price hike

Mineral sands producer Iluka Resources (ILU) has reached an agreement with its customers to sell supplies of rutile and synthetic rutile for higher prices in the first six months of 2012. Iluka made this agreement with its buyers from the pigment, titanium sponge and welding markets.

Qantas's (ASX:QAN) entry into the previously monopolised Brisbane-Gladstone route has taken a hit from Strategic Airlines who raised concerns about pricing and scheduling, said The Australian.

According to Strategic, Qantas's subsidiary QantasLink dropped prices to $69, from a one-way $600 peak price and off-peak $94 special. The Qantas website cites its cheapest price at $75 one-way, however.

Due the sharp increase in fuel prices, Rex (ASX:VBA) forecasts a 30 percent drop in profits that may force it to pull off marginal routes and implements lay-offs. Virgin Blue (ASX:VBA) on the other hand is considering surcharges.

Macquarie Research analysts Russell Shaw and Sam Thornton said that Qantas's (ASX:QAN) latest fare increases are superfluous and could result in lowered demand in the currently tenuous market.

It is Qantas's fifth fare increase this year with prices pushing from 14 to 17 percent from last year, which is 'unrealistic', said the analysts .

Australia based miner BHP Billiton (BHP) has made an announcement today claiming that the company is going for short-term pricing of iron ore deals with quite a few Asian buyers which were priced at a yearly basis in the past. The recent development is being considered as a great victory for the miner as it was campaigning to come out of the yearly traditional benchmark system of pricing iron ore.