The AOCE and WB have moderate overall forecasts for the metals in 2025 inline with IMF forecasts for a decline in economic growth and inflation, although we see the probability of a stagflationary scenario as still reasonably high.Read More
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
Energy, mining, and utilities workers across the world are the least happy in their jobs, a new study published this week shows.TinyPulse, an HR service that attempts to prevent employees burnout, looked at over 500,000 survey responses from over 60,000 employees in 13 different industries worldwide.According to the results, the top three happiest industries last year were Consumer Products & Serv...Read More
English researchers at the University of Exeter have developed a new, inexpensive method to uncover copper deposits.Dr Ben Williamson, of the university's Camborne School of Mines, and Dr Richard Herrington from the London Natural History Museum, worked together to develop the new technique, which they say could become a very cost-effective way of discovering porphyry-type copper deposits.These ki...Read More
Stock markets suspect Federal Reserve has interest rate jitters … Hints that the Fed won't raise interest rates in March are proving to be good news for miners and oil producers' share prices The Federal Reserve's William Dudley said further strengthening in the dollar could have 'significant consequences' for the health of the US economy. – UK GuardianBlame it on t...Read More
Stock markets suspect Federal Reserve has interest rate jitters … Hints that the Fed won't raise interest rates in March are proving to be good news for miners and oil producers' share prices The Federal Reserve's William Dudley said further strengthening in the dollar could have 'significant consequences' for the health of the US economy. – UK GuardianBlame it on t...Read More
Mining stocks were soaring Thursday following a disappointing report on US services sector growth released Wednesday and comments from a top Federal Reserve official suggesting concern over rising economic risks.As the US dollar continued to sink, investors turned to assets considered more stable, such as gold and other metals, which boosted stocks across the mining sector.One of the biggest winne...Read More
Canadian miner Centerra Gold (TSX:CG) can finally proceed with plans for developing its 1.6-million ounce Gatsuurt gold deposit near its Boroo Mine, Mongolia's parliament ruled Thursday.The decision, which comes after five years of negotiations, grants Centerra a 66% ownership in the project, with the government of Mongolia holding the remaining 34% of equity.The approval also follows an agreeme...Read More
From its peak in 2011 to the beginning of 2016, the global mining sector has gone through a wrenching 90% reduction in global market capitalization, wiping out an estimated US$1.5 trillion. Following the sub-prime mortgage crisis, the International Monetary Fund estimated that financial institutions around the world ultimately lost US$1.5 trillion directly or indirectly from their holdings of subp...Read More
The Trans Pacific Partnership, one of the biggest multinational trade deals ever, has been signed by ministers from its 12 member nations in New Zealand. … US President Barack Obama said the agreement was a new type of trade deal "that puts American workers first". – BBCBeware TPP. It's nothing more than the further formalization of the worst part of the 20th century: The...Read More
The Trans Pacific Partnership, one of the biggest multinational trade deals ever, has been signed by ministers from its 12 member nations in New Zealand. … US President Barack Obama said the agreement was a new type of trade deal "that puts American workers first". – BBCBeware TPP. It's nothing more than the further formalization of the worst part of the 20th century: The...Read More
State-owned Indian firm KIOCL may invest an initial $59 million to build an iron ore pellet complex in Iran, with the objective of offering cheaper supplies of the processed material to Iranian steel mills.The company is also negotiating the sale of more than 2 million tonnes of seaborne to the Gulf country now free from trade sanctions, Reuters reports.Iran is said to have more than $10 billion...Read More
Caserones, a copper mine in northern Chile property of Japan's top smelter, JX Nippon Mining & Metals, will have to pay $10.8 million for breaching conservational rules, an environmental court has ruled (in Spanish).The fine, the second-highest the country's environmental authority -SMA- has ever imposed, was set in March last year, after the regulator found a number of infractions at the mine. T...Read More
Indeed, maintaining the policies that enforce intellectual property rights is one of the few issues today that we can say truly has bipartisan support–politicians, legislators and pundits on both sides of the political aisle recognize that in order to keep our industries competitive, encourage innovation and make potentially life-saving advancements in the field of health care, we must prote...Read More
Indeed, maintaining the policies that enforce intellectual property rights is one of the few issues today that we can say truly has bipartisan support–politicians, legislators and pundits on both sides of the political aisle recognize that in order to keep our industries competitive, encourage innovation and make potentially life-saving advancements in the field of health care, we must prote...Read More
Anglo American's shrinking market value could eject the global miner from London's blue-chip equity index at the next reshuffle in March, potentially triggering a broader sell-off.Plunging commodity prices last year shrank Anglo's market capitalisation to $5.6 billion (3.9 billion pounds) as its shares fell 76 percent to record lows in 2015, making it the worst performer in the benchmark FTSE 100...Read More
Prospectors are an optimistic bunch. But that optimism is being severely tested in a global economy that's dragging down commodities and Canadian mineral prices, Carl Schulze of All-Terrane Mineral Exploration Services said January 25 at the Mineral Exploration Roundup at Canada Place.Schulze, a geoscientist based in Whitehorse, Yukon, helps mining firms find gold and other metals and minerals acr...Read More
South Africa's Sibanye Gold (JSE:SGL) (NYSE:SBGL) is actively considering acquisitions as the miner seeks to take advantage of its strong current position and the weakness of most competitors.The company's shares have performed exceptionally so far this year. They are up 55% in Johannesburg and 46% in New York, after hitting a record intraday high on Jan. 28, helped in part by a weak rand that has...Read More
Canada's Royal Nickel Corp RNX.TO, capitalizing on discount asset prices as commodity markets swoon, announced two cash and stock acquisitions on Monday that transform the mine developer into a cash-generating nickel, copper and gold producer.Royal Nickel Chief Executive Mark Selby said the company will acquire a 67 percent stake in Australia's privately-held Salt Lake Mining Pty, in a deal worth...Read More
Beleaguered Anglo American (LON:ALL) is said to be planning a complete exit from Brazil, where the company has already put its $1 billion niobium and phosphate business up for sale.First-round bids for those assets are due on Feb. 15, date that - reports local newspaper O'Globo (in Portuguese) - may bring some major surprises. According to veteran columnist Angelmo Gois, Anglo is also seeking to s...Read More
Dr. Thomas Hillig, CEO of THEnergy, participated in and presented at the Energy and Mines Summit that took place in London on January 28 and 29, 2016. More than 200 delegates from the mining, renewable energy and finance sectors attended this event. THEnergy is a German-based consulting company specializing in renewable energy solutions for the mining industry, and it tries to bridge the gap betwe...Read More
Federal Reserve: Credibility on the line … Sam Fleming in Washington … Last month's rate rise is drawing criticism. Some say it should abandon plans to increase again soon … While economists are almost equally divided on whether Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen will raise U.S. interest rates this week, the bond market suggests policy makers will wait. – Financial...Read More