THE Western Australian government has announced a A$40 million investment to accelerate critical minerals discoveries

Australian mining giant BHP Group said on Monday that it has signed an agreement for piloting of carbon capture and utilization technology with China's HBIS Group Co Ltd.

In the first two months, Guangdong's import and export with Brazil and Chile increased by 24.8 percent and 14.4 percent, respectively, it said.

China-Australia economic and trade relations now have scope for improvement, so the two countries should strengthen their cooperation, China's Ministry of Commerce said on Thursday.

Shipments from the four largest iron ore producers in Western Australia's (WA) Pilbara rebounded in the week to 18 February from a two-year low the previous week.

Australian resources firm BHP and Japanese trading house Mitsubishi plan to sell the 12mn t/yr Blackwater and 2.5mn t/yr Daunia mines from their BHP Mitsubishi Alliance (BMA) joint venture in Queensland.

Shu Jueting, a ministry spokeswoman, said the two sides discussed trade and investment issues and exchanged views on the further expansion of cooperation in emerging areas.

Earnings at Rio Tinto and BHP Group are seen declining 48% and 28%, respectively, for the six months to December 2022, while Fortescue's half-year earnings are set to slide about 16%, based on estimates from Visible Alpha and Vuma Financial.