USA and Canada

Toyota now forecasts a net profit of $9.3 billion for the financial year to 31 March 2013. This comes on the back of profits being boosting by the yen falling as much as 15 percent against the US dollar since November 2012. A weak yen helps Japanese companies like Toyota which rely heavily on overseas sales.

The company issued the guidance as it posted a 23 percent jump in profit for the September to December quarter. The numbers mean that Toyota's earnings for the April to December period nearly quadrupled from a year earlier.

The company provided further optimism by also revealing that its backlog of plane orders also hit an all-time high of $390 billion as it began delivering the first of its new flagship Dreamliner 787 jets.

"In a year of considerable achievement, Boeing was the commercial aviation market leader for both orders and deliveries, with more than 600 airplanes delivered, including the first Charleston-built 787 Dreamliners," said chief executive Jim McNerney.

The most widely used of all minerals, iron accounts for approximately 95 percent of the world’s metal production in terms of weight. As the world’s third largest iron ore producer and exporter, Brazil has long reaped the financial benefits provided by one of its largest export products.

KapStone Paper and Packaging Corporation is to open a new corrugated manufacturing facility in Aurora, Illinois, 40 miles west of Chicago. 

The 192,000 square foot facility will produce corrugated packaging and will also include a design lab and a technical center.

KapStone expects to invest approximately $8 million to $10 million in the first phase. The Aurora location will enhance KapStone's sales coverage in the Midwest, particularly in Chicago and surrounding areas.

Raúl Jacob, CFO of Peruvian operations and company comptroller, highlights the massive expansion programmes the company is undertaking, both in Peru and in Mexico.

Walmart today announced a commitment to increase US sourcing of its products by $50 billion over the next ten years.

Speaking at the National Retail Federation's annual BIG Show, Walmart US President and CEO Bill Simon also announced plans to employ more US veterans and to help part-time associates who want to make the transition to full time work.

Ford Motor Company plans to hire 2,200 salaried workers in the US this year, the largest increase in more than a decade, to support the pace of new product introductions.

The planned hiring is in addition to more than 8,100 combined hourly and salaried jobs Ford added in the US in 2012, as the company increased production capacity and expanded engineering, manufacturing and other areas. Approximately 1,000 of these positions were hourly jobs brought back to Ford plants in the US from other locations, including suppliers in Japan and Mexico.

For the better part of three decades Inorganic Ventures has been a leading manufacturer of certified reference materials. Executive vice president Michael Scott, and vice president of operations Christopher Gaines explain how it is now targeting the lucrative mining sector.

Barrick has a significant investment programme for South America in 2013, much of which is targeted to advance the construction of Pascua-Lama, the world's first bi-national mine, expected to be operational in the second half of 2014.

With the acquisition of Placer Dome in 2006, Barrick Gold Corporation became the largest gold mining company in the world.