Hugh Morgan still hunting investors for private equity fund

Mining veteran and former Reserve Bank board member Hugh Morgan is still to win over investors for his mining-focused private equity outfit, Arete Capital Partners, about 12 months after launching the venture, according to the Australian Financial Review.

Morgan said Arete is trying to drum up about $2 billion, about half of which would be equity. But he said that given the state of the market, it was important to be cautious.

China Hanking considering ASX listing for gold business

A new player looks set to be added to the Australia's thriving listed gold sector, with Chinese miner China Hanking Holdings revealing it is considering spinning off its gold business and listing it on the Australian Securities Exchange, according to the Australian Financial Review.

The Shenyang-based diversified miner's gold business, Hanking Gold Mining, is based in Perth and centres around the Southern Cross gold project in Western Australia which it acquired from St Barbara for $22.5 million in 2013.

Short sellers increase bets against big diversified miners

Short positions in Rio Tinto, BHP Billiton, Glencore and Anglo American surged to their highest levels in several years during the first quarter of 2016, suggesting that a growing number of investors believe the improved commodity prices cannot be sustained, according to the Australian Financial Review.

Take Rio for example; the percentage of Rio's Australian shares sold short in mid February was the highest since Christmas Eve 2012.