Metals Markets
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‘Investors are still on the sidelines’: John Hathaway says precious metals and mining stocks in ‘early days’ at GMS
Prominent gold commentator John Hathaway appeared on the second day of The Northern Miner’s Global Mining Symposium. In January, after 22 years at Tocqueville Asset Management, the veteran investment manager moved to Toronto-headquartered Sprott Asset Management (TSX: SII; NYSE: SII), where he…
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REPORT: Lithium demand growth to remain strong to 2030
UNITED KINGDOM – A report by Roskill states that, globally, lithium demand growth is forecast to remain strong at over 19.7% per year through to 2030. According to the market researcher, this demand is being driven by the manufacture of lithium-ion…
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GOLD: Pandemic drives prices to record levels in Q2
LONDON – As gold hit a new all-time high of US$1,941.90 per oz. on Monday, Refinitiv released its second-quarter review of the gold sector, providing insight into where the demand is coming from – and where it’s actually falling. The review shows…
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Sourcing cobalt remains a challenge for electric vehicle manufacturers
German luxury vehicle maker BMW signed a US$2.3 billion long-term deal earlier this month with Swedish battery maker Northvolt, the latest of such deals, as European carmakers try to compete with Tesla in the burgeoning electric vehicle (EV) market. Tesla’s…
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BATTERIES: Why LFP cathode material is making a comeback
A previously sidelined EV battery cathode material – LFP, composed of lithium iron and phosphate – has come to the forefront in 2020, thanks to its safety, low cost, and the simplified battery pack design that it allows, a white paper published…
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COMMODITIES: BofA forecasts metal price recovery post-COVID-19
UNITED STATES – Bank of America forecasts global copper consumption could contract by 18% year-over-year in 2020 should global GDP drop by an estimated 4.2% due to economic disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Although a decline in copper purchases of…
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COBALT: Feasibility shows strong economics for First Cobalt refinery reboot
TORONTO – A feasibility study looking at an expansion of First Cobalt’s refinery in Ontario shows that with a capital investment of US$56 million, the past-producing facility could produce nearly 25,000 tonnes of cobalt sulphate annually – representing 5% of…
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COVID-19: Coronavirus impacts spread across mining sector
As the world seemingly moves into lockdown to halt the transmission of the novel COVID-19 virus, the uncertainty and restrictions on movement are taking a toll on markets and commodities. After initially benefiting from uncertainty around the virus and peaking…
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SURVEY: BC exploration shifts toward base metals
After two years of growth, mineral exploration spending in British Columbia was steady last year, totalling $329 million. But while overall spending didn’t change much, the minerals targeted did, with gold exploration declining 11%, and base metal exploration rising 39%.…
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PDAC 2020: Covid-19 weighs on mining outlook for 2020
It’s usually difficult to find a seat at the commodities session on the opening day of the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) convention held in early March in Toronto, but there was a noticeably smaller crowd at this…
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Update: Coronavirus impacts base metals market
The coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak continues to spread across China, with official government figures putting the number of infected people at more than 73,000, and the number of deaths approaching 1,900 in China. According to figures from the World Health Organization,…
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Trump administration seeks to boost US uranium production
As part of U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposed federal budget for fiscal 2021, his administration is requesting US$150 million annually over the next decade to stockpile U.S.-mined uranium in a new national uranium reserve. The move is designed to prop…
