Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mostly lower at the close of trading on Monday December 17, capped by broad strength in the US dollar index while investors remain cautious ahead of the the forthcoming Federal Reserve meeting in the United States. At this week's Fed meeting, a decision on further interest-rate rises is expected. Volumes traded over the day are moderately low, w...Read More
The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) is to hold a hearing on Tuesday December 18 to consider the approval of a settlement following an investigation into Katanga Mining Limited and several of its executives.The OSC inquiry has been investigating whether Katanga's previously filed periodic public disclosures contain statements that are misleading in a material respect, along with the adequacy of...Read More
The Comex copper price fell in morning trading on Monday December 17 amid quiet trading conditions and uncertainty surrounding the future of American monetary policy. The copper price for March settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell 2.70 cents to $2.7355 per lb. US market participants are awaiting the Federal Reserve's Wednesday decision on another rate hike. Glo...Read More
A couple of my subscribers emailed me expressing frustration over the fact that their recent homebuilder puts are either not moving higher or losing value despite the sell-off in the overall stock market. There's two factors. First, the homebuilder sector has dropped well over 30% since late January. To an extent there may be some seller's fatigue. At some point there will be short term rally that...Read More
The latest metal markets news and price moves to start the North American day on Friday December 14.The three-month aluminium price on the London Metal Exchange shrugged off a net inflow of 57,525 tonnes today, mostly into warehouses in Port Klang, Malaysia.Aluminium traded at $1,923.50 on Friday morning down 0.4% from Thursday night's close. Friday's deliveries into Port Klang LME sheds foll...Read More
Alumina prices hitting a record high this year has changed the market's outlook for 2019, with traders adapting a cautiously bullish approach. The declaration of force majeure at Hydro's Alunorte refinery in Brazil, strikes by Alcoa workers in Australia and US sanctions against Russian producer UC Rusal roiled the market this year. Consequently, Fastmarkets' benchmark daily alumina index fob Austr...Read More
Copper smelters across Asia are following concentrate treatment and refining charge (TC/RC) terms agreed by Antofagasta and Jiangxi Copper, which are serving as a benchmark in contracts, sources taking part in the negotiations told Fastmarkets. In a deal signed in Shanghai in November, China's Jiangxi Copper agreed to purchase Los Pelambres and Centinela copper concentrates from Chilean miner...Read More
Treatment and refining charges (TC/RCs) for spot copper concentrate dropped in mid-December with fewer distressed cargoes circulating the market and participants beginning to price March cargoes.Spot activity in the copper concentrate market has slowed with market participants focused on settling the contractual terms for the first two weeks of December.Fastmarkets' copper concentrate index droppe...Read More
CloseGain/LossGold $1246.30+$8.00Silver$14.67+$0.09XAU69.19+2.37%HUI156.72+2.66%GDM570.75+1.84%JSE Gold1302.25+3.60USD97.14-0.32Euro113.47+0.42Yen88.54+0.31Oil$49.88-$1.3210-Year2.858%-0.035T-Bond143.75+0.46875Dow23592.98-2.11%Nasdaq6753.73-2.27%S&P2545.94-2.08% The Metals: Gold saw slight losses in Asia, but it then climbed steadily higher in London and New York and ended near its early a...Read More
Gold is not only flowing from West to East.It is also flowing into the house account at Goldman Sachs. Or at least the paper claims for it in New York.Below is the monthly report showing the large amounts of physical gold which have been steadily flowing through the Shanghai markets into strong hands in China.Few commentators are talking about this.What is less familiar, and what I have not read...Read More
The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) is to hold a hearing on Tuesday December 18 to consider the approval of a settlement following an investigation into Katanga Mining Limited and several of its executives.The OSC inquiry has been investigating whether Katanga's previously filed periodic public disclosures contain statements that are misleading in a material respect, along with the adequacy of...Read More
United States-based specialty chemicals company Albemarle Corp has signed a deal that creates a joint venture with Mineral Resources Limited (MRL) to develop a battery-grade lithium hydroxide plant in Western Australia. The $1.15 billion agreement gives Albemarle a 50% stake in MRL's Wodgina hard rock lithium mine and will see the companies eventually develop an integrated lithium hydroxide operat...Read More
Turkish steel producers remained out of the deep-sea scrap markets because of weakening demand for finished steel and falling prices, sources said on Monday December 17.Although some suppliers in the Baltic region reduced their offers to $300-305 per tonne cfr levels for HMS 1&2 (80:20), mills in Turkey were not enticed."I heard offers from Baltic Sea are at $300 per tonne cfr and little above, bu...Read More
Turkish domestic scrap prices have continued to slip lower in line with the falling finished steel prices over the past week, sources said on Monday December 17.Fastmarkets MB's weekly price assessment for domestic auto bundle (DKP grade) ferrous scrap was TRY1,490-1,710 ($278-319) per tonne delivered, widening down from TRY1,590-1,710 per tonne on December 10.Several steel mills in the country cu...Read More
A 552-carat yellow diamond, the largest ever found in North America, was recovered at the Diavik diamond mine, Northwest Territories, Canada. The mine is owned 40% by Dominion Diamond and 60% by Rio Tinto. Source: Dominion Diamond Corp.The largest diamond ever found in North America has been recovered from a Northwest Territories mine controlled by Dominion Diamond Corp. and Rio Tinto Plc [RIO-NYS...Read More
The Comex copper price fell in morning trading on Monday December 17 amid quiet trading conditions and uncertainty surrounding the future of American monetary policy. The copper price for March settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell 2.70 cents to $2.7355 per lb. US market participants are awaiting the Federal Reserve's Wednesday decision on another rate hike. Glo...Read More
The three-month base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were for the most part little changed this morning, Monday December 17. The exception was zinc, the price of which was up by 1.3% at $2,565 per tonne. The three-month copper price was down by $1.50 per tonne at $6,139 per tonne.Volume across the complex has been above average with 6,271 lots traded as at 7.53am London time.The preciou...Read More
United States-based specialty chemicals company Albemarle Corp has signed a deal that creates a joint venture with Mineral Resources Limited (MRL) to develop a battery-grade lithium hydroxide plant in Western Australia. The $1.15 billion agreement gives Albemarle a 50% stake in MRL's Wodgina hard rock lithium mine and will see the companies eventually develop an integrated lithium hydroxide operat...Read More
Share this articleTORONTO - The Ontario Securities Commission says it has reached a tentative settlement with Katanga Mining Ltd. on allegations that the company violated securities rules by not properly disclosing public-sector corruption risks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.The regulator has accused the company, a subsidiary of Swiss mining giant Glencore Plc, and several members of...Read More
Assumptions are more common than the truth...And that's not commentary on "fake news" or other modern phenomena. It's instead a fact of the human condition.The human brain has an amazing ability to fill in missing information in any given scenario where 100% of the information isn't present. In other words, it can make assumptions. And your brain is pretty good at it, too.One way it uses this skil...Read More