Pig disease outbreak pushes up global pork prices BEIJING—
WINDHOEK - De Beers’ Namibia joint venture, Namdeb, increased diamond production by 5.8 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, according to data from De Beers’ parent Anglo American.
Mining in Namibia was not disrupted by the global coronavirus pandemic in the first quarter, as the country only went into partial lockdown on March 27, although De Beers Group cancelled a sales event owing to the lockdown. Before the outbreak of the virus, which has so far infected 16 people in the sparsely populated nation, diamond mining was touted as one of the drivers of the expected economic recovery.
However, the Bankers Association of Namibia and the Economic Association of Namibia both now expect diamond mining to contract by 7.5 percent or 700 million
FRANKFURT - German carmaking giant Volkswagen resumed production at its biggest factory on Monday as part of a broader industry drive to get back to work in Europe, where the coronavirus pandemic has hammered demand and pushed up inventory levels.
Encouraged by a fall in infection rates, Germany has eased lockdown rules and automakers are relying on the country’s ability to trace and contain new coronavirus cases to safely restore operations in Europe’s largest economy.
Volkswagen group, which also owns the Skoda, Audi, Bentley, Porsche and Seat brands, is resuming production at its plant in Wolfsburg, Germany, as well as at factories in Portugal,
Namibia dollars in 2020.
Namdeb, a joint venture between the Namibian government and De Beers Group, produced 511, 000 carats in the first quarter, 28,000 carats more than the same three months of 2019, Anglo American’s latest figures show, and a 12 percent increase on the previous quarter.
De Beers, which also owns diamond mines in Botswana, South Africa and Canada, produced 7.75 million carats in
Spain, Russia, South Africa, and the Czech Republic this week.
Production capacity at Wolfsburg will be just 10 percent-15 percent to begin with, and will reach around 40 percent of pre-crisis levels after about a week, Andreas Tostmann, the VW brand’s board member responsible for production, told Reuters.
“The restart of Europe’s biggest car factory after weeks of standstill is an important symbol for our employees, our dealers, suppliers, the German economy and for Europe,” he said.
Volkswagen’s plans mirror moves by rivals Renault, Peugeot and Fiat Chrysler) to revive an industry crippled by dealership lockdowns and total in the first quarter of 2020, down one percent year-on-year, the data showed.
The bulk of Namdeb Holdings’ first quarter production came from Debmarine Namibia, its sea mining operation, which delivered 417, 000 carats in January- March, up 15 percent year-on-year and quarter-on-quarter.
Anglo America expects a tough year for diamonds in its latest production report. supply bottlenecks caused by restrictions to contain the pandemic.
Fiat Chrysler has restarted Italian production at its plant in Atessa, and has begun preparatory work in Cassino, Pomigliano, Termoli, and Mirafiori.
Swedish truck maker AB Volvo, whose brands include Mack and Renault trucks, is also looking to restart output, despite saying last week its net orders had turned negative since the end of March as customers cancelled more trucks than they ordered.
With dealerships closed in Germany until last week, it is hard for executives to gauge the level of demand. LMC Automotive analysts see an uneven pattern across the globe.
“We assume that light vehicle sales will bottom out in April in Europe and North America, but the recovery, while broadly V-shaped, is unlikely to be rapid in the subsequent months,” they said.
Demand is seen down 20–30 percent for 2020 overall, with China being the only exception, thanks to its ability to impose social restrictions more forcefully than in the rest of the world. But even in China, sales are seen down 12 percent this year, LMC said.
Carmakers have overhauled production methods to try to reassure workers about the safety of returning to the production line.