Escondida

Mining giant BHP Billiton reported yesterday a dramatic rebound in half-yearly profits on the back of soaring iron ore prices and improved productivity.

The underlying profit of $3.2 billion and earnings before tax of $9.9 billion for the last six months of 2016 exceeded expectations.

Workers at the world's top copper mine, BHP Billiton's Escondida in Chile, launched what they vowed would be a "long and hard" strike on Feb. 9, causing jitters on world commodity markets.

Escondida is the first of several key mines worldwide where contracts expire this year, and markets are watching nervously to see how the strike impacts supply and prices.