The past year was a difficult one overall for the metals, with the main standouts to the upside being a geopolitical risk-driven gain in gold, a China-driven rise in iron ore and a surge in uranium on broadening global support for nuclear power (Figure 1). A jump in global interest rates to near two-decade highs saw recession fears persist all year, and while one still did not actually eru...Read More

This year the post-global health crisis boom was brought to an end by a surge in inflation to forty-year highs, a major rise in global interest rates in an attempt to curb the rising prices and surging geopolitical risk after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. While precious metals held up reasonably well as markets turned to them as a risk hedge, by Q2/22 the higher interest rates put an end t...Read More

Chile is the world leader in copper production, at 28.5% of the total in 2020, and this looks set to continue, with the country having the largest global reserves, at 23.0% of total. It is also the global leader for molybdenum, which is often found along with copper, and is a major lithium player, holding 51.1% of global reserves. Read More

Newfoundland has become a gold exploration hotspot over the past few years, with the sector seeing some of its strongest activity ever. While the province remains a small contributor to Canadian gold production, it has a substantial mineral industry well supported by the government, focused on iron ore, copper and nickel, and the surge in exploration suggests that gold output from the...Read More

Nevada is the core of the U.S. gold output, accounting for by far the majority, at 75.4% on average for the past year. The state looks set to remain a dominant player in U.S. gold, as it accounts for 49% of total U.S. reserves, with Alaska slightly ahead with 51% of reserves, but just 8.6% of current production. The U.S. accounts for 6.1% of global gold output, making Nevada one of the largest gol...Read More

The Golden Triangle in northwestern British Columbia has historically been a major site of Canadian gold production, beginning as early as the mid 1800s. There was a wave of production in the 1990s which cooled as the gold price declined, but larger scale production resumed in 2017, and the area has seen surging exploration interest over the past year, given that the region has some of the largest...Read More

In this report we outline the Quebec gold mining industry, including its major producers, and a survey of many of the junior miners focused on the province. Quebec accounts for 34% of Canadian gold production (second to Ontario, with 44%) and remains a major focus for both producers and junior miners.Read More

Red Lake has been one of the most prolific gold mining districts in Canada and the world, with exploration having started in the 1920s, and production, which began in the 1930s, continuing to the present day. The district is known for the high grade of its gold, its infrastructure, and strong institutional support, given the long history of mining in the area.Read More

Canadian Yamana Gold (TSX:YRI) (NYSE:AUY) is set to spin off its Brio Gold subsidiary, which operates non-core assets in Brazil, as a standalone public company.This is not the first time the Toronto-based mid-sized gold producer tries to divest the three Brazilian mines owned by its local unit. Late last year, the company attempted to sell some of its 100% stake in Brio through a private share pla...Read More

Production of cobalt, used in the lithium batteries that power everything from smartphones to electric cars, is set to soar in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), thanks to the country's low operating costs and strong projects pipeline, a new study published Tuesday shows.Analysts a BMI Research, a division of Fitch Group, estimate the country's cobalt output will jump from 66.2 thousand t...Read More

A massive gold-copper mine planned for northwest B.C.'s Golden Triangle would have a higher capital cost but lower operating costs and a smaller environmental footprint, according to a revised plan.Seabridge Gold Inc. (TSX:SEA) recently updated its plans for the proposed Kerr-Sulphurets-Mitchell (KSM) mine 65 kilometres northwest of Stewart with a preliminary economic assessment and an updated p...Read More

The public release, via WikiLeaks, of purloined e-mails and documents related to Hillary Clinton and her campaign has produced starkly different reactions. On the whole, the news media is nonplussed.- BloombergThis Bloomberg article makes the case that none of the emails released by WikiLeaks provides evidence of wrongdoing by Hillary Clinton.Is suggests that the leaks "may or may not be part of a...Read More

The public release, via WikiLeaks, of purloined e-mails and documents related to Hillary Clinton and her campaign has produced starkly different reactions. On the whole, the news media is nonplussed.- BloombergThis Bloomberg article makes the case that none of the emails released by WikiLeaks provides evidence of wrongdoing by Hillary Clinton.Is suggests that the leaks "may or may not be part of a...Read More

A Peruvian farmer who died Friday during protests against MMG's giant Las Bambas copper mine, which came online this year, was shot to death, authorities have confirmed Monday.Interior Minister Carlos Basombr?-o said the victim died from a bullet wound to the head, presumably fired by Peruvian police while they attempted to disperse more than 200 protesters who had blocked an access road to the mi...Read More

The chair of the Kimberley Process (KP), organization that regulates the global diamond industry, is calling for a permanent body belonging to or backed by the United Nations to help oversee the trade of precious gems.The initiative, currently headed by UAE's Ahmed bin Sulayem, believes that discussing the possibility of installing a Permanent Secretariat under the mandate of the UN at the next m...Read More

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT), the world's No.1 heavy machinery maker, will lose its iconic chairman and chief executive officer early next year, as Doug Oberhelman has decided to retire effective March 31 after more than 41 years with the company.Traditionally, CAT's top executives have remained in their positions beyond age 65. The fact that Oberhelman is retiring at 63 suggests he is leaving ahead...Read More

South Africa's Harmony Gold (JSE:HAR) (NYSE:HMY), the world's fifth largest producer of the precious metal, said Monday that production in the three months to September was about 10% percent higher than the previous quarter.After losing money for three years to 2015, Harmony is now focused on finding ways to offset falling production at its South African operations.However, the 514,000 ounces o...Read More

Nevsun Resources Ltd. [NSU-TSX, NYSE MKT] announced assay results from drilling of the Upper Zone at the company's high-grade Timok copper-gold project located in the historic Bor mining district in eastern Serbia. These excellent results continue to confirm the continuity and the high-grade nature of the Upper Zone.HIGHLIGHTSNew massive and semi-massive sulphide intersections include:TC150099:...Read More

Millennials believe George W Bush killed more people than Stalin, finds survey … One third of younger generation respondents believe that more people were killed under the Republican's tenure than the former Soviet Union dictator … According to a new survey, one third of millennial, generation "X" and "Z" respondents believe that more people were killed while Bush was US president th...Read More

Millennials believe George W Bush killed more people than Stalin, finds survey … One third of younger generation respondents believe that more people were killed under the Republican's tenure than the former Soviet Union dictator … According to a new survey, one third of millennial, generation "X" and "Z" respondents believe that more people were killed while Bush was US president th...Read More

Small but growing Australian gold producer Evolution Mining (ASX:EVN) has taken a bite out of its much larger, dual-listed rival, Newcrest Mining (ASX:NCM, TSX:NM)The Sydney and Perth-based company is about 1/16th the size of Newcrest by market value, but is paying Newcrest up to AUD$10 million for its Marsden copper-gold project located in central New South Wales. The deal specifies an up-front...Read More

Xi warns of globalisation backlash at BRICS summit … Chinese President Xi Jinping said Sunday a rising tide of protectionism and anti-globalisation was endangering the world economy’s still fragile recovery as BRICS leaders vowed to forge closer business and trade ties. -AFPThis summit provides yet more evidence that at the very top, the BRICs are aligned with the Western controller...Read More

Xi warns of globalisation backlash at BRICS summit … Chinese President Xi Jinping said Sunday a rising tide of protectionism and anti-globalisation was endangering the world economy’s still fragile recovery as BRICS leaders vowed to forge closer business and trade ties. -AFPThis summit provides yet more evidence that at the very top, the BRICs are aligned with the Western controller...Read More

Donald Trump Is One More Bullyboy in a World of Strongmen ... Watching Donald Trump skulking behind Hillary Clinton on the debate stage Sunday night, muttering about locking her up if he wins, was a reminder that we are drifting toward a kind of bullyboy-world, where power is everything. - RealClearPolitics/Washington PostPopulism has now been linked directly to tyranny as we can see from this a...Read More

Donald Trump Is One More Bullyboy in a World of Strongmen ... Watching Donald Trump skulking behind Hillary Clinton on the debate stage Sunday night, muttering about locking her up if he wins, was a reminder that we are drifting toward a kind of bullyboy-world, where power is everything. - RealClearPolitics/Washington PostPopulism has now been linked directly to tyranny as we can see from this a...Read More

Konkola Copper Mines, a subsidiary of London-listed Vedanta Resources, has shut down its gigantic Nchanga Smelter in the city of Chingola, located in Zambia's Copperbelt Province.The closure, which is expected to last for 40 days, is explained by the company as a needed maintenance measure, which will debottleneck the smelting stream to its capacity and result in a 35% rise in production.KCM will...Read More

The Philippines is considering extending a ban on new mines and will review all environmental permits previously granted to companies operating in the country, the mining minister said Friday.Miners had hoped some of the restrictions imposed in 2012 would have been lifted following the audit that finished in August. Instead, they are getting worse.The move is part of Manila's increasing efforts to...Read More

Chile's environmental regulator SMA is seeking sanctions against Antofagasta's (LON:ANTO) Los Pelambres copper mine for breaching its environmental permit in relation to the management of water resources and nearby flora.The alleged violations include the extraction of water from unauthorized sites, the construction of unapproved wells and the failure to reforest some areas as required by law.Th...Read More