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

Guess What's Destroying the Middle Class? … Perhaps the biggest question in American political economy right now is why middle-class wages have been falling. There are three main hypotheses. Roughly, these are: Robots, unions and China. – BloombergDominant Social Theme: Something is always destroying jobs. People are helpless to withstand the challenges.Free-Market Analysis: Once m...Read More

Smart city index coming to Indonesia … Decades ago, urban conglomerations competed to clinch "global city" or "world city" status by luring big corporations to establish headquarters in their city. Now, the global "smart city" concept has reached Indonesia. – Jakarta TimesDominant Social Theme: Once information technology has centralized every corporate an...Read More

Europe once more sleep-walks towards the abyss … Both Berlin and Athens have wildly underestimated the financial, economic and geo-political consequences of default … Not for the first time, Europeans are deluding themselves. – UK TelegraphDominant Social Theme: The Greek crisis is blown out of proportion. Eventually there will be a resolution and the EU will continue …Free...Read More

Ford's new car will force you to obey the speed limit … Much as we'd like to emulate our NASCAR heroes, breaking the speed limit often comes at a price. Ford is hoping to prevent accidents and speeding tickets by introducing cars that can see what the speed limit is and preventing heavy-footed motorists from driving any faster. Ford's Intelligent Speed Limiter tech will first app...Read More

Europe once more sleep-walks towards the abyss … Both Berlin and Athens have wildly underestimated the financial, economic and geo-political consequences of default … Not for the first time, Europeans are deluding themselves. – UK TelegraphDominant Social Theme: The Greek crisis is blown out of proportion. Eventually there will be a resolution and the EU will continue …Free...Read More

Ford's new car will force you to obey the speed limit … Much as we'd like to emulate our NASCAR heroes, breaking the speed limit often comes at a price. Ford is hoping to prevent accidents and speeding tickets by introducing cars that can see what the speed limit is and preventing heavy-footed motorists from driving any faster. Ford's Intelligent Speed Limiter tech will first app...Read More

The world's next credit crunch could make 2008 look like a hiccup. Is this why central bankers are so scared of raising interest rates? – TelegraphDominant Social Theme: Markets go up and down. Not to worry.Free-Market Analysis: This is a good analysis of what could go wrong with world markets (especially Western and US ones) and why … It touches on a number of memes: Sort through...Read More

Yemen could become 'protracted conflict' envoy warns … The conflict in Yemen could become "protracted in the vein of an Iraq, Syria, Libya combined scenario'' the UN's special envoy has warned. Jamal Benomar was speaking as the Security Council met in New York to express support for ousted President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi. Mr Hadi fled the capital Sanaa in February a...Read More

The world's next credit crunch could make 2008 look like a hiccup. Is this why central bankers are so scared of raising interest rates? – TelegraphDominant Social Theme: Markets go up and down. Not to worry.Free-Market Analysis: This is a good analysis of what could go wrong with world markets (especially Western and US ones) and why … It touches on a number of memes: Sort through...Read More

Yemen could become 'protracted conflict' envoy warns … The conflict in Yemen could become "protracted in the vein of an Iraq, Syria, Libya combined scenario'' the UN's special envoy has warned. Jamal Benomar was speaking as the Security Council met in New York to express support for ousted President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi. Mr Hadi fled the capital Sanaa in February a...Read More

How to Build Economies … Brian Pinto worked as an economist in the World Bank for almost 30 years and saw many grand development initiatives – some successful, others botched – up close. In "How Does My Country Grow?: Economic Advice Through Story-Telling" he distills the lessons of this experience. Don't be misled by the whimsical title. It's a serious, and ser...Read More

The U.S. Military Just Plunged Philippine Politics into Crisis … American fingerprints are all over a botched commando raid in the southern Philippines that left dozens dead and shocked the country. – Foreign Policy In Focus and TheNation.comDominant Social Theme: The US must defend itself and other countries from terrorism.Free-Market Analysis: This is one of those articles that deser...Read More

How to Build Economies … Brian Pinto worked as an economist in the World Bank for almost 30 years and saw many grand development initiatives – some successful, others botched – up close. In "How Does My Country Grow?: Economic Advice Through Story-Telling" he distills the lessons of this experience. Don't be misled by the whimsical title. It's a serious, and ser...Read More

The U.S. Military Just Plunged Philippine Politics into Crisis … American fingerprints are all over a botched commando raid in the southern Philippines that left dozens dead and shocked the country. – Foreign Policy In Focus and TheNation.comDominant Social Theme: The US must defend itself and other countries from terrorism.Free-Market Analysis: This is one of those articles that deser...Read More

The Man Who Can Save Brazil … A million-plus protesters in the streets and a 13 percent approval rating tend to concentrate a politician's mind … Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff [should] get out of the way of Brazil's finance minister, Joaquim Levy. – BloombergDominant Social Theme: What is needed in Brazil is authority and austerity.Free-Market Analysis: This article...Read More

A software update scheduled for release in about three months would give Model S Tesla sedans the ability to start driving themselves, which the company refers to as autopilot mode … For many drivers who commute long distances, the prospect of owning a self-driving car – where a driver takes his hands off the wheel and feet off the gas – has been an elusive dream. – New Yor...Read More

The Man Who Can Save Brazil … A million-plus protesters in the streets and a 13 percent approval rating tend to concentrate a politician's mind … Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff [should] get out of the way of Brazil's finance minister, Joaquim Levy. – BloombergDominant Social Theme: What is needed in Brazil is authority and austerity.Free-Market Analysis: This article...Read More

A software update scheduled for release in about three months would give Model S Tesla sedans the ability to start driving themselves, which the company refers to as autopilot mode … For many drivers who commute long distances, the prospect of owning a self-driving car – where a driver takes his hands off the wheel and feet off the gas – has been an elusive dream. – New Yor...Read More

Justice, capitalism and progress: Paul Tudor Jones II at TED2015 … Can capital be just? As a firm believer in capitalism and the free market, Paul Tudor Jones II believes that it can be. Jones is the founder of the Tudor Investment Corporation and the Tudor Group, which trade in the fixed-income, equity, currency and commodity markets. He thinks it is time to expand the "narrow definiti...Read More

China's Place in the New World Economic Order … Competition between the world's two greatest economic powers is both inevitable and (for the most part) beneficial. This is the case even when China and the U.S. are arguing over control of increasingly obsolescent international financial institutions. – BloombergDominant Social Theme: The New World Order is coming to town?Free-Ma...Read More