(Kitco News) - Volatility in global stock markets is boosting demand for gold, which has stood “the test of time,” said Eric Sprott, billionaire precious metals investor and founder of Sprott Inc.As central banks around the world stepped up gold purchases, shouldn’t investors follow suit, Sprott was asked during the company’s Weekly Wrap-Up segment.“In India, the cent...Read More
European tin premiums have surged this week on concerns about continued supply from Indonesia, while premiums in the United States and China have remained firm on reduced demand and ample supply. Rotterdam 99.9% in-warehouse premium at 5-month high US tin demand expected to slow Closed import window keeps China premiums flat.European premium bolstered by production woesIn Europe, the premium for 9...Read More
(Kitco News)- Palladium prices hit a recordhigh this week and widened the premium over sister metal platinum, whichultimately could encourage automakers to switch to platinum for auto catalysts,analysts report.“In a year that’s seen losses formost other commodities, the rally in palladium has been exceptional,” saidcommodities brokerage SP Angel. “It’s the one major m...Read More
WASHINGTON, (Reuters) - U.S. factories have raised their prices because of tariffs, although inflation has appeared modest or moderate in most parts of the country, the Federal Reserve said on Wednesday in its latest report on the economy.The U.S. central bank also said in its latest “Beige Book” report that the economy appeared to be growing modestly to moderately and that businesses...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were collectively lower at the close of trading on Wednesday October 24, pressured by continued strength in the US dollar index while the three-month aluminium price broke below $2,000 per tonne for the first time since April.Reaching an intraday low of $1,996 per tonne, the aluminium market continues to be affected by uncertainty over United States...Read More
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Medical treatment will be more widely available to opioid abusers while mailing illicit drugs will be more difficult under a measure to fight drug addiction that was signed into law on Wednesday by U.S. President Donald Trump.In a year more typically marked by partisan gridlock, Trump signed the rare bipartisan package passed by Congress earlier this month to tackle a proble...Read More
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices rose modestly on Wednesday, rebounding after several days of weakness as a much bigger-than-expected drawdown in U.S. gasoline and diesel inventories augured a seasonal increase in refining demand.However, traders remain concerned about worldwide demand, and that weakness in global equities would also reduce buying of assets like oil by investment managers. On Tuesd...Read More
Global physical nickel spot markets have been quiet over the past week while participants focus on negotiating long-term supply deals. Closed arbitrage window keeps Chinese market steady; long-term negotiations to start in November European premiums unchanged while participants start to look at next year's supply contracts US nickel premiums static while participants focus on long-term deals ...Read More
Palladium futures settled at a record on Tuesday, as concerns surrounding supplies from Russia, following U.S. President Donald Trump's plan to pull out of a nuclear treaty with Moscow, lifted prices for a third straight session. Palladium for December delivery PAZ8, -0.29% climbed by $15.10, or 1.4%, to settle at $1,122.80 an ounce on Comex after tapping an intraday high of $1,137.70. The settle...Read More
The market for Turkish lumpy chrome ore showed signs of strong recovery late last week and, although the market appears to have stalled since then, the uptrend looks set to resume.Upward momentum started to return to the market after several weeks in which there was little reported trade.Fastmarkets MB's price assessment of Turkish lumpy chrome ore, cfr China, gained $8 to reach $230-240 per...Read More
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Reserve will consider a proposal that would ease rules for all but the nation’s largest banks at an Oct. 31 board meeting, the central bank announced on Wednesday.The proposal, which has yet to be unveiled, would implement several major provisions of a bank deregulation bill Congress passed in May. Most notably, the law directs the Fed to ease oversigh...Read More
Key data from the Wednesday October 24 pricing session in Europe.Key drivers The downward trend in the European ferro-titanium market in October has been extended in the latest assessment, with high-volume sales to Europe from Russia dragging down prices. Sources said there is supplier resistance at $5 per kg, which is proving something of a psychological level for the market. But there is en...Read More
OTTAWA (Reuters) - The Bank of Canada on Wednesday raised interest rates as expected and said it might speed up the pace of future hikes given the economy was running at almost full capacity and did not need any stimulus.The central bank, which has now lifted rates five times since July 2017, also hailed the signing of a new North American trade pact it forecast would reduce economic uncertainty.T...Read More
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Trump administration and the U.S. defense industry are scrambling to save the few actual deals in the much-touted $110 billion arms package for Saudi Arabia as concerns rise about the role of the Kingdom’s leadership over the death of a prominent critic.President Donald Trump has hedged his criticism of Saudi leaders over the disappearance and death of U.S. residen...Read More
Elijah Johnson invited me onto the Silver Doctor's precious metals podcast to discuss why mining stocks are historically cheap and why an expected crash in the stock market will be accompanied by a soaring precious metals sector. We also discuss why Trump is beating up the Fed over rate hikes:Note on my Mining Stock Journal. I mentioned a highly undervalued intermediate gold and silver produce...Read More
The shutdown of Brazilian alumina refinery Alunorte for a few days in October could bring its production volume down by 20,000-30,000 tonnes in the fourth quarter, according to Eivind Kallevik, chief financial officer of the unit's owner, Norsk Hydro.Hydro produced 821,000 tonnes of alumina during the third quarter of 2018. If output goes down by as much as 30,000 tonnes, that would mean a reducti...Read More
Tuesday saw gold make an attemptto break out above our resistance level of $1,240, trading as high as $1,243before failing and closing below. As we wrote on Tuesday, we expected the firstrun at $1,240 to fail, and it did.The good news -- gold continuesto make higher lows. The next test of $1,240 should create a breakout to theupside, taking us to our next target of $1,275. At the same time, silver...Read More
Freeport-McMoRanInc. (NYSE: FCX) reports net income of $556 million, or 38 cents per share, inthe third quarter, roughly double $280 million, or 19 cents, in the same perioda year ago. Excluding special items, third-quarter adjusted net income was $514million, or 35 cents a share, the company reports. Third-quarter copper salesof 1.04 billion pounds were 8% higher than the July estimate of 970 mil...Read More
For the past few years, homeowners just about everywhere have been able to finesse life's problems by thinking "at least my house is going up." This home equity accretion allowed them to buy stuff on credit, safe in the knowledge that even as they maxed out yet another credit card their net worth continued to rise. They felt smart and confident, in other words, and so continued to behave in ways t...Read More
(Reuters) - Federal authorities were investigating suspicious packages sent to former U.S. President Barack Obama and former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, the U.S. Secret Service said on Wednesday.The package to Clinton was found late Tuesday while another package addressed to Obama was found early Wednesday, both during routine mail screenings, the Secret Service said. Both O...Read More