VIENNA (Reuters) - Venezuela has the ability to boost crude output by 1 million barrels per day (bpd) by end of the year in its bid to recover lost production, but the oil minister also said on Friday this goal would be “a challenge” for state oil firm PDVSA.President Nicolas Maduro said last month PDVSA would aim to boost oil production by 1 million bpd this year, and would seek help...Read More

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to impose a 20 percent tariff on all European Union-assembled cars coming into the United States, a month after the administration launched an investigation into whether auto imports pose a national security threat.“If these Tariffs and Barriers are not soon broken down and removed, we will be placing a 20% Tariff on all of their...Read More

Pasar copper smelter in the Philippines is expected to operate at a reduced capacity during the second half of the year while the company makes repairs to its sulfuric acid cooling plant, Metal Bulletin has learned. Pasar, which is 78% owned by Swiss miner-trader Glencore, halted output in January due to a failure in the smelter's sulfuric acid cooling plant. Despite restarting in February, t...Read More

An overview of the battery raw materials markets and their price moves from the past week.Read More

CloseGain/LossOn WeekGold $1270.20+$2.80-0.80%Silver$16.46+$0.15-0.78%XAU82.00+1.36%-0.70%HUI176.93+1.33%-0.53%GDM618.81+1.50%-0.25%JSE Gold1066.58-2.36+1.71%USD94.55-0.27-0.23%Euro116.63+0.51+0.47%Yen91.13+0.01+0.77%Oil$68.58+$3.04+5.41%10-Year2.895%UNCH-1.03%Bond144.00+0.03125-0.37%Dow24580.89+0.49%-2.03%Nasdaq7692.82-0.26%-0.69%S&P2754.88+0.19%-0.88% The Metals: Gold gained $3.60 to $12...Read More

(Kitco News) - Gold pricesslightly up in early U.S. trading Friday. Bulls are working to stop thebleeding in their precious metal. It’s been a rough one-week trading period forthe gold bulls, as prices dropped from a high of $1,313.00 on June 14 to a lowof $1,262.40 on June 21, basis August Comex futures. Gold prices also hit asix-month low on Thursday. August Comex gold were last up $1.20 a...Read More

Gold COT Report - FuturesLarge SpeculatorsCommercialTotalLongShortSpreadingLongShortLongShort202,915106,40356,882161,475275,599421,272438,884Change from Prior Reporting Period 10,16333,8918,5142,059-24,40420,73618,001Traders17991885050273193 Small Speculators LongShortOpen Interest 47,07329,461468,345 -1,0861,64919,650 non reportable positionsChange from the previous rep...Read More

"Fed is tightening into weakness and will eventually over-tighten and cause a recession""More inflation and a weaker dollar" is "the perfect environment for gold"Geopolitical shocks will return when least expected and gold will soar in flight to safetyby James Rickards for the Daily ReckoningRising interest rates are positive for goldSource: NY Fed for Fed Funds Rate, LBMA.org.uk for Gold PM f...Read More

Germany's BRAIN AG and CyPlus GmbH say new "green mining" bioagents able to enhance gold and silver recoveries could be in commercial use next year.Staff reporter Germany's BRAIN AG and Cyplus have collaborated on new bio-mineral recovery process research22 JUNE 201822/06/2018commentsshareChemical makers BRAIN and CyPlus said this week scaled up (from 100 litres to one tonne) testing of "marke...Read More

LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices rose sharply on Friday as OPEC agreed a modest increase in output to compensate for losses in production at a time of rising global demand.Benchmark Brent crude LCOc1 jumped $2.29 a barrel, or 3.1 percent, to a high of $75.34 before slipping to around $74.60 by 1345 GMT. U.S. light crude CLc1 was $1.90 higher at $67.44.The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Count...Read More

OTTAWA (Reuters) - An unexpected plunge in Canada’s retail sales in April, combined with flat inflation figures for May, drove the Canadian dollar to a year-low on Friday and cut expectations of an interest rate increase next month.Statistics Canada said retail sales in April dropped 1.2 percent, their biggest fall in more than two years, in part because of bad weather that hit sales of auto...Read More

An overview of the minor metals markets and the reasons for any price moves.Read More

The Friday Market Minute Global stocks mixed as investors count trade war costs, await OPEC decision.Oil grinds higher as reports say Russia and Saudi Arabia back a 1 million bpd output increase.Wall Street futures point to stronger open as Dow looks to snap 8-day losing streak.Dollar slips from 11-month highs; pound rises after hawkish Bank of England rate decision.Global PMI readings signal ex...Read More

Major CIMIC Group mining business unit Thiess has won a A$225 million contract with BHP Nickel West.Staff reporter22 JUNE 201822/06/2018commentsshareThe 34-month contract is for a further cutback at the Rocky's Reward pit and work at a satellite pit.The scope included mine planning and engineering, drill and blast, mining of overburden and ore, and rehandling services to the Leinster processing fa...Read More

Turkey's ferrous scrap import market remained quiet on Friday June 22 ahead of the outcome of the Turkish general election on Sunday. Market activity briefly picked up on Tuesday and Wednesday this week, with four deep-sea cargoes booked after a slow start to the week following a public holiday in Turkey to celebrate Eid on Friday last week. But activity waned again in the days before the election...Read More

Australian-headquartered mining contractor MACA (ASX: MLD) has terminated its first international venture 18 months early after agreeing with Beadell Resources to end services at the Tucano gold mine in Brazil.Staff reporterContract miner MACA has terminated a four-year contract at Tucano in Brazil, 18 months early22 JUNE 201822/06/2018commentsshareRESOURCEStocks Q&A: Australian Mines' Ben...Read More

(Reuters) - Wall Street was set to open higher on Friday with the Dow on track to snap an 8-day losing streak, helped by a surge in oil prices as OPEC neared a deal to boost output, while there were no significant developments in the China-U.S. trade rhetoric.The benchmark Brent crude LCOc1 jumped 2.8 percent to $75.07 a barrel, following three days of declines, after OPEC agreed on Friday to rais...Read More

(Adds details of release, background)OTTAWA, June 22 (Reuters) - Canada's annual inflation rate stayed unchanged at 2.2 percent in May, the fourth consecutive month it has exceeded the Bank of Canada's 2.0 percent target, Statistics Canada data indicated on Friday.The rate was less than the 2.5 percent forecast by analysts in a Reuters poll.The Bank of Canada has raised interest rates three times...Read More

LONDON (Reuters) - World shares rose on Friday but were set to end in the red for a second week running amid intensifying worries over the fallout of a trade dispute resulting from U.S. tariffs, while oil prices rose with an OPEC meeting underway.The MSCI All-Country World index .MIWD00000PUS, which tracks stocks in 47 countries, was up 0.3 percent by afternoon in Europe but down 1.3 percent on th...Read More

The Upper Juanita Zone at the Silver Range/Trifecta Gold Yuge property in northern Nevada. Access road in background. Source Trifecta Gold Ltd.Silver Range Resources Ltd. [SNG-TSX] announced results from initial exploration work on the Yuge property with partner Trifecta Gold Ltd. [TG-TSXV; TRRFF-OTC]. Silver Range granted Trifecta a staged option to earn up to a 75% interest in the Yuge property...Read More