The market for CIS-origin pig iron has weakened over the past week on lower booking prices in Italy, Metal Bulletin has heard.Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for imported high-manganese pig iron in Italy dropped $5 from last week to $365-370 per tonne cfr on February 15. A Ukrainian producer has sold two cargoes, to a trader and a steel producer, at $365-370 per tonne cfr Italy, Meta...Read More

Metal Bulletin's Iron Ore Index was largely unchanged at just above $78 per tonne on Thursday February 15 as the week-long Chinese New Year holiday officially begins.Metal Bulletin's 62% Fe Iron Ore Index Today: $78.43 per tonne cfr QingdaoDaily change: up 2 centsMonth-to-date...Read More

Outokumpu Americas, the Northern American subsidiary of the Finnish stainless steelmaker, is limiting sales of excess prime and secondary stainless steel material to preferred customers, according to an email seen by Metal Bulletin.The move is likely to affect availability of stainless scrap for several buyers, market participants said. "We have selected a limited number of preferred customers for...Read More

The seaborne coking coal market is stable on Thursday February 15 amid a lull in trading, with China off for the Lunar New Year holiday. "Prices will remain pretty much stable as historically appetite is relatively low after the Lunar New Year holidays," a Japanese trader said. On the ongoing uncertainties surrounding Aurizon's reduction in rail capacity, an Indian end user said that there is "pot...Read More

Vietnam's ferrous scrap imports more than doubled year on year to 593,119 tonnes in January from 268,203 tonnes in the same month last year, according to the country's Ministry of Finance.This is up 20% from the 493,131 tonnes imported in December 2017.The country imported 268,427 tonnes in the first half of January, while...Read More

Base metals traded on the London Metal Exchange were broadly higher during Asian morning trading on Thursday February 15, though trading remained subdued with Chinese participants out for the week-long Lunar New Year break.Copper and nickel prices led on the upside with aluminium and lead registering slight gains, helped by continued weakness in the dollar, while tin was unchanged and zinc was the...Read More

Manganese flake prices climbed to a fresh multi-month high this week on a continued supply squeeze with the Lunar New Year holiday expected to disrupt supply further. Metal Bulletin assessed the manganese flake in-warehouse Rotterdam price at $2,075-2,220 per tonne on Wednesday February 14, up 1.8% from the previous assessment. The last time manganese flake prices climbed to that level was in...Read More

Global crude stainless steel production is forecast to grow by around 4% year-on-year to 52.10 million tonnes in 2018, according to metals market research company SMR.This would be up from 50.10 million tonnes of crude stainless steel produced in 2017, SMR said. China was the largest producer of stainless steel in 2017 with 27.0 million tonnes, while it consumed more than 20 million tonnes of stai...Read More

Prices for stainless steel in East Asia held steady with manyparticipants exiting the market for the Lunar New Year holiday.Metal Bulletin's assessment of prices for benchmark 304 stainless 2mm cold-rolled coil was $2,250-2,320 per tonne cif East Asian ports for the week ended Wednesday February 14, the same as a week earlier.Metal Bulletin's assessment...Read More

Aluminium scrap prices in the United Kingdom fell this week, following the aluminium price's February decline on the London Metal Exchange.Group 1 pure 99% litho on a delivered consumer works basis fell to ?1,400-1,450 ($1,949-2,018) per tonne on Wednesday February 14, from ?1,420-1,470 per tonne a week earlier.This marks the first decline for the grade since late November 2017, and touched...Read More

Pembridge Resources (LON:PERE) said Thursday it was buying Capstone Mining's (TSX:CS) Minto copper-gold-silver mine in Canada's Yukon for $37.5 million in cash plus a 9.9% stake in the company.The miner, which last year moved from the Aim to LSE main board, said the acquisition makes of Pembridge a cash flow generating copper producerThe London-based company said it plans to raise $50 mill...Read More

Canadian miner Kinross Gold (TSX:G) (NYSE:KGC) has moved to secure low-cost power supply for its Paracatu mine, Brazil's largest gold mine, by buying two hydroelectric plants for $257 million.With the acquisition of two hydroelectric plants, it expects to eliminate about 70% of future power purchases.The Toronto-based miner said the acquisition of Barra dos Coqueiros and Cacu hydro power plants,...Read More

Rising mineral prices and the increasing difficulties to earn a living from agriculture, have led to an explosive growth in global artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) in the last few years.The activity is emerging as an significant socio-economic sector in a number of developing nations, to the point it has become a major of revenue for millions of people in about 80 countries worldwide - mostl...Read More

Canadian explorer Argo Gold (CSE: ARQ) said Thursday that is selling its South Wawa gold property to RT Minerals Corp. (TSX-V:RTM) for consideration of 350,000 common shares of the Vancouver-based junior miner.The property consists of two mineral claims totalling 16 units or 256 hectares located roughly 10 km south of the town of Wawa, in Ontario.When Argo acquired South Wawa, the asset had not b...Read More

Industry remains committed to investing in mining innovationOttawa, February 15, 2018 - The consortium behind the CLEER supercluster proposal remains committed to transforming Canada's mining industry through innovation, despite not being amongst the five projects selected by Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada for supercluster funding.The Canadian mining industry developed the pan...Read More

Jason Burack of Wall St for Main St interviewed returning guest, hedge fund manager, former successful software entrepreneur & Co-host of the Macro Voices podcast https://www.macrovoices.com/ for high net worth investors and financial professionals, Erik Townsend. In this interview, Jason asks Erik if central banks have a viable exit strategy to remove liquidity? Erik thinks they will try but no o...Read More

*This interview was recorded on January 19, 2018Rick Rule, President and CEO of Sprott US Holdings Inc., discusses the natural resource outlook and the investing opportunities for the New Year. Rick says commodities are "ripe for a sustained bull market that yields big investment returns."Rick Rule, founder and chairman of Sprott Global Resource Investments Ltd., began his career in the securities...Read More

Continue...Dr. Rand Paul is the junior United States Senator for Kentucky. Elected in 2010, he has proven to be an outspoken champion for constitutional liberties and fiscal responsibility, and a warrior against government overreach. A graduate of Duke University School of Medicine, Rand was a practicing ophthalmologist in Bowling Green, Ky., for 17 years. Rand has been a vocal advocate for term l...Read More

U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 10 points in pre-opening trade. Index futures were virtually unchanged following release of economic news at 8:30 AM EST. Consensus for the January Producer Price Index was an increase of 0.4% versus a decline of 0.1% in December. Actual was an increase of 0.4%. Excluding food and energy, consensus for the January Prod...Read More

"There is absolutely no statutory provision that authorizes limited disclosure of otherwise classified information to anyone, including 'trusted reporters,' Continue...Read More