It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Saturday, March 21, 2026
Li
SQM-Codelco tie-up to submit environmental study for Salar Futuro lithium project in June
Novandino Litio, the joint venture between Chile’s Codelco and SQM, will submit the environmental impact study for its Salar Futuro lithium project in June, local media reported on Thursday.
The project is estimated to cost between $2 billion and $3.5 billion.
Salar Futuro aims to produce 280,000 to 300,000 metric tons of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) annually.
Codelco chairman Maximo Pacheco told journalists that Salar Futuro represents the most important challenge for the partnership.
Codelco’s 2026 copper production will exceed 2025 levels, Pacheco said.
He acknowledged it was “perhaps an error” to tackle four megaprojects simultaneously at Codelco, calling it a “titanic task.”
Pacheco is set to leave his role on May 25. He ruled out leaving the position early.
(By Kylie Madry and Fabian Cambero; Editing by Brendan O’Boyle)
US, Japan to focus rare earths cooperation on select group of minerals at first
The US and Japan on Thursday released an action plan for their efforts to develop alternatives to China for critical minerals and rare earths supply chains, focusing initially on price floors for a select group of minerals.
A joint US-Japan statement released by the US Trade Representative’s Office during Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s visit to the White House said the two countries aimed to deliver “concrete, near-term results towards securing mutual supply chain resilience.”
The statement said the two countries will discuss coordinated trade policies such as a border-adjusted price floor mechanism, “focusing in the first instance on a select group of critical minerals.” They did not identify which minerals would be considered first for price floors.
Takaichi and US President Donald Trump signed a framework agreement on rare earths in October 2025 in Tokyo as both countries were struggling with Chinese export controls.
The action plan announced on Thursday does not mention China by name, but refers to a need to correct “distortions resulting from pervasive non-market policies and practices (that) have left critical minerals supply chains of market-oriented economies vulnerable to a myriad of disruptions, including economic coercion.”
The two sides will consult on how price floors and other trade provisions can fit into a plurilateral critical minerals supply agreement involving other countries, the statement said.
They also will work to identify specific projects in each country and elsewhere for critical minerals mining, processing and manufacturing that meet internationally recognized responsible business practices and that should get priority financing and policy support, the statement added.
US-based Albemarle, the world’s largest lithium producer, is “exploring opportunities” for potential Japanese investment or supply deals with the company’s under-construction North Carolina lithium project, according to the statement.
An Albemarle spokesperson said the company had nothing to add.
Japan’s Mitsubishi Materials is in talks with Indiana-based ReElement Technologies for a potential equity stake or joint venture, according to the statement. A representative for ReElement was not immediately available to comment.
Tokyo and Washington also agreed to share information on mining standards, technical cooperation, and geological mapping of potential critical mineral deposits. They also agreed to coordinate stockpiling of critical minerals, rapid responses to prevent supply disruptions and joint actions to address economic coercion, the statement said.
(By David Lawder and Ernest Scheyder; Editing by Paul Simao and Daniel Wallis)
The Vatican on Friday launched an international project encouraging disinvestment from the mining sector, in an unusual initiative by the Catholic Church to steer investments away from a specific industry.
Officials said the new initiative, backed by senior Church leaders and about 40 other faith-based institutions, would push companies to treat their workers justly and protect the local environment near their operations, or risk loss of investments.
“In many regions of the world, the expansion of the mining industry has generated profound social tensions and serious environmental impacts,” Cardinal Fabio Baggio, a Vatican official, said at a press conference.
He called the new effort “an act of consistency with our faith (and) with the defense of human dignity”.
Pope Francis, who died last year, made many passionate appeals during his 12-year tenure for mining companies to adopt more stringent business practices, but the Vatican had not previously launched a disinvestment initiative.
It did however urge Catholics in 2020 to disinvest from the armaments and fossil fuel industries.
Rev. Dario Bossi, one of the coordinators of the new project, said it would invite Catholics and faith groups “to withdraw investments from the mining sector as an ethical response to its social and environmental impacts”.
The Vatican did not provide a list of organizations involved in the new initiative, and did not specify any mining companies that could be a target for disinvestment.
Amid a surge in global need for batteries and other high-tech items, demand for the likes of lithium, cobalt and copper is expected to triple by 2030, and quadruple by 2040, according to the International Energy Agency.
Some mining companies have acknowledged a need to change their business practices. In 2001, a group of industry CEOs launched the International Council on Mining and Metals, which advocates for responsible mining practices.
Guatemala Cardinal Alvaro Ramazzini, who was part of Friday’s launch, said the new Vatican initiative would seek “to make governments and business leaders understand that what is legal does not always correspond to the value of justice”.
(Reporting by Joshua McElwee; Editing by Jan Harvey)
US House Democrat blasts Commerce’s ‘highly concerning’ $1.6B USA Rare Earth deal
US Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren speaking with attendees at the 2019 California Democratic Party State Convention. Credit: Gage Skidmore | Wikimedia Commons, under licence CC BY-SA 2.0.
A senior House Democrat accused US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Thursday of structuring Washington’s $1.58 billion investment into USA Rare Earth in a way that gives the government “highly concerning” leverage over the company while boosting Lutnick’s family-run investment firm.
In a 10-page letter, Representative Zoe Lofgren, the ranking member of the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, wrote that the proposed deal would let the Commerce Department keep an equity stake even if it decides not to invest while also leaving the company reliant on a $1.5 billion private capital raise led by Cantor Fitzgerald, the financial firm previously led by Lutnick and now run by his sons.
“This deal creates a massive personal conflict by granting the Secretary of Commerce overwhelming leverage to influence the behavior of a private company while positioning him to promote the interests of his sons as a condition of his support,” wrote Lofgren, a California Democrat.
The letter offers a glimpse into the types of investigations Democrats could pursue if they regain power in Washington after the November midterm elections, as lawmakers scrutinize the administration’s aggressive use of federal financing and equity stakes to reshape supply chains for critical minerals and other strategic industries.
CEO Barbara Humpton and a spokesperson for USA Rare Earth were not immediately available to comment. The Commerce Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Funding in exchange for equity stake
The Commerce Department’s CHIPS Program Office in January signed a non-binding letter of intent to provide up to $1.58 billion in funding to USA Rare Earth — including a $277 million grant and a $1.3 billion loan — in exchange for an equity stake of between 8% and 16%.
The funds are slated to help the company develop a mine in Sierra Blanca, Texas, slated to open by 2028, and a magnet manufacturing plant in Stillwater, Oklahoma, which is expected to open this year.
According to the company’s regulatory filings, the government could retain its equity stake even if the deal falls through or if funding is clawed back, a provision Lofgren called “deeply strange” for a federal investment.
The company must meet a series of milestones to receive the funding, including raising additional private capital, completing technical studies and demonstrating market demand for its manufacturing plans, according to the filing.
Lofgren argues those conditions could leave the company dependent on the discretion of Commerce officials and create the potential for undue influence, especially given that the private capital raise from Cantor Fitzgerald is a condition for finalizing the government investment.
“The interplay between the company’s vulnerability and your personal conflict is a glaring red flag,” Lofgren wrote.
The lawmaker also questioned whether the Commerce Department has legal authority to take equity stakes in companies under the CHIPS and Science Act, arguing that the law’s “other transaction” authority does not allow government stakes in private firms.
The Trump administration has used similar structures to take equity positions in a range of companies, arguing the investments are needed to strengthen domestic supply chains and national security.
Lofgren asked the department to provide the committee with documents tied to the deal’s negotiation by April 3.
Reuters reported in January that a US Senate committee is separately reviewing at least one other equity deal in the critical minerals sector.
(By Jarrett Renshaw and Ernest Scheyder; Editing by Sergio Non and Rod Nickel)
AG
China pulls silver from global markets to meet surging demand
China’s ravenous appetite for silver lifted overseas purchases to an eight-year high at the start of 2026, as importers fed a surge in industrial and investment demand.
The world’s biggest buyer pulled in over 790 tons in the first two months, including nearly 470 tons in February, the highest ever for that month, according to Chinese customs data on Friday. Strong demand has pushed local prices well above international benchmarks, whittling down already-low exchange stockpiles and hoovering up metal from abroad.
Silver prices have never had such a volatile start to a year, soaring about 70% on a wave of speculative buying from China and elsewhere, before abruptly giving up their gains at the end of January. The strong import figures suggest physical consumption in China has been sustained despite shifts in trading flows.
Demand has come from both retail investors piling into silver bars, an alternative to increasingly pricey gold, and solar manufacturers front-loading production ahead of the removal of export tax rebates on April 1. The solar industry consumes about a fifth of annual supply, and is overwhelmingly located in China.
Demand for physical bars is very strong, and solar cell manufacturers “are going gangbusters,” said Rhona O’Connell, head of market analysis for EMEA and Asia at StoneX Group Inc. “At the same time, inventories in Chinese exchanges have been falling lower and lower, which has its own psychological effect.”
Much of the metal has flowed through Hong Kong, a gateway for precious metals headed to the mainland, as traders sought to profit from an attractive arbitrage opportunity. In the first two months, prices in the territory for the large silver bars traded by banks have attracted a premium of as much as $8 an ounce, when they usually trade at a discount to the benchmark in London, said Stanley Cheung, managing director of AC Precious Metals Refinery Ltd.
China’s lofty imports have yet to disrupt the London market, thanks to a record inflow of silver into the global trading hub following an historic squeeze last year. Less silver held in exchange-traded funds around the world, which have dropped this year by more than 1,900 tons, has also freed up more metal.
“The London market is behaving very well despite this strong demand for silver in China,” said Daniel Ghali, senior commodity strategist at TD Securities Inc. “For the first time in more than a year, the market can face this scale of demand without resulting in significant price dislocations or disruptions.”
Looser supply in London has allowed the cost of borrowing silver to ease, although longer-dated leases are still more expensive, due to the volatility in prices and as a precaution against another squeeze.
Visible inventories tracked by major exchanges from New York to Shanghai are either falling or sitting well below their long-term averages, suggesting metal remains scarce in the broader system. And the market has reason to be worried.
“China is one of the world’s most significant markets for both industrial consumption and silver investment,” said Simone Knobloch, chief operating officer of major Swiss refinery Valcambi SA. “The feedback we receive from the market indicates strong interest in physical products.”
The developing appetite for silver as a cheaper replacement for gold has made investment bars — ranging from 20 grams to one kilogram — common in the Shuibei market in Shenzhen, the center of China’s retail bullion trade.
“Silver has been a hit among retail investors and sellers,” said Song Jiangzhen, a researcher at Guangdong Southern Gold Market Academy.
He said there’s been a change in the mindset of consumers, who increasingly view gold as inaccessible. The white metal is currently trading at about $70 an ounce, while gold has fluctuated around $5,000 an ounce this year after a barnstorming rally.
Bullion dealers welcome the shift, said Song. Cheaper bars mean less pressure on financing. Many dealers have increased their silver stockpiles, tripling total inventory in Shuibei to around 300 tons in recent months, according to his estimate.
For now, though, markets are breathing a little easier. The Chinese premium on silver has softened and solar demand has slowed as the rebate deadline nears, said Yuan Zheng, an analyst at the Shanghai-based trading arm of Henan Jinli Gold and Lead Group Co. “We’ve moved into a situation of more supply than demand in the near term.”
That’s showing up in Shenzhen, where the silver bars on display are finding fewer takers. But it’s unlikely to be the end of the story.
“All it takes is just another surge in prices,” said Song. “Retail investors tend to follow rising trends rather than buy dips.”
(By Yihui Xie and Jack Ryan)
AU
CHART: Billions wiped of mining stocks as gold, silver, copper prices plummet
Gold (and copper and silver) bears are out. Image: The Scott
Stock losses for world’s biggest mining companies near 30% since war’s start as copper enters bear market, silver falls 40% from high and gold suffers worst week in decades.
Gold futures in New York fell by $225 an ounce from opening levels to last trade at $4,492 an ounce by late afternoon, a 3.5% decline on the day and more than 11% for the week. As usual silver’s swings were wilder with the precious metal exchanging hands for $67.81 in after hours trade, a 6.9% drop from the start of trading on Friday.
Copper ended the day down 4.0% and was last worth 5.30 per pound ($11,690 a tonne), down 7.4% for the week. Gold, silver and copper entered a technical bear market with gold down more than $1,100 or just over 20% from its January 29 record, silver dropping 44% and copper giving up just shy of 20% or more than $2,800 per tonne from its all-time high struck at the same time.
Gold, silver and platinum stocks were hardest hit with Newmont (NYSE:NEM) now trading 26.3% below levels seen just before the start of the Iran war at the end of February after Friday’s heavy selling which saw 30.7 million shares traded.
Barrick Mining (NYSE:B) is down 26.8% over the same period with 29.1 million shares exchanging hands on Friday. Newmont is now worth $104 billion in New York down from a peak of $143 billion at the end of January while Barrick’s market worth is down $27 billion since then for a $62 billion market cap on Friday.
Shares in Anglogold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) are down an eye-watering 37.4% so far in March for a market value of $40 billion while Gold Fields (NYSE:GFI) has lost 33.6% to $35 billion. Kinross Gold’s slide reached 28.3% for a market cap of $32 billion.
Royalty and streaming companies Wheaton Precious Metals (NYSE:WPM) has fallen just under 30% since the start of hostilities in the middle east and is now worth $52 billion compared to a more modest drop of 20.7% for Franco-Nevada at a $43 billion evaluation.
Over the counter units of silver miner Fresnillo (OTCPK:FNLPF) trading in the US is down 31.3% in March shaving its market cap to $30 billion while Pan American Silver (NYSE:PAAS) has suffered a 32.1% decline to under $20 billion. Valterra Platinum (OTCPK:ANGPY) has been one of the worst performers dropping 35.3% from a multi-year high hit on the Friday before the bombing campaign started, ending up at a $20 billion market cap just three weeks later.
Some copper producers and diversified companies fared better than the precious metal sector but losses top 20% across the board with only a couple of exceptions.
BHP (NYSE:BHP) shares trading in the US have shed 20.0%, sliding from a record high valuation (for any mining stock in history) of $213 billion at the start of the war. Record profits for the Melbourne-based company and China as its main customer has not been enough to shield the firm from the broader fallout of the war.
Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) underperformed other copper majors, with losses for March of 31.1% to $126 billion, seeing the company in the Grupo Mexico stable lose its edge as the world’s second most valuable miner over Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO) which has come of relatively lightly with a 16.3% decline to a $143 billion market cap.
Rio Tinto stock received a lift after the company said on Monday it has gained control of acreage in Arizona needed to build the Resolution mine, a project slated to become one of the largest US sources of copper. Rio Tinto said it would now embark on a $500 million drilling campaign to delineate the deposit which is co-owned by BHP.
Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) was one of the most heavily traded mining stocks with more than 25 million shares exchanging hands. After a 23.5% retreat for March, Freeport is now worth $74 billion after briefly reaching the $100 billion mark (only the 8th mining stock to ever do so) in February.
A Chilean business paper earlier this week reported that the Phoenix-based company has begun the environmental permitting process for a $7.5 billion expansion of its majority owned El Abra copper mine in Chile. The expansion would increase annual copper output by more than 300,000 tonnes, compared with 91,000 tonnes produced last year.
Glencore (OTCPK:GLNCY) has managed to emerge relatively unscathed, only losing 4.3% since the start of US and Israeli operations in Iran in part to its extensive oil trading business which should do well as crude and gas prices jump. The Switzerland-headquartered company trades around 4 million barrels of oil equivalent per day. Glencore is now worth $81 billion and year to date the company is now the best performer among mining’s heavyweights with a 25.6% advance.
There was speculation last week from large investors in Glencore that a recent surge in coal prices will help bring Rio Tinto back to the table for a fresh attempt at creating the world’s biggest mining company after meeting with leaders of both companies in Australia.
Vale (NYSE:VALE) stock has declined by 18.2% for a market cap of $61 billion, one of the better performing large-cap miners. The CEO of Vale’s base metals spin-off, Shaun Usmar, told Bloomberg at the beginning of March the sprawling nickel-and-copper business is ready for a potential initial public offering by midyear, sooner than previously indicated. The task of bringing down costs, lowering capital intensity and accelerating the project pipeline is moving ahead at a faster clip than previously envisaged Usmar said.
Anglo American (OTCPK:NGLOY) losses since the beginning of the month have climbed to 23.4% matching the decline of merger partner Teck Resources (NYSE:TECK) affording the Canadian miner a $22 billion valuation compared to Anglo’s $41 billion.
Punter’s favourite Ivanhoe Mines (TSX:IVN) is now trading 30.5% lower for March at $11 billion while copper specialist First Quantum Minerals (TSX:FQM) has fallen by 30.5% to $18 billion over the same period. Pink sheets of Antofagasta (OTCPK:ANFGF), and KGHM (OTCPK:KGHPF) dropped 28.2% to $41 billion and 21.5% to $14 billion respectively.
Chinese heavyweight Zijin Mining (OTCPK: ZIJMY) has settled in as the world’s fourth most valuable mining firm despite its US over the counter units plunging by 30.2% since the start of the conflict for a $123 billion market value.
Gold price set for worst week in 4 decades as war curbs rate-cut bets
Gold headed for its biggest weekly loss since 1983, as war in the Middle East boosted energy prices and reduced expectations for interest-rate cuts.
Bullion’s decline deepened as the dollar and bond yields rallied after CBS reported that the US is preparing to potentially deploy ground forces into Iran. Traders increased their bets on rate hike to 50% by October amid concern that a protracted conflict could stoke inflation. Higher rates hurt gold as it doesn’t pay interest.
Iranian officials have become reluctant to even discuss reopening the Strait of Hormuz as they focus on surviving the attacks, according to a person involved in direct, high-level contacts with Tehran. The Wall Street Journal reported that the Pentagon is sending three warships and thousands of additional Marines to the Middle East.
Gold — widely viewed as a haven — has dropped every week since the US and Israel attacked Iran last month. The retreat has come as the US dollar gained ground while investors sold stocks and bonds amid concerns over the ripple effects of elevated energy costs to inflation and global growth.
Gold’s pullback reflects a combination of profit-taking and liquidation amid concerns about less monetary easing, according to Rhona O’Connell, an analyst at StoneX Financial.
Prices above $5,200 had attracted a lot of buyers, leaving the market vulnerable to correction, O’Connell said. When prices started to fall, many investors hit their stop-loss levels — automatic instructions to sell if prices drop to a certain point — so selling quickly accelerated, she said. Technical signals, particularly moving averages, added to the downward pressure, she added.
Forced selling tied to the equity rout may also have contributed to gold’s decline, while slower central bank buying and outflows from exchange-traded funds have further weighed on sentiment, according to O’Connell.
Bullion-backed ETFs are set for a third week of outflows, with holdings falling more than 60 tons in that period, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
Despite the recent pullback, gold remains about 4% higher this year. Prices touched a record just below $5,600 an ounce in late January, supported by a wave of investor enthusiasm, central-bank buying, and concerns over threats to the Fed’s independence posed by President Donald Trump.
Gold fell 3.1% to $4,508.96 an ounce as of 3:03 p.m. in New York, on course for a eight-day losing run, the longest since October 2023. That drop dragged the metal’s 14-day relative-strength index — a gauge of momentum — below 30, a level that some traders see as oversold.
In other precious metals, silver fell 6.3% to $68.20 an ounce, down by more than 15% this week. Palladium and platinum were also on track for weekly losses. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.5%.
(By Yvonne Yue Li)
Gold mining stocks set to erase 2026 gains as rate cut bets fade
Global gold mining stocks tumbled, and are now in the red for this year, as traders ratcheted back expectations for interest rate cuts with oil prices surging amid the Iran war.
The NYSE Arca Gold Miners Index fell 6.6% on Thursday to the lowest level since December. The index, which includes companies from the US, Canada, the UK and Australia, is now down about 1.9% in 2026. It was up as much 35% on March 2, the first trading day after the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran, and as Iran retaliated.
The sector’s weakness deepened Thursday as escalating attacks in the Persian Gulf pushed up crude prices and drove down gold for a seventh session, marking the longest losing streak for the metal since October 2023.
The metal has declined about 12% since the start of the war as costlier energy risks sparking inflation and making it harder for central banks to reduce borrowing costs. That poses a risk for bullion, which performs better when rates are lower since it offers no yield. Traders no longer see Federal Reserve policy easing this year and some are hedging for a potential hike.
“For now, investor attention is on margins and the potential double whammy of lower gold prices and higher energy/consumable costs,” Christopher Lafemina, an analyst at Jefferies LLC, wrote in a note to clients. “In a prolonged conflict scenario, it’s possible to see more pressure on gold from higher rate expectations and a stronger US dollar.”
The other force working against gold in recent weeks is that the US dollar has emerged as a key haven during the conflict, with the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index gaining 1.5% in March. Bullion is priced in dollars, so the precious metal has become relatively more expensive for buyers in other currencies.
Gold mining stocks saw large inflows in 2025, when the Bloomberg dollar index sank about 8%. Bullion gained 65% last year and hit a series of record highs. Newmont Corp., Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. and Barrick Mining Corp. all rose over 115% in 2025 — the type of gains that are usually expected more from speculative assets than a metal seen as a haven. Now with the war dragging on, some investors are dumping the stocks.
“When volatility hits, the market sells anything liquid, and miners are liquid,” Matthew Tuttle, chief executive office of Tuttle Capital Management, wrote in a note to clients. “Add the fear that oil stays high, and you get a fast, ugly unwind — even in companies that are still printing cash.”
Barrick is expected to see annual earnings growth of 55% this year, while Agnico Eagle is projected to register a 72% year-over-year increase, according to analysts tracked by Bloomberg. Both companies are based in Toronto.
While lower gold prices would weigh on revenue, the large mining firms will likely be cushioned by the big run-up in the metal in recent years, analysts say.
After all, since the end of 2023, bullion prices have soared more than 120%, a major tailwind for the index of gold miners, which has gained more than 170% in that period.
If oil prices stabilize and pressure from interest rates and the dollar eases, miners with net cash, lower costs and high-quality assets like Newmont and Agnico Eagle will likely rebound, Tuttle wrote.
Gold exports from Switzerland in February fell 18% from the previous month to the lowest level since August as shipments to Britain and India slowed, Swiss customs data showed on Thursday.
Deliveries from Switzerland, the world’s biggest bullion refining and transit hub, to the UK fell to 20 metric tons last month from 43 tons in January. The UK is home to the world’s largest over-the-counter gold trading hub.
Supplies to India, a major bullion consumer, slowed to 13 tons in February from 23 tons with bullion trading at a discount in the local market amid subdued demand.
Kazakh construction tycoon buys gold miner Altynalmas
Kazakhstan Almaty city. (Stock image by podgorakz.)
One of Kazakhstan’s most prominent construction tycoons agreed to buy gold producer JSC AK Altynalmas and its units as he continues to expand his business interests.
Shakhmurat Mutalip’s Central Asia Resources Holding Ltd. signed a purchase agreement with majority owner Gouden Reserves BV and eight other shareholders, the company said in an emailed statement, without giving a value for the transaction. A representative of Altynalmas confirmed the deal.
“The acquisition of JSC AK Altynalmas is an important step in the implementation of the Holding’s long-term investment strategy,” Mutalip said in the statement Thursday. “This transaction reflects our confidence in the Group’s potential and its future development.”
Altynalmas is one of Kazakhstan’s largest gold producers, with output totaling 15.9 metric tons of gold in 2024.
Mutalip and Nurlan Artykbayev, who bought copper producer Kazakhmys in December, have emerged as prominent members of a business elite that’s become more influential since President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev consolidated power in the wake of riots in 2022. Since then, there has been a noticeable shift of wealth and authority away from circles that flourished during Nursultan Nazarbayev’s long-term rule.
Mutalip, the owner of infrastructure building group Integra Construction KZ, is in discussions with Glencore to purchase the miner’s 70% stake in zinc and gold producer Kazzinc Ltd., Bloomberg reported last month, citing people familiar with the matter. Mutalip is also in discussions to buy 40% of Eurasian Resources Group from the families of two of the Kazakh mining group’s founders, the people said.
(By Nariman Gizitdinov)
Diana Vows Proxy Fight After Genco Again Rejects Merger Proposal
Diana said it will proceed with its efforts to elect new independent directors in its takeover battle for Genco (Diana Shipping)
The takeover battle designed to consolidate the dry bulk shipping with the merger of Diana Shipping and Genco Shipping & Trading continues as both sides appear entrenched in their position. Genco’s board has twice rejected proposals from Diana, with the battle appearing to be headed to the shareholders after Diana put forward an alternate slate of directors for Genco.
“Rather than constructively engage with Diana regarding our premium proposal, the Genco Board has for the second time dismissed it without seeking any clarification,” wrote Diana in its latest salvo in the takeover fight. The company asserts that combining the two companies is ideal based on the start of a strong cycle in the sector.
Diana had increased its proposed price per share and reported that it had secured financing. It also said that it had an agreement with Star Bulk to sell 16 of Genco’s vessels after completing the combination. For its part, Genco’s board has reputedly said the proposals are “well below Genco’s intrinsic value and NAV and fail to provide a premium for control of Genco.” The board says it unanimously agreed the proposals are not in the best interest of Genco shareholders.
Rumors of a takeover began last year when Diana began buying shares of Genco. It accumulated approximately 14.8 percent and then, in November, went public with its proposals. It increased the offer in March but says Genco has not engaged in discussions.
Further, Daiana asserts that the board “continued to raise unfounded questions about its financing.” Early on, Genco also said that it had a stronger balance sheet and that maybe it should be buying Diana. Now, Diana asserts the board is making comments that are “simply false and appear intended to divert attention.” Genco, in its response this week, called the proposed sale of vessels a “fire sale” and raised doubts about Diana’s reported $1.433 billion fully committed financing.
“Genco’s actions lead us to conclude that this board and management team are more focused on entrenching themselves than maximizing value for their shareholders. We, therefore, have no choice but to proceed with our effort to elect to the Genco board independent directors who will act in the best interest of all shareholders by exploring all meaningful opportunities for value creation,” said Diana.
The Genco board says it “remains open to engaging with Diana upon receipt of an offer that appropriately reflects Genco’s intrinsic value and upside potential.”
Genco Rejects Diana’s Revised Offer Citing Value and “Fire Sale” of Ships
Genco for a second time rejected a proposal from Diana again saying it undervalues the company (Genco file photo)
The battle to further consolidate the dry bulk segment continues with Genco Shipping & Trading announcing that its board unanimously rejected the revised, non-binding indicative proposal from Diana Shipping to acquire the company. Two weeks ago, Diana had increased its offer while detailing financial commitments and saying that after closing, it would sell 16 Genco vessels to Star Bulk.
“Our board reviewed and rejected Diana’s revised proposal and determined that it is substantially below Genco’s intrinsic value and fails to appropriately compensate Genco shareholders, especially in light of our superior returns, premium earning assets, leading commercial operating platform, spot-focused commercial strategy, and sizeable operating leverage in a strengthening drybulk market,” it writes in the response.
Diana has cited what it considers to be “an opportune time of the cycle” for the dry bulk sector, saying the combination would use Diana’s operating platform and increase the scale and flexibility of the fleet while enhancing leverage to the market. The combined company could have as many as 80 bulkers, giving it a strong position in the segment.
The original proposal made in November 2025 was at $20.60 per share of Genco and followed Diana’s open market transactions in which it had accumulated approximately 14.8 percent of the shares. It later raised the offer to $23.50 per share, saying that it represented a 31 percent premium on the stock price before the merger was proposed. It said the increased proposal was supported by $1.433 billion of fully committed financing and that it had agreed with Star Bulk to sell 16 of Genco’s vessels after closing for $470.5 million.
Genco responded that the proposal “fails to provide an appropriate premium to NAV,” while asserting Diana was using the lowest analyst NAV projection and not the mean estimate of $251. Further, it asserts there is an execution risk while calling the agreed sale of vessels to Star Bulk “fire sale” prices. It says it also introduces uncertainty and deprives Genco shareholders of full value. It also continues to question the committed financing behind the proposal.
Genco initially said that it had the stronger balance sheet and said that if anything, it should be acquiring Diana. Now it says it remains open to engaging with Diana upon receiving an offer that appropriately reflects its intrinsic value and upside potential.
Diana had presented the increased offer on March 6. As an alternative, it has also presented an alternative slate of directors to Genco’s shareholders for a vote at the upcoming annual meeting.
Filing Confirms MSC is Buying into Sinokor and Behind Tanker Buying Spree
MSC is buying into Sinokor which has been buying up VLCCs (file photo)
Public filings in Cyprus and Greece are ending months of speculation, providing the first confirmation that the Aponte family and MSC Mediterranean Shipping are in fact linked to a sudden and dramatic wave of tanker acquisitions that began in late 2025. South Korea’s Sinokor Maritime was the name associated with the buying spree of very large crude carriers, while speculation linked the money and the ultimate buyer as MSC.
It has now been revealed that MSC, through its SAS Shipping Agencies Services division, has acquired a 50 percent ownership stake in Sinokor Maritime. It will share ownership of the company with Ga-Hyun Chung, the founder of Sinokor and previously the company’s sole owner. The company, on its website, says it launched the first Korea-China container liner service in 1989 as Sinokor Merchant Marine Co., and over the years, it has expanded mostly in containerships and dry bulk.
The companies, according to an in-depth article in Forbes, started a relationship when MSC was moving aggressively to buy secondhand tonnage in the container segment. They believe Sinokor sold MSC at least 11 vessels as part of a buying spree in which $40 billion was spent between January 2022 and March 2025 on containerships, according to Forbes. Today, MSC is reported to own or have on charter a total of nearly 1,000 containerships with a total capacity of over 7.2 million TEU.
Sinokor, which is equally as private as MSC, was linked to a rapid series of VLCC tanker acquisitions, with Forbes writing that market sources told it that it appeared it was buying as many large oil tankers as “it could get its hands on.” There were deals with Dynacom Tankers and Frontline, as well as smaller companies. Forbes cites data from Veson Nautical, which says by March, $3.3 billion had changed hands for at least 60 tankers.
Forbes’ sources put the total number of tankers acquired at 76, while other analyses believe it is higher, reaching possibly 100 or more VLCCs. Bloomberg estimates the partnership will eventually control about 150 supertankers, giving it a 40 percent market share. Others put it closer to 25 percent.
It appears to be a well-timed play into the tanker sector as valuations soared in 2026. The war with Iran, however, raises uncertainties for the longer-term outlook for the market.
It is not the first time MSC has used SAS to make its move into other segments. In 2024, SAS purchased Gram Car Carriers to get the group into that market segment. MSC has also expanded its investment into ferries and cruise ships, as well as launching airfreight and buying into railroads and onshore logistics. It took a half interest in the operator of the Port of Hamburg and is said to still be pursuing the acquisition of CK Hutchison’s international port terminal portfolio.
In typical Aponte, MSC fashion, there has been no acknowledgement of the investment in Sinokor or the tankers. The company does not comment on its strategic intent or the opportunities for integration in its operations.
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