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Striking miners dance and cheer after being informed of a 22-per-cent wage increase offer outside Lonmin's Marikana mine, 100 kilometres northwest of Johannesburg, Sept. 18, 2012.SIPHIWE SIBEKO/Reuters

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Striking miners at the mine said on Tuesday they accepted the management offer and would return to work on Thursday after six weeks of mining sector unrest that shook Africa's largest economy.SIPHIWE SIBEKO/Reuters

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Lomnin slashed its platinum sales forecasts for this year due to the strike and had warned an extended walkout would cost about 40,000 jobs.SIPHIWE SIBEKO/Reuters

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Lonmin became the centre of a wave of unrest in the South African mining sector in recent weeks. Several companies suspended operations in the platinum belt of northwestern Rustenburg.SIPHIWE SIBEKO/Reuters

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Police keep watch outside Lonmin’s Marikana mine Sept. 18, 2012.SIPHIWE SIBEKO/Reuters

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The mining sector is a vital part of the South African economy. President Jacob Zuma told a conference that $548-million (U.S.) had been lost in gold and platinum production this year.SIPHIWE SIBEKO/Reuters

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Miners sing and dance at Lonmin Platinum Mine near Rustenburg on Tuesday. Mining directly employs around 500,000 people in South Africa.Themba Hadebe/The Associated Press

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