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

Russian President Vladimir Putin suspended a cooperation deal with the U.S. over the disposal of weapons-grade plutonium, marking a new low in relations between the former Cold War foes. -CBSSuddenly war presents itself around the world with China and Russia being top antagonists of America but other countries positioning themselves in warlike postures as well.One needs only look at the major me...Read More

Close to 1,000 workers at Freeport-McMoRan's (NYSE:FCX) giant Grasberg open pit copper and gold mine in the Indonesian province of Papua have gone on strike over bonus payments, disrupting operations.The strike has not yet affected output of copper and gold concentrate, according to Freeport.The strife, involving mostly truck operators, began last Wednesday and while it has hit Grasberg's open-pi...Read More

Investment in Chile's energy industry is expected to jump over the next five years to as much as $3 billion, which could add about 2.5% to the country's potential GDP growth, US-based Trade Commissioner Rodrigo Mladini?? said.Speaking at a media briefing during MINExpo 2016 this week, Rodrigo Mladini?? said that projects, many of them in the renewables sector, are expected to also boost machinery...Read More

To buck up EU young, free-train idea on a roll ... Younger people used to be the main supporters of the European Union. But as the continent continues to struggle with existential problems that include economic crises and growing nationalism, the continent’s youthful are becoming disillusioned, according to a recent Eurobarometer survey. Some EU politicians have now come up with an idea to c...Read More

To buck up EU young, free-train idea on a roll ... Younger people used to be the main supporters of the European Union. But as the continent continues to struggle with existential problems that include economic crises and growing nationalism, the continent’s youthful are becoming disillusioned, according to a recent Eurobarometer survey. Some EU politicians have now come up with an idea to c...Read More

Janet Yellen's terrible week signals more about the state of US politics than the US economy ... Was Janet Yellen mansplained to by members of Congress who grilled the Federal Reserve chair this week in her semi-annual testimony to the House Financial Services Committee? -QuartzIn this short article, Quartz bemoans how "tough" the treatment was for both Janet Yellen and Hillary this past week.Yell...Read More

Suburbs Will Soar on Wings of Tech ... For a few years it seemed that Americans were moving to the cities, but now the trends are toward the suburbs once again. Long-turn trends favor suburbs even more. -BloombergSuburbs would likely not exist but for zoning and one can well ask if they should exist. They are a large element in the dysfunction of US society and the destructiveness of modern cult...Read More

Janet Yellen's terrible week signals more about the state of US politics than the US economy ... Was Janet Yellen mansplained to by members of Congress who grilled the Federal Reserve chair this week in her semi-annual testimony to the House Financial Services Committee? -QuartzIn this short article, Quartz bemoans how "tough" the treatment was for both Janet Yellen and Hillary this past week.Yell...Read More

Suburbs Will Soar on Wings of Tech ... For a few years it seemed that Americans were moving to the cities, but now the trends are toward the suburbs once again. Long-turn trends favor suburbs even more. -BloombergSuburbs would likely not exist but for zoning and one can well ask if they should exist. They are a large element in the dysfunction of US society and the destructiveness of modern cult...Read More

The DJIA ended the month in negative territory, but logged an impressive quarterly gainThe Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) jumped higher at the open and never looked back, after dropping nearly 200 points on Thursday. Bank stocks were among the biggest gainers -- following the lead of Deutsche Bank AG (USA) (NYSE:DB), which won back all of this week's losses on reports of a lower-than-expecte...Read More

Two unrelated thefts and four people charged. In the past couple of weeks, Saskatchewan police saw increased interest in copper wire.Since September 14, a compound in the Colonsay area has seen its copper wires stolen twice, first by two men, one from Grandora and the other from Saskatoon, who were charged with break, enter and theft, possession of stolen property and possession of break-in tools....Read More

The world's biggest commodity trader, Glencore, told Bloomberg in an email statement that it is reviewing allegations by U.S. prosecutors that a key business partner in the Democratic Republic of Congo spent a decade bribing government officials.The partner is Israeli billionaire Dan Gertler, whose Fleurette Group owns 31% of the $1.8 billion Mutanda copper and cobalt mine in the DRC, while Glenco...Read More

Image by Sam Valadi | Flickr | Creative Commons.Despite some ups and down, 2016 has been a good year for commodities. By June, prices of most metals and minerals were very close to enter into bull market territory (defined by a 20% increase from previous lows), rebounding from their lowest in at least 25 years.And while some raw materials have lost some of those gains since the Brexit vote, analys...Read More

Hedge fund Och-Ziff has to be cough up $412 million after the US Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission found the New York-based firm violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.Two executives, Daniel Och and CFO Joel Frank, also agreed to a financial settlement with founder Och ordered to pay a fine of nearly $2.2 million to settle SEC case.According to Global Witness, a...Read More

Capital considerations dominate the top three business risks in the mining and metals sector, according to EY's Top 10 business risks facing mining and metals 2016-2017 report."Much like our global counterparts, Canadian mining and metals companies are facing challenges amid prolonged volatility in the sector," says Bruce Sprague, EY's Canadian Mining & Metals Leader. "Companies who proactively m...Read More

Companies had no choice but to cut back on new developments, re-focus on profitable production rather than maximum production and to save costs.2016 marked another challenging year for SA's mining industry in the wake of subdued commodity prices, an increase in short-term volatility, increased pressure on operating models and regulatory uncertainty.These are some of the highlights from PwC's (www....Read More

A massive blackout in South Australia forced the world's largest miner BHP Billiton to suspend production at its Olympic Dam copper mine. The power outage was the product of strong winds and heavy rain caused by what has been called "the most extreme weather system" that has hit the area in decades.Given this situation, BHP decided it was best to stop activities at the country's biggest undergroun...Read More

A new report by BMI Research, a Fitch company, forecasts subdued growth for the mining industry in Africa through 2020.BMI says Sub-Saharan Africa's mining sector growth will remain slow as a muted recovery of mineral prices will continue to put pressure on profit margins of metal producers.The authors of the report "expect some growth bright spots, the region will continue to face both significa...Read More

Blue River Resources' Mazama Copper Project in Washington's Methow Valley is facing yet another challenge. This time, the U.S. Forest Service is taking a central role in supporting the Methow Headwaters campaign, which is run by a coalition of 2,000 residents, 130 local businesses, and other organizations and aims at fighting the possibility of future copper mining in the upper Methow Valley.Testi...Read More

The world's number five diversified mining company, Anglo American announced a "radical portfolio restructuring" at the end of last year. The company with roots going back more than a hundred years to South Africa's gold and diamond fields said it's reducing the number of mines it operates from 55 to as few as 16 to focus on diamonds, copper and platinum because of better long-term potential. Its...Read More