At some point in the not-so-distant future, the world is going to have another banking crisis... David Morgan interviewed on USA Watchdog by Greg HunterEconomic analyst and financial writer David Morgan says, at some point in the not-so-distant future, the world is going to have another banking crisis. Morgan contends in the next financial crisis, the banks are going to take depositors' money in...Read More

As the world's media spotlight falls on Afghanistan, Fastmarkets looks at why reported claims of incoming Chinese mining deals are unlikely to be fulfilled soon.Mes Aynak, Afghanistan's most well-known copper project, means "small copper deposit" in Pashto. Indications suggest it is anything but.The deposit holds 240 million tonnes of 2.3% grade copper ore, according to the United States Geologica...Read More

Domestic rebar producers in the United Arab Emirates reduced their prices on Tuesday August 24 amid low demand, sources told Fastmarkets.Demand was low because of the summer slowdown and falling prices; buyers preferred to wait to determine how much further prices will fall.The country's biggest producer, Emirates Steel, offered rebar at 2,610 dirhams ($710.46) per tonne, down from 2,957 dirh...Read More

RAPAPORT... Melissa Quick will join the board of directors of nonprofit group Gem Legacy after committing to the organization's mission following visits to mines in Africa. The president of Steve Quick Jeweler in Chicago, Illinois, Quick saw the positive impact the industry can have on artisanal gem-mining communities and wanted to help with fundraising, Gem Legacy said last week. Through her jewe...Read More

RAPAPORT... Mercury Free Mining (MFM) has appointed Avi Levy, the North America president of the International Gemological Institute (IGI), to its board of directors.Together with MFM, Levy will actively campaign to eliminate mercury use in mining through education and funding research that explores alternative methods, IGI said Monday. Levy's new position is part of an effort by IGI to advance it...Read More

Gonzalo Cuadra will retire from his role as commercial representative in Europe for Chilean copper producer Codelco after almost three decades with the company, according to an announcement circulated among customers on Tuesday August 24.Jos?(C) Ignacio P?(C)rez Paredes, who has been on the company's team in London since 2018 and with Codelco for 10 years, will succeed Cuadra as chief executive of...Read More

RAPAPORT... Christie's sold a 24.45-carat diamond pendant for $2 million at its recent online auction, the second-highest price the company has achieved for a jewel sold online.The heart-shaped, D-color, internally flawless, type IIa stone fell within its presale estimate at the August 4 to 18 Summer Sparkle sale, the company said last week. In total, the auction brought in $5.1 million. An emeral...Read More

RAPAPORT... Rough-diamond prices have fallen by up to 5% on the secondary market since Russia's state gem depository released a stockpile of goods last month, according to Alrosa.The Gokhran auction on July 23 brought almost $140 million in inventory into the supply chain, easing the sector's shortages, the Russian miner's deputy CEO, Evgeny Agureev, told Rapaport News Thursday.Rough has been...Read More

(IDEX Online) - International Gemological Institute (IGI), North America president Avi Levy has been appointed to the board of directors of Mercury Free Mining (MFM).   MFM's mission is to reduce global mercury pollution which is caused by artisanal gold mining. The MFM says that such mining is responsible for 40% of global mercury pollution.   The MFM says that more than 15 million...Read More

Long-time jewelry industry member Melissa Quick is to join the board of directors of Gem Legacy which works to expand beneficiation in colored gemstone mining areas and communities via children, education, and entrepreneurship. Quick has been a retail store owner for more than 25 years together with her husband and business partner Steve.  She first visited East Africa, where many of the...Read More

(IDEX Online) - Australian jewelry chain Michael Hill has been hit by the repeated closedowns in Australia and New Zealand, but saw a large rise in online sales and net profit, the company reported in its fiscal year 2021 results.   The group lost 10,447 store trading days in FY21: with 3,458 days lost in Australia, 6,525 days lost in Canada, and 464 days lost in New Zealand.   Net profi...Read More

Members of the Sisan trade union for supervisors at the Andina copper mine have agreed to the latest labor offer from Codelco, the Chilean state-owned company said on Tuesday August 24.While the supervisors agreed to no increase in wages, they have settled for a one-off bonus of 5.07 million pesos ($6,453) per person, with 92% of union members voting for the deal, the company added. The supervisor...Read More

A summary of China's base metals imports for July 2021, according to Chinese customs data released on Friday August 20.Copper ore and concentrateJuly total: 1.89 tonnes, up by 12.9% month on month, up by 5.1% year on yearYear to date: 13.39 million tonnes, down by 10% year on yearRefined copperJuly total: 270,054 tonnes, down by 2.6% month on month, down by 52.5% year on yearYear to date: 2.07 mil...Read More

Initial offers for fourth-quarter supply of aluminium to main Japanese ports (MJP) are at a premium of $230 per tonne to the London Metal Exchange cash price, market participants told Fastmarkets on Tuesday August 24.The unconfirmed offer from this producer is 28.9% higher than the cif MJP premium for the third quarter, which settled at $172-185 per tonne.For the fourth quarter of last year,...Read More

A summary of the financial and performance results for China Molybdenum for the first half of 2021, published on Monday August 23.In briefRevenue from the company's mining and processing business totaled 84.82 billion yuan ($13.07 billion) in the first half of 2021, up by 81.45% year-on-year. Net profit was 2.41 billion...Read More

Prices for hot-rolled coil in the United States were virtually unchanged while order flow slowed on Tuesday August 24, with mills still discerning their next round of spot pricing and service centers reluctant to restock at current levels. Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $96.55 per hundredweight ($1,931 per short ton) on August 24, little-changed from...Read More

Sales volumes from Brazilian flat-rolled steel distributors were down by 24.01% on an annual basis in July 2021, due to clients increasing their direct purchases from steelmakers, national distributors' association Inda said on Tuesday August 24.Many clients that traditionally bought directly from mills had resorted to buying from distributors during the Covid-19 pandemic, because steelmakers were...Read More

McEwen, through his Evanachan investment corporation, bought four million shares to acquire a 18.6% stake in McEwen Copper, as the cornerstone investor in the newco.Read More

Steel billet prices in key Asian import markets have continued to edge down in recent days amid weaker demand, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday August 24.Chinese ferrous futures gained ground on Monday and Tuesday after last week's crash, but the reaction from the physical spot market for steel billet has so far been limited, with bids from Chinese buyers still far below the offer prices.O...Read More

Prices for hot- and cold-rolled steel sheet and heavy plate in Russia's Central Federal District around Moscow continued to fall in the week ended Monday August 23, sources have told Fastmarkets.Hot-rolled sheet and heavy plate prices decreased by 3-5% week on week, while the drop for cold-rolled sheet prices was more pronounced at 10% week on week.Opinions varied about why this happened. One trad...Read More