Electric vehicles could hold the key to BHP Billiton Ltd. finally finding a buyer for its unwanted nickel operations.

Rio Tinto Group has dropped out of the bidding for a stake in Soc. Quimica & Minera de Chile SA, one of the world’s top lithium producers, as it pursues other ways to capitalize on the electric-car boom, people familiar with the matter said.

Sherritt International Corp.’s double-digit bond yields are beginning to lure investors, even as questions linger about whether the Canadian miner has unloaded enough debt and turned around its sputtering projects.

Iron ore cargoes from Australia’s Port Hedland, the world’s biggest bulk export terminal, jumped to an all-time high of almost half a billion metric tons last year, offering fresh evidence of burgeoning global supply at a time when bearish forecasts for the commodity are stacking up.

China continues to gobble up the world’s commodities, setting new records for consumption of everything from crude oil to soybeans.

GV Gold PJSC, a Russian miner backed by BlackRock Inc., plans an initial public offering in Moscow this year after first doubling its output in a possible acquisition, according to the miner’s chief.