potentially very positive” consequences including the possibility for pilot production design to be “substantially simpler and cheaper”. In addition, Elixir expects production testing to be characterised by early gas generation as opposed to a lengthy water-producing phase to induce pressure draw-down and gas breakthrough.

The company said water management issues could also become simpler and cheaper in the development phase, thus “significantly improving gas production economics”. “Identifying fully gas-saturated coals in Nomgon-1 is an excellent result, given the very positive consequences this should have for coal seam gas pilot production testing and ultimately, a field development,” Mr Young said.

Depending on the success of its appraisal campaign scheduled for this year, Elixir plans to conduct a pilot production test in 2021.

The second Nomgon well is due to spud shortly and Elixir said it expects the well to produce the “same suite of test results” as Nomgon-1. These results will become progressively available as the well reaches its target depth. Samples will either be analysed on-site or sent to laboratories in Mongolia and China.