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

Canada will take the harshest blows if U.S. President Donald Trump slaps heavy tariffs on foreign imports of steel and aluminum, but any temptation to suspend NAFTA talks in retaliation should be avoided, Canada’s former chief negotiator on the trade agreement said Friday.Putting the NAFTA negotiations on hold pending a resolution of the dispute over steel tariffs would give the U.S. an excu...Read More

OTTAWA — A coalition of business associations are urging Ottawa not to intervene in a months-long backlog of grain shipments, saying the move would only cause widespread delays for other commodity shippers on Canada’s highly integrated rail system.In a letter obtained by the Financial Post Tuesday, a coalition of seven business associations urged Transportation Minister Marc Garneau to...Read More

One of the biggest diamonds found to date has been sold for US$40 million.The 910-carat Lesotho Legend was sold in a tender in Antwerp, Gem Diamonds Ltd. said Tuesday. The company found the stone, which is about the size of two golf balls, at its Letseng mine in the African country this yearWhile it’s the most Gem has yet received for a diamond, other companies have sold for more. Lucara Dia...Read More

SummaryBetween 2007 and 2016, Ontario was mired in a prolonged period of economic weakness during which it lost ground compared to the rest of the country on many important economic indicators.This bulletin examines the extent of Ontario's economic weakness during this decade by examining a range of economic metrics.Ontario underperformed the rest of the country in each of the metrics examined in...Read More

MOSCOW — There was a gold rush in Siberia Thursday when the hatch of a cargo plane accidentally flew open upon takeoff — scattering tons of gold bars on the runway, Russian news reports say.An AN-12 plane operated by the airline Nimbus took off for Krasnoyarsk carrying 9.3 tons of gold and other precious metals, said to be worth $368 million, according to a statement from the state Inv...Read More

Maria Ezpeleta was planning to fly to Toronto earlier this month to speak about the impact of mining projects on women when she heard the news: The panel session, on "tackling gender bias" in the mining sector, was called off.In an ironic twist, the discussion of gender bias had been ensnared by #MeToo - the growing movement to stop sexual harassment - because new accusations were surfacing again...Read More

A flurry of new deals announced Monday suggests that mergers and acquisitions among junior mining companies, particularly in the gold space, could be heating up after several slow months.In the biggest mining deal announced so far this year in Canada, the 127-year old Idaho-based Hecla Mining Co. proposed what it estimated as a US$462 million cash-and-share acquisition of Nevada-based Klondex Mine...Read More

Canada has one of the most expensive universal health-care systems in the developed world. However, there is an imbalance between the value Canadians receive and the relatively high amount of money they spend on their health-care system. Of particular concern is the fact that Canada has significantly fewer physicians and acute-care beds, and also ranks poorly for the availability of important medi...Read More

(Adds quotes, details)LUSAKA, March 20 (Reuters) - Zambia expects to produce more than one million tonnes of copper this year after revising its 2017 copper production upwards on the back of stabe power supply, a senior ministry of mines official said on Tuesday.Rising copper prices were also expected to boost revenue collection in Africa's No.2 producer of the metal, which ranks exports of the me...Read More

Investing.com - Gold prices fell on Friday to settle at their lowest level in two weeks as the dollar remained supported by expectations for a rate hike at the upcoming Federal Reserve meeting this week.Gold futures for April delivery settled down 0.27% at $1,314.20 on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was the lowest close since March 1. For the week, prices were down 0.88...Read More

(Adds US stock index futures, updates prices)* Stocks waver after three days of losses* World stocks set for weekly loss despite record inflows* Mueller investigation adds to U.S. political worries* White House shake-up reports weigh on dollar* Graphic: World FX rates in 2018 http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVhBy Danilo MasoniMILAN, March 16 (Reuters) - World stocks wavered and the dollar eased on Friday as...Read More

* World stocks waver after three days of losses* European shares livened up by dealmaking, set for weekly loss* Mueller investigation adds to U.S. political worries* White House shake-up reports weigh on dollar* Weaker dollar lifts copper prices, oil edges up* Graphic: World FX rates in 2018 http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVhBy Danilo MasoniMILAN, March 16 (Reuters) - World stocks wavered and the dollar eas...Read More

(Adds company news items and futures)March 15 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE futures FFIc1 were flat ahead of the cash market open on Thursday.* SHELL: Royal Dutch Shell RDSa.L Chief Executive Ben van Beurden saw his total remuneration in 2017 rise to 8.9 million euros ($11 million) from 8.6 million the previous year. JUST GROUP: Annuity provider Just Group JUSTJ.L posted a record 35 percent rise in 2...Read More

March 15 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is seen opening 2 points higher at 7,135 on Thursday, according to financial bookmakers.* SHELL: Royal Dutch Shell RDSa.L is close to bagging a deal to supply Hong Kong with liquefied natural gas (LNG), beating out major competitors for the right to be the first company to supply LNG to the area. GLENCORE: Glencore Plc GLEN.L , the world's bigg...Read More

* LME/ShFE arb: LME zinc stocks up nearly 60 pct since March 3* Nickel hits two-week high above $14,000/T (Adds news of industrial action and closing prices)By Pratima DesaiLONDON, March 14 (Reuters) - Zinc prices slipped on Wednesday as inventories in London Metal Exchange-approved warehouses climbed, but support came from expectations of stronger demand in top consumer China.Benchmark zinc CMZN3...Read More

* World equity index down 2nd day but Europe, U.S. futures up* Trump seeking tariffs of up to $60 bln on Chinese goods-sources* Tariff threat overshadows strong China factory, investment data* Trump fires Tillerson, raising prospect of political uncertainty* Dollar stuck near one-week low, bond yields down (updates throughout)By Sujata RaoLONDON, March 14 (Reuters) - Shares were under pressure for...Read More

* World equity index further off one-month high as Asian markets fall* Trump seeking tariffs of up to $60 bln on Chinese goods-sources* Tariff threat overshadows strong China factory, investment data* Trump fires Tillerson, raising prospect of political uncertainty* Dollar stuck near one-week low, bond yields down (Updates prices throughout, changes dateline, quotes)By Sujata RaoLONDON, March 14 (...Read More

* LME/ShFE arb: GRAPHIC-2018 asset returns: http://tmsnrt.rs/2jvdmXl (Adds closing prices, India steel, technicals)By Zandi ShabalalaLONDON, March 13 (Reuters) - Aluminium prices inched higher on Tuesday on speculation China may sustain supply cuts after winter production curbs expire in two days.Benchmark aluminium on the London Metal Exchange CMAL3 ended 0.6 percent higher at $2,103 per tonne, a...Read More

* FTSE 100 down 1.1 pct at close; mid caps down 1.3* Dollar drop helps sterling after Trump fires Tillerson* Greencore plunges after co cuts guidance (Recasts, adds quote and detail, updates prices at close)By Danilo Masoni and Kit ReesLONDON/MILAN, March 13 (Reuters) - Britain's top share index succumbed to gains in the pound on Tuesday after U.S. President Donald Trump fired Secretary of State R...Read More

(For a live blog on European stocks, type LIVE/ in an Eikon news window)* FTSE 100 flat; mid caps down 0.4* Warning hammers Greencore; TC ICAP (LON:NXGN) down on profit miss* Antofagasta gains after raising dividendBy Danilo MasoniMILAN, March 13 (Reuters) - Disappointing earnings updates among mid caps weighed on UK shares on Tuesday as investors awaited U.S. inflation data for clues on the spe...Read More