Copper production in Zambia and Chile increased significantly:

Zambia: Copper production reached 224,000 tons in the first quarter, a year-on-year increase of 30%, mainly benefiting from the release of production capacity of Konkola Copper Mines and Mopani Copper Mines.

Chile: In March, the copper production of Codelco, the world's largest copper producer, increased by 15% year-on-year to 123,200 tons; the production of Escondida, the world's largest copper mine, reached 120,600 tons, a surge of 19%.

The resources of Makoko copper mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo soared by 89%:

Ivanhoe Mines announced that the resources of its Makoko copper mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo have nearly doubled from the estimated value in November 2023 to 9.37 million tons.

The mine is located in the Western Forelands exploration project, close to the world's top copper mine Kamoa-Kakula, and has great potential for future development.

The first batch of ore from the Guinea Simandou iron ore mine will be shipped in November:

Rio Tinto Group announced that the Guinea Simandou project, one of the world's largest high-grade iron ore mines, will produce the first batch of iron ore in November this year, with an annual production capacity of 120 million tons.

Global crude steel production increased slightly:

In March, global production was 166 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 2.9%; in the first quarter, world crude steel production was 468.6 million tons, a year-on-year decrease of 0.4%.

South Africa's platinum group metals and gold production decreased:

In March, South Africa's platinum group metal production fell by 9.9% and gold production fell by 11.1%, dragging down the performance of the mining industry, but iron ore production increased by 7.5% year-on-year.

International Cobalt Association: Cobalt surplus slows down, shortage may occur in 2030:

The latest report of the International Cobalt Association points out that with the surge in demand for electric vehicle batteries, the cobalt market will gradually shift from surplus in 2024 to shortage in 2030. The four-month cobalt export ban implemented by the Democratic Republic of the Congo in February further exacerbated supply uncertainty.