After two consecutive sessions of gains, the local market slipped into the red today with the S&P-ASX 200 index closing 1.2% lower at 3755.7 points, while the All Ordinaries slipped 1.1% to 3753.9 points.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 2.1% to 8300.02 points overnight on investor jitters that General Motors was moving ever closer towards bankruptcy.
Closer to home, BHP Billiton closed 1.9% lower at $34.02, while rival Rio Tinto fell 0.6% to $63.99.
In the latest news on iron ore pricing settlements, POSCO has reportedly agreed to a 33% cut on iron ore fines and 44% cut on iron ore lump with Rio for the year to April 2010.
Dow Jones Newswires quoted POSCO spokeswoman as saying talks with two other major iron ore suppliers – BHP Billiton and Vale – were ongoing.
Today’s news follows Rio’s deal with Japan’s Nippon Steel on Tuesday for a 33% cut to its iron ore price for fines and 44% cut for lump for the 2009-10 contract year that started April 1.
However, analysts believe price settlements with Chinese steelmakers, who are pushing for more substantial drops in iron ore prices for fines and lump than the Rio-Nippon benchmark price, may still be a way off.
Meantime, Dow Jones reports that Fortescue Metals Group chief executive Andrew Forrest warned delegates at a conference in Sydney that Chinese steelmakers may be forced to pay spot prices if they don’t accept the Rio-Nippon benchmark price.
"If they don't accept the Nippon, Rio new benchmark, then they will confine themselves to the spot price for all time," the newswire reported Forrest as saying.
FMG was also in the news today after iron ore junior BC Iron announced it had struck an infrastructure deal with FMG over rail haulage and port services for its Nullagine iron ore project in the Pilbara.
FMG closed the session 2.7% lower at $2.56, while BC Iron entered a trading halt pending the release of a further announcement relating to the FMG deal.
On the London Metal Exchange, copper for three-month delivery gained 0.11% to $US4665 per tonne, nickel fell 0.04% to $13,395/t while zinc slipped 2.7% to $1460/t.
Spot gold was trading this afternoon at $946.50 per ounce, down 0.3%, in a quiet market. Newcrest Mining closed 0.4% higher at $A32.36, Lihir Gold gained 1.6% to $3.22 and Sino Gold Mining added 1% to $6.38.
OZ Minerals has announced the appointment of Terry Burgess as managing director and chief executive officer, subject to the miner’s $US1.2 billion bid with China Minmetals going ahead.
Burgess is expected to take up his position in August and will replace outgoing MD Andrew Michelmore who will take up a senior executive role with Minmetals.
OZ closed the session 4.6% lower at A84c.
Big movers by percentage on the Australian bourse today included Pioneer Nickel which shot to an intraday high of 3.9c, up 1.7c or 77%, on the back of assay results from RAB drilling at its Lignum Dam gold project, where the company achieved the best gold intersection to date from the project.
Pioneer Nickel cooled to close 1c higher at 3.2c.
