By Gary TanashianSo here we are, with the sector leading the recovery out of the March crash during still-deflationary times. Inflation? It is not yet anywhere to be found, and that probably has a lot of inflation-centric would-be gold boosters on the sidelines. Someday, when these ladies are in full cheer with inflation signals rising, it will be time for caution.Meanwhile, for years we have st...Read More

No Place to Hide: How Market Manipulation in the Age of Pandemic is Destroying Traditional Safe HavensBy Neil VowlesUniversity of Sussex, Brighton, England, UKThursday, May 14, 2020http://www.sussex.ac.uk/broadcast/read/52005The coronavirus pandemic has created enormous volatility in global financial markets but prices of safe-haven assets such as gold and bitcoin are not surging as one might ex...Read More

The major gold miners' stocks have rallied dramatically out of mid-March's stock-panic lows, soaring to new bull-market highs. Their just-reported Q1'20 operational and financial results reveal whether today's higher gold-stock prices are fundamentally justified. They also illuminate whether this gold-stock upleg is likely to continue powering higher, despite the catastrophic economic damage...Read More

By: Ira EpsteinGold is thrusting higher and now looking at prior highs, watch these key resistance and breakout levels. Read More

Domestic prices for ferrous scrap in Italy have jumped over the past month due to low scrap collection in Europe, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday May 15.Fastmarkets' monthly price assessment for steel scrap, No E8 (thin new production steel scrap), domestic, delivered mill Italy was ?,?240-250 ($259-270) per tonne on May 15, up from ?,?210-230 per tonne in the middle of April. The assessment is...Read More

Export prices of Brazil-origin slab increased week on week amid recent deals and offers to China as well as increased raw material costs.Fastmarkets assessed the price for steel slab export, fob main port Brazil at $335-350 per tonne on Friday May 15, up by $5 from $330-345 per tonne the week previous.Chinese customers recently purchased material, sources said, with deals being heard at a minimum...Read More

Domestic demand for rebar in China increased on Friday May 15, but prices remained unchanged with sellers being under pressure to destock. Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,460-3,490 yuan ($487-492) per tonne, unchangedNorthern China (Beijing) - weekly assessment: 3,420-3,460 yuan per tonne, down by 30-40 yuan per tonneEnd users raised their procurement rates ahead of the weekend, but the heigh...Read More

Steady demand from China continued to prop up prices in Southeast Asia's steel billet market over the past week, sources told Fastmarkets on Friday May 15. Market participants said China remained the preferred destination for suppliers due to their ability to pay higher prices and book larger cargoes than Southeast Asian re-rollers. Demand in Southeast Asia remained sluggish due to restrictions im...Read More

1...The Gold and Silver mining and exploration stocks are among the most undervalued of all the investment sectors... the mining and exploration stocks have been and will be the focus for the next several years.. ..............2...Know well that if after our analysis we choose to invest in for example forty precious metals companies even after in-depth analysis, generally at least half fail. Howev...Read More

Key data from the pricing sessions in Asia, Europe and the United States for the session ended Friday May 15.China The UG2 chrome ore market rose once again after Chinese alloy producers with low stocks accepted higher offers. Import charge chrome prices moved up on supply tightness affecting availability. Domestic ferro-chrome spot prices climbed up on bullish sentiment following increases in...Read More

Key data from the pricing sessions in Asia, Europe and the United States for the session ended Friday May 15.China Domestic prices remained stable in an active spot market, with sentiment strengthening after the majority of steel mills raised their tender prices for May deliveries. Hesteel, China's second-largest...Read More

China's crude steel output was largely flat in April, but finished steel production significantly increased to exceed 100 million tonnes, according to data released by the country's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Friday May 15.Steel outputAprilCrude steel: 85.03 million tonnes, up by 0.2% from a year earlier and up by 7.7% month on monthHot metal: 72.02 million tonnes, down 1.2%...Read More

Wall Street's "fear gauge," the VIX, enjoyed its best week since mid-MarchA big comeback for the retail sector -- despite this morning's devastating data -- just barely saved the Dow today. The blue-chip index capped off a week of dramatic dips 60 points north of the breakeven. The S&P, also turned its luck around during the 11th hour, ending with a shallow gain, while the Nasdaq also enjoyed a m...Read More

Many gold stocks have climbed amid the broad-market volatilityOne name that has brushed off the broad market sell-off this week is Wheaton Precious Metals Corp (NYSE:WPM), sporting a 5% weekly gain even despite a downgrade to "sector perform" from "outperform" from RBC. Although one analyst has moved to the sidelines, data from Schaeffer's Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White suggests WPM is...Read More

AMAT options are incredibly popular todayThe shares of Applied Materials Inc (NASDAQ:AMAT) are down 5.3% at $51.52 at last check, after the Apple supplier reported fiscal second-quarter earnings and revenue that both missed their marks. Following the report, analysts chimed in with mixed sentiment. Three analysts hiked up their price targets -- the highest coming from Stifel to $75 -- while anothe...Read More

Taiwan Semiconductor is up 19.2% year-over-year thoughThe shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Mfg. Co. Ltd. (NYSE:TSM) are down 5.1% to trade at $49.73 at last check, even after the Apple supplier confirmed plans -- in conjunction with Qualcomm (QCOM) -- to build a $12 billion chip factory in Arizona. The move represents an attempt to give the U.S. a chance regain global supply chains back from China...Read More

The Nasdaq did notch a six-day win streak earlier in the weekThere was optimism heading into the week as U.S. economies began to reopen, but that sentiment was not replicated on Wall Street. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI), the S&P 500 Index (SPX) and the Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) are on track for ugly weekly losses, as lockdown leniency is met with panic of a second wave of coronavirus. A d...Read More

Some last-minute traders are betting on more upside for TWTR with monthlies Though the reasons are not quite clear, social media giant Twitter Inc's (NYSE:TWTR) options pits are buzzing with bulls today. So far, 93,000 calls have crossed the tape -- more than two times the intraday average -- compared to 15,000 puts. Positions are being opened at the May 29.50 call, which expires later today, as w...Read More

The Dow is down over 160 points middayAll three indexes are eyeing their worst week since late March, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) falls over 160 points midday on the heels of increasing tensions between the U.S. and China. The S&P 500 Index (SPX) and Nasdaq Composite (ICIX) have also been pushed into the red, as investors digest the worst monthly retail sales decline on record, a 16...Read More

Stifel downgraded SE to "hold" from "buy"The shares of Sea Ltd (NYSE:SE) are down 1.6% at $60.52 at last check, after the software company was downgraded to "hold" from "buy at Stifel. Although the brokerage upped its price target to $62 from $55, the analyst in coverage is positive on the growth of Shopee, the company's e-commerce platform in Asia, and adjusted to "hold" as the stock is "appropri...Read More