"Public buses in the capital city are now the most popular target for thieves," the NPA said in a statement. "Therefore, the NPA and traffic authorities have been installing surveillance cameras on the public transport to reduce pickpocket crimes and ensure public security."

There were a total of 1,280 registered pickpocket crimes in the country last year, up 46.6 percent from the previous year, according to the police agency.

The agency noted that one in five bag snatches and pickpocket crimes now occurs on public buses.

Foreign Minister D.Tsogtbaatar pointed out the broad opportunities for the expansion of bilateral trade and economic cooperation such as establishing a joint food processing plant, thus exporting products to the neighboring countries, purchasing equipment from Belarus, and bringing Mongolian products to the country’s market.

Mr. Utiupin Pavel Vladimirovich underlined the importance of promptly embarking on the projects under discussion in emergency, agricultural, road and transport and other sectors as soon as the Mongolian Parliament ratifies the Intergovernmental Agreement on export loan. He also expressed willingness to continue reciprocal high-level visits.

The 2.5 percent of discounted royalty on gold mining expired on Jan 1. From then on, 5 to 10 percent royalty taxes on gold mining have been imposed on miners, driving in the central bank’s gold purchase down 71.6 percent yearon-year from January to March.

Mongolia‘s parliament has set the gold royalty at a 5 percent rate to recover the BoM’s gold purchases.

Gold purchase by the Bank of Mongolia has been increasing sharply thanks to the discounted royalty on gold mining, the central bank said in a statement, noting that it has purchased a total of 5.2 tons of gold since the new rate came into force on April 8.

Purchasing gold is said to be one of the key instruments for the Mongolian central bank to increase its official foreign exchange reserves. The central bank of Mongolia purchased only 12.7 tons of gold in 2014. Thanks to the low royalty taxes on gold with the 2014 amendments, its annual gold purchase almost doubled in 2018, reaching 22 tons, according to the BoM.

During the meeting, Minister B.Enkh-Amgalan expressed his interest in introducing French advanced technology, attracting investment and training personnel. He also expressed willingness to renew the Agreement on air relations that expired in 2016, train the Eurocopter pilots for emergency situations and introduce the helicopter maintenance services to Mongolia. In turn, Ambassador Philippe Merlin expressed support for the proposal.

In recent years, the number of Mongolian visitors and businesses in France have increased. In order to increase the trade turnover, develop tourism and facilitate automobile travel among individuals and enterprises, the sides agreed to establish the Agreement on international road transportation relations between the governments of Mongolia and France.

The price of the steelmaking raw material is up a stunning 73% year-to-date and is now trading at its highest since January 2014.

Iron ore’s rally is primarily supply driven. Vale has suspended 93m tonnes of production following January’s deadly dam collapse in Brazil, while Western Australian output was hampered by storms.

However, the supply crunch is beginning to ease. Rio de Janeiro-based Vale recently received permission to bring its 30m tonnes a year Brucutu operation back into full production.

According to cargo tracking data supplied by Refinitiv,Brazilian exports in June was roughly 500,000 tonnes more than in January this year, with the last monthly data not impacted by the Brumadinho disaster.

At the same time, Australian exports are hitting records with shipments leaving the busiest iron ore terminal in the world – Port Hedland in Western Australia – up more than 20% year on year at the end of June.

China imports around 70% of the world’s seaborne iron ore which is estimated at more than 1.5 billion annually and Beijing’s economic stimulus has also buoyed the market. Chinese steel output is up by more than 10% so far this year, and is now running at an annualized rate of over 1 billion tonnes, and port stocks are 17% below levels seen this time last year.

But here the outlook is also becoming murkier and in its latest quarterly report, the Australia’s Department of Industry predicts Chinese steel output – which represents half global production – has reached its high water mark.

The official forecaster of the world’s top exporting country sees Chinese steel production peaking at 940 million tonnes this year before going into a steady decline, dragging down imports in the process.

This, coupled with supply returning to normal levels, will see the price fall to half today’s levels in 2021. The Australia government’s office of the Chief Economist estimates iron ore prices would average $80 a tonne this year before falling to an average of just $57 a tonne in 2021 as the seaborne market returns to surplus.

The price used by the Dept. is free-on-board Australia, so for comparison with the benchmark, add between $6 – $10 for cost and freight.

While the proportion of Bitcoin transactions dedicated to illegal purchases is declining, about $515 million of the digital coin has already been spent this year on the so-called dark web, according to the firm, which helps companies such as cryptocurrency exchanges investigate and prevent illegal transactions. Dark-net spending in Bitcoin peaked in 2017, at $872 million, and declined last year as the coin’s price took a dramatic dive.

The findings are a reminder of the regulatory risks surrounding the digital tokens, which are beloved by criminals looking to preserve some degree of anonymity. Last month, the Financial Action Task Force -- an inter-governmental organization focused on combating money laundering and terrorist financing -- began mandating strict know-your-customer measures for crypto exchanges and custodians. Also in June, Europol met with companies in the space to trade tips on best practices in detecting crypto-facilitated crime.

Bitcoin Darknet Market Activity
Of all the illegal online marketplaces, Hydra is the largest, according to Chainalysis, which examined transactions on the Bitcoin blockchain to see how much was being spent on these sites. Drugs are the most prominent category of goods sold, but child porn and stolen credit-card information are also in demand, Chainalysis found. Bitcoin is the most popular cryptocurrency accepted on these marketplaces, followed by Monero, Chainalysis said.

While the growth in illicit Bitcoin spending may be alarming, a major caveat is that the proportion of Bitcoin transactions tied to illicit deals is declining. Illegal activity has accounted for less than 1% of all Bitcoin activity so far this year -- down from 7% in 2012, according to Hannah Curtis, senior product manager of data at Chainalysis.

The event marked the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Russia, as well as China and Mongolia. Highlighting the development of the Belt and Road Initiative and seeking opportunities in Hulunbuir, the exhibition gathered a wide range of featured products from 645 exhibitors from the three countries as well as 25 Belt and Road countries and regions. Exhibitors from Japan and Republic of Korea also attended the event for the first time.

Senior officials including the president of the parliament of the Dornod Province in Mongolia, the labor union chairman of the Republic of Buryatia, deputy director of Inner Mongolia's commercial bureau as well as exhibitor representatives attended the opening ceremony.

The fair has been held for 15 years, with its scale and level rising continuously. It has become a famous brand for the Hailar-Chita-Choibalsan sub-regional economic and trade cooperation, which has effectively promoted the trade and cultural exchanges in the neighboring regions of the three countries, strengthening the construction of the China-Russia-Mongolia cooperation pilot zone and facilitating the region's deep integration into the Belt and Road Initiative development, according to Jiang Hong, Hulunbuir's mayor.

Hulunbeier prioritizes ecological and green development, and is committed to seeking steady high-quality development. The city will expand opening-up, seek cooperation and mutual benefits, and strive to pursue wider cooperation among the three countries, she added.

"The 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Russia, as well as China and Mongolia will be a new historical starting point for future cooperation. With this exhibition as a platform, I hope friends from all walks of life at home and abroad will further share the development opportunities of Hulunbeier by enhancing exchanges and cooperation," Jiang said.

Designed to be an international, professional and market-oriented event, the fair includes a wide range of activities including commodity exhibitions, economic and trade negotiations, project promotion, conference forums and cultural exchanges.

The event provides an international platform for exchanges, trade and economic negotiations for exhibitors from the three neighbouring countries and the Belt and Road region, and facilitate the construction of the China-Russia-Mongolia cooperation pilot zone. Cooperation between Hulunbeier and the neighboring regions of Russia and Mongolia are enhanced, boosting the high-quality development of the regional economy.