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

Inequality Is Forcing US Towns To Try Scandinavia-Style Taxation — And It's Working … The New York Times travel section, not known for its frugality, recently warned readers about the sticker shock of a Scandinavian vacation. "Prices do mean that unless money is no object, you'll need to modify expectations," the piece advised. In Norway, a burger and fries at a fast...Read More

The CIA spying scandal and the disintegration of American democracy … Last Thursday, the US Department of Justice quietly announced that it would not launch a criminal investigation following the revelation in March that the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) had spied on the staff of the Senate Intelligence Committee. News of this decision—which concerns one of the most significant con...Read More

Janet Yellen could be a little clearer … What the Fed Really Meant to Say … The gap between what the Federal Reserve says about monetary policy and what investors think it's saying would be funny if it weren't so important. Most of this gap is the listeners' fault – but not all. The Fed could do a better job of explaining itself. – BloombergDominant Social Theme...Read More

America Fails the 'Rule of Law' Test … The U.S. doesn't even come close to meeting the standards articulated by its own army. Why isn't establishment Washington alarmed? … The U.S. Army field manual defines "the rule of law" as follows: "The rule of law refers to a principle of governance in which all persons, institutions and entities, public and private...Read More

Janet Yellen could be a little clearer … What the Fed Really Meant to Say … The gap between what the Federal Reserve says about monetary policy and what investors think it's saying would be funny if it weren't so important. Most of this gap is the listeners' fault – but not all. The Fed could do a better job of explaining itself. – BloombergDominant Social Theme...Read More

America Fails the 'Rule of Law' Test … The U.S. doesn't even come close to meeting the standards articulated by its own army. Why isn't establishment Washington alarmed? … The U.S. Army field manual defines "the rule of law" as follows: "The rule of law refers to a principle of governance in which all persons, institutions and entities, public and private...Read More

Americans have lost out on $6.6 trillion … The inability to maintain 2000-level prosperity has cost us all … Why are so many Americans feeling squeezed economically even as the economy expands at an accelerating pace? … So what's missing? … The answer lies in a very large sum of missing money – about $6.6 trillion by my count – over the first 12 years of thi...Read More

The 113th Congress is historically good at not passing bills … With its August recess imminent and midterm elections following soon after, it's regularly assumed that Congress is done for the year. And, therefore, the 113th Congress, barring a legislative miracle, will soon officially be the least productive ever. – Washington PostDominant Social Theme: Congress needs to do more, n...Read More

Americans have lost out on $6.6 trillion … The inability to maintain 2000-level prosperity has cost us all … Why are so many Americans feeling squeezed economically even as the economy expands at an accelerating pace? … So what's missing? … The answer lies in a very large sum of missing money – about $6.6 trillion by my count – over the first 12 years of thi...Read More

The 113th Congress is historically good at not passing bills … With its August recess imminent and midterm elections following soon after, it's regularly assumed that Congress is done for the year. And, therefore, the 113th Congress, barring a legislative miracle, will soon officially be the least productive ever. – Washington PostDominant Social Theme: Congress needs to do more, n...Read More

China says it's up to US to drive global economy … China's finance minister said Wednesday that the country is not planning any new stimulus measures and it is up to the United States to drive the global economy. Lou Jiwei said that leaders are satisfied with the country's economic performance so far this year and that in the first five months China had created up to 6 million jo...Read More

Fossil industry is the subprime danger of this cycle … The cumulative blitz on energy exploration and production over the past six years has been $5.4 trillion, yet little has come of it … Oil and gas investment in the US has soared to $200bn a year … The epicentre of irrational behaviour across global markets has moved to the fossil fuel complex of oil, gas and coal. This is whe...Read More

China says it's up to US to drive global economy … China's finance minister said Wednesday that the country is not planning any new stimulus measures and it is up to the United States to drive the global economy. Lou Jiwei said that leaders are satisfied with the country's economic performance so far this year and that in the first five months China had created up to 6 million jo...Read More

Fossil industry is the subprime danger of this cycle … The cumulative blitz on energy exploration and production over the past six years has been $5.4 trillion, yet little has come of it … Oil and gas investment in the US has soared to $200bn a year … The epicentre of irrational behaviour across global markets has moved to the fossil fuel complex of oil, gas and coal. This is whe...Read More

HMRC raid on bank accounts goes against Magna Carta, say MPs … MPs say they are "horrified" by the tax authorities' plans to dip into the personal bank accounts of 17,000 "recalcitrant debtors". HMRC says it needs the powers to stop people "gaming the system". Lin Homer, chief executive of HMRC, wants powers to raid the personal bank accounts of "recalc...Read More

Why Music Is Dying … Taylor Swift, the seven-time Grammy winner, is known for her articulate lyrics, so there was nothing surprising about her writing a long column for the Wall Street Journal about the future of the music industry. Yet there's reason to doubt the optimism of what she had to say. "This moment in music is so exciting because the creative avenues an artist can explore...Read More

HMRC raid on bank accounts goes against Magna Carta, say MPs … MPs say they are "horrified" by the tax authorities' plans to dip into the personal bank accounts of 17,000 "recalcitrant debtors". HMRC says it needs the powers to stop people "gaming the system". Lin Homer, chief executive of HMRC, wants powers to raid the personal bank accounts of "recalc...Read More

Why Music Is Dying … Taylor Swift, the seven-time Grammy winner, is known for her articulate lyrics, so there was nothing surprising about her writing a long column for the Wall Street Journal about the future of the music industry. Yet there's reason to doubt the optimism of what she had to say. "This moment in music is so exciting because the creative avenues an artist can explore...Read More

Matteo Renzi is on a roll. The Italian prime minister is a brilliant politician. His youthful dynamism has bought him time with his people, the markets and the European Union to carry out the immense job of reforming Italy. But he has yet to show he can execute. He now needs to, because even his time will run out. Renzi has had a good four months in the job after he pushed aside his predecessor En...Read More

BBC admonished for giving climate change deniers equal air time … BBC journalists are being schooled in how to cover science. A progress report from an independent body, the BBC Trust, says Britain's public broadcasting service shouldn't be giving equal air time to climate change deniers and others on the scientific fringe. The report found the BBC remains prone to "over-rigid a...Read More