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

Africa and Around the World … Experience has shown that force alone cannot reduce the drug supply or the criminality and corruption that it induces. – Kofi Annan, Chair of the Kofi Annan Foundation via Vice magazineDominant Social Theme: We were wrong. But let's not dwell on the past.Free-Market Analysis: Leaders in high places around the world are making it clear that the drug war...Read More

Piketty's Three Big Mistakes … Piketty, remember, is the French economist who became a celebrity for his work on inequality. In his blockbuster book, "Capital in the Twenty-First Century," he asserts that the rate at which capital owners' wealth increases is almost always larger than the rate of economic growth. If that's true, it means that the rich get richer, and wea...Read More

Major publisher retracts 43 scientific papers amid wider fake peer-review scandal … A major publisher of scholarly medical and science articles has retracted 43 papers because of "fabricated" peer reviews amid signs of a broader fake peer review racket affecting many more publications. – Washington PostDominant Social Theme: Science saves us?Free-Market Analysis: The breadth...Read More

Piketty's Three Big Mistakes … Piketty, remember, is the French economist who became a celebrity for his work on inequality. In his blockbuster book, "Capital in the Twenty-First Century," he asserts that the rate at which capital owners' wealth increases is almost always larger than the rate of economic growth. If that's true, it means that the rich get richer, and wea...Read More

Major publisher retracts 43 scientific papers amid wider fake peer-review scandal … A major publisher of scholarly medical and science articles has retracted 43 papers because of "fabricated" peer reviews amid signs of a broader fake peer review racket affecting many more publications. – Washington PostDominant Social Theme: Science saves us?Free-Market Analysis: The breadth...Read More

Stock market rigging is no longer a 'conspiracy theory' … The stock market is rigged. When I started making that claim years ago — and provided solid evidence — people scoffed. Some called it a conspiracy theory, tinfoil hats and that sort of stuff. Most people just ignored me. But that's not happening anymore. The dirty secret is out. – Justohn Crudele/New York...Read More

How Jeremy Clarkson lost his job as 'Top Gear' host … Jeremy Clarkson, hugely famous in the United Kingdom for his job as a presenter on the BBC's "Top Gear," is now a former presenter on the BBC's "Top Gear." The BBC sacked him Wednesday after wrapping up its investigation into "an unprovoked physical and verbal attack" by Clarkson on a member o...Read More

Stock market rigging is no longer a 'conspiracy theory' … The stock market is rigged. When I started making that claim years ago — and provided solid evidence — people scoffed. Some called it a conspiracy theory, tinfoil hats and that sort of stuff. Most people just ignored me. But that's not happening anymore. The dirty secret is out. – Justohn Crudele/New York...Read More

How Jeremy Clarkson lost his job as 'Top Gear' host … Jeremy Clarkson, hugely famous in the United Kingdom for his job as a presenter on the BBC's "Top Gear," is now a former presenter on the BBC's "Top Gear." The BBC sacked him Wednesday after wrapping up its investigation into "an unprovoked physical and verbal attack" by Clarkson on a member o...Read More

Caserones mine.Japan's JX Nippon Mining & Metals, a subsidiary of JX Holdings Inc, said Thursday it will write down by 50 billion yen ($421 million) the value of its investment in its Caserones copper mine, in northern Chile.The company, which has also momentarily halted operations at the mine due to torrential rain, said the charge was caused by a delay in expanding production to full capacity,...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

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