Workers demanding higher wages went on strike on Monday at the world's biggest copper mine, Chile's Escondida, cutting output at a time when tight supplies and a commodities investment fever have driven up metals prices, Reuters reported. "Around 60 percent of output," is being affected by the strike, said Mauro Valdes, a spokesman for majority-owner BHP Billiton. Workers said the strike, which was widely anticipated, cut production by as much as 80 percent. Escondida accounts for about 8 percent of global copper production. The mine applied an immediate contingency plan to maintain basic output, but Valdes could not say what the effects of a prolonged strike might be. "Minera Escondida reiterates it desire to maintain dialogue (with workers)," the company said in a statement. Workers at Escondida, which produces about 20 percent of Chile's copper and accounts for 2.5 percent of the country's gross domestic product, are demanding a new contract to replace a 2003 deal that was signed when copper prices were about a fifth of what they are now.
