Peabody left holding Wilkie Creek as Tinkler talks wane

Coal giant Peabody Energy’s hopes of a deal for its Wilkie Creek mine are fading again, with talks between the United States company and Nathan Tinkler all but over, according to the Australian Financial Review.

Peabody has had its Queensland mine on the block since mid-2012, when it hired investment bank UBS to test the market’s appetite for a sale.

At the time, Wilkie Creek was exporting 2.5 million tonnes of thermal coal a year through Port of Brisbane and a $500 million price tag was touted to prospective buyers.

Tinkler had a look, as did Thailand’s PTT, New Hope and Yancoal.

There are a few Queensland coal assets still on the block, and likely a bargain for a cashed-up buyer and someone with a positive view on China and the thermal coal market.

But sources yesterday said the talks had died off again, even though the price discussions were down about the $100 million mark.

Clive Palmer and Kerry Stokes in Pilbara stoush

Clive Palmer is testing the patience of Perth billionaire Kerry Stokes over relations between their neighbouring iron ore interests in the Pilbara, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

Stokes’ ASX-listed mining company Iron Ore Holdings is being frustrated by Palmer's Mineralogy on two fronts, with the latter preventing the former from using road and port infrastructure in two different scenarios.

Abbott set to give green light to $1B Chinese investments

The Abbott government is likely to exempt Chinese foreign investment below $1 billion from requiring formal approval, but still expects the sensitive issue to be a sticking point in negotiations over a trade agreement, according to the Australian Financial Review.

Fresh from the triumphs of reaching agreement with Japan on a trade pact on Monday, and formalising a trade deal with South Korea yesterday, Prime Minister Tony Abbott will fly to China today to work toward a trade deal with China by the end of the year, his self-imposed deadline.

“These have been two very good days for Australia, two very good days for the economy, two very good days for jobs and prosperity,” Abbott said.

“We’ve got two done, effectively, one to go.”

Abbott will talk about the trade deal when he meets Premier Li Keqiang. Also stemming from those talks is an expected agreement to make Sydney an official trading hub for the yuan, a move that would boost financial ties between the two countries.