TOP STORIES 
 
Hong Kong Exchanges Picked as Preferred Bidder for LME

Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd. (0388.HK) has been picked as the preferred bidder to buy the London Metal Exchange following a meeting of its board Wednesday, knocking IntercontinentalExchange Inc. (ICE) out of the frame as the allure of China swung the balance in its favor.

 
Analysts See ICE Returning Cash After Losing LME to Hong Kong

IntercontinentalExchange Inc. could return hundreds of millions of dollars in excess cash to its investors after the derivatives-market operator on Friday lost a bidding battle to acquire the London Metal Exchange, according to analysts.

 
   STORIES OF INTEREST 
 
UPDATE: Doe Run CEO to Retire and COO to Be Promoted

Doe Run Co., the leading lead producer in the U.S., said its chief executive will retire at the end of July.

 
Peru Poll: Humala's Approval Rating Dragged Down on Mining Protests

LIMA--President Ollanta Humala's approval rating has slipped to 43% in June from 55% in the previous month, a sign that social conflicts in the mining sector have started to affect the president's popularity, a new national poll shows.

 
INTERVIEW: Greek Euro Exit Would Have Limited Impact on EU Steel - Voestalpine

LONDON--A Greek exit from the euro zone is likely to have only limited impact on an already-ailing European steel industry, which has suffered weak demand, stemming in part from the EU sovereign debt crisis, said the chief executive of Austrian specialty steelmaker Voestalpine AG (VOE.VI) in an interview.

 
INTERVIEW: EU Steel-Output Capacity to Be Slashed by 2030 - Voestalpine CEO

LONDON--Three-quarters of the European Union's crude-steel production capacity is in danger of being permanently closed over the next two decades or so as European steelmakers struggle to compete with cheaper production from neighboring countries, the chief executive of Austrian specialty steelmaker Voestalpine AG told Dow Jones Newswires.

 
Hong Kong Exchanges Must Convince LME Members to Sell Shares

Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd. will spend the next few weeks working to convince members of the London Metal Exchange to sell it their shares, hoping that the allure of expansion in China is enough.

 
Japan CDS Tightens as Investors Take Advantage of Higher Spreads

TOKYO--Japan's benchmark index for credit-default swaps continued to tighten this week as Japanese investors took advantage of relatively higher spreads on the back of European sovereign-debt concerns.

 
German April Crude-Steel Output Falls 9.7% on Year - Industry Group

FRANKFURT--German crude-steel production slumped 9.7% in May compared with a very strong earlier year month, due to uncertainty surrounding the European debt crisis, the country's steel-industry association, Wirtschaftsvereinigung Stahl, said Friday.

 
Magnitogorsk Posts $14 Million Net Profit in First Quarter 2012

MOSCOW--Russian steelmaker OAO Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel Works (MAGN.RS) Friday posted a 90% on-year drop in its first-quarter net profit to $14 million from $134 million a year earlier, according to the company's statement on its website.

 
Berkeley Mineral in Zambia Mineral MoU With Yunnan Xiangyun

LONDON--Berkeley Mineral Resources PLC (BMR.LN), a metals-processing company, Friday disclosed the signing of a memorandum of understanding with Yunnan Xiangyun Feilong Nonferrous Metal Co., a Chinese refiner of zinc, lead and associated metals, for a joint venture to exploit minerals at the Kabwe mine in Zambia.

 
   MARKETS 
 
BASE METALS: Copper Cinches Three-Day Winning Streak, Up 3% on Week

NEW YORK--Copper futures climbed higher Friday despite weak U.S. economic data, as hopes of coordinated stimulus efforts from central banks soothed investor anxieties.

Write to Tatyana Shumsky at tatyana.shumsky@dowjones.com.