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

"A nonviolent revolution is not a programme of 'seizure of power' but it is a programme of transformation of relationships, ending in a peaceful transfer of power." -Mahatma Gandhi … Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it. As we organize to exercise our right to free expression we must dedicate ourselves to promoting democracy and human dignity alike....Read More

Why Europe needs the City's financial weapons of mass destruction … There is very little chance of a market-led recovery taking hold in Europe without a revival in securitised lending to give it legs. America's sub-prime lending boom led to the banking crisis, yet securitisation is poised to make a comeback … They were the "financial weapons of mass destruction" which...Read More

"A nonviolent revolution is not a programme of 'seizure of power' but it is a programme of transformation of relationships, ending in a peaceful transfer of power." -Mahatma Gandhi … Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it. As we organize to exercise our right to free expression we must dedicate ourselves to promoting democracy and human dignity alike....Read More

Germany risks EU fines with record current account surplus … Wise Men say country's external surplus will keep rising to a modern-era high of 7.9pc of GDP this year, far above the 6pc limit set by Brussels. Germany first agreed to the new procedure thinking it would be used to punish deficit countries living beyond their means. Germany's current account surplus will smash all records...Read More

Nevada Rancher: 'The Citizens Of America' Got My Cattle Back … After a tense standoff with the Bureau of Land Management, the Nevada Rancher at the center of the disagreement proclaimed that "the citizens of America" got his cattle back. Rancher Cliven Bundy reached a deal with the BLM Saturday allowing the cattle that had been removed from the BLM land to be released back...Read More

Germany risks EU fines with record current account surplus … Wise Men say country's external surplus will keep rising to a modern-era high of 7.9pc of GDP this year, far above the 6pc limit set by Brussels. Germany first agreed to the new procedure thinking it would be used to punish deficit countries living beyond their means. Germany's current account surplus will smash all records...Read More

Nevada Rancher: 'The Citizens Of America' Got My Cattle Back … After a tense standoff with the Bureau of Land Management, the Nevada Rancher at the center of the disagreement proclaimed that "the citizens of America" got his cattle back. Rancher Cliven Bundy reached a deal with the BLM Saturday allowing the cattle that had been removed from the BLM land to be released back...Read More

It is now nearly seven years since the start of the financial crisis, yet despite growing evidence in America and Britain of a return to relative normality, something remains profoundly broken at the heart of the world economy. One manifestation of this – much discussed among the officials, finance ministers and central bankers gathered in Washington this week for the spring meeting of the I...Read More

Sen. Sessions: 'Deliberate Plan by President' to Collapse U.S. Law Enforcement System … Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) said today that Americans need to stand up to "a deliberate plan by the president of the United States" to collapse the nation's law enforcement system regarding illegal immigration. – CNSDominant Social Theme: The US system is either perfect or perf...Read More

It is now nearly seven years since the start of the financial crisis, yet despite growing evidence in America and Britain of a return to relative normality, something remains profoundly broken at the heart of the world economy. One manifestation of this – much discussed among the officials, finance ministers and central bankers gathered in Washington this week for the spring meeting of the I...Read More

Sen. Sessions: 'Deliberate Plan by President' to Collapse U.S. Law Enforcement System … Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) said today that Americans need to stand up to "a deliberate plan by the president of the United States" to collapse the nation's law enforcement system regarding illegal immigration. – CNSDominant Social Theme: The US system is either perfect or perf...Read More

When credit is too much of a good thing … What does credit do after it has finished the job it was designed for? The supply of credit ought to stop at funding productive activity. But the reality is different. Surplus credit fuels dangerous asset price inflation and funds profligate governments. – ReutersDominant Social Theme: A new kind of credit danger! And a new solution!Free-Market...Read More

Why Do Investors Make Bad Choices? … For many years, I have studied human behavior, including the mistakes occasionally made by fallible people, including investors. But a few years ago, I made a really dumb investment decision. In a single day, I hit the trifecta, committing at least three classic behavioral mistakes. – Bloomberg/Cass SunsteinDominant Social Theme: The stock market is...Read More

When credit is too much of a good thing … What does credit do after it has finished the job it was designed for? The supply of credit ought to stop at funding productive activity. But the reality is different. Surplus credit fuels dangerous asset price inflation and funds profligate governments. – ReutersDominant Social Theme: A new kind of credit danger! And a new solution!Free-Market...Read More

Why Do Investors Make Bad Choices? … For many years, I have studied human behavior, including the mistakes occasionally made by fallible people, including investors. But a few years ago, I made a really dumb investment decision. In a single day, I hit the trifecta, committing at least three classic behavioral mistakes. – Bloomberg/Cass SunsteinDominant Social Theme: The stock market is...Read More

The Libertarian Surge … Libertarianism – the political philosophy that says limited government is the best kind of government – is having its moment. Unfortunately, that's mostly because government has been expanding in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks and the financial crisis. Somehow government failures lead to even more government. When the financial crisis hit in the...Read More

We should give up trying to save the world from climate change, says James Lovelock …The scientist and inventor James Lovelock claims we should stop trying to save the planet from global warming and instead retreat to climate controlled cities … Saving the planet from climate change is 'beyond our ability' and we should stop wasting time trying to tackle global warming, a leadi...Read More

The Libertarian Surge … Libertarianism – the political philosophy that says limited government is the best kind of government – is having its moment. Unfortunately, that's mostly because government has been expanding in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks and the financial crisis. Somehow government failures lead to even more government. When the financial crisis hit in the...Read More

We should give up trying to save the world from climate change, says James Lovelock …The scientist and inventor James Lovelock claims we should stop trying to save the planet from global warming and instead retreat to climate controlled cities … Saving the planet from climate change is 'beyond our ability' and we should stop wasting time trying to tackle global warming, a leadi...Read More

The right agenda for the IMF … The world's finance ministers and central bank governors will gather in Washington this week for the twice yearly meetings of the International Monetary Fund. Though there will not be the sense of alarm that dominated these meetings after the financial crisis, the unfortunate reality is that the global economy's medium-term prospects have not been so cl...Read More