International - Copperbelt Katanga Mining

Gold price slides to 10-month low, may fall further

March 9, 2021March 9, 2021 admin

Gold prices continued to slide on Monday as the dollar and US treasury yields kept marching higher and prompted investors to dump the non-yielding metal. Spot gold dropped another 1.2% to $1,679.67 per ounce by 11:40 a.m. EST, its lowest since early June. US gold futures too fell by 1.2%, down to $1,677.40 per ounce. Meanwhile, the greenback climbed to a three-month peak, while the US 10-year Treasury yield held close to a more than one-year high, increasing the opportunity cost of holding gold, which pays no interest. “We have an… Read More Here

Copper International

Copper price up as Chinese imports surge

March 9, 2021March 9, 2021 admin

Copper price was up again on Monday as customs data showed China’s imports rose 4.7% for the first two months of 2021 from a year earlier, indicating stronger demand for the metal. May contracts rose 0.02% to $4.098 per pound ($9,015.6 per tonne) by midday in New York. Arrivals of unwrought copper and products into China were 884,010 tonnes in January and February combined, up from 844,723 tonnes a year earlier, the General Administration of Customs said. CHILE COPPER EXPORT REVENUE SURGED 65% IN FEBRUARY Activity in China’s manufacturing sector, a key… Read More Here

Mining in DRC International

President Biden Forces Israeli Mining Magnate Dan Gertler Back Into Magnitsky Act Straight jacket

March 9, 2021March 9, 2021 admin

The Joe Biden administration has reinstated Magnitsky sanctions on Israeli businessman Dan Gertler for ‘extensive public corruption’ in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), overturning a secretive and irregular action carried out during the death throes of the Donald Trump administration. Dan Gertler was issued a licence five days before Donald Trump left office that gave him access to his money frozen in US banks and allowed him to do business with financial institutions throughout the world. Unless he has been able to use this window to move his assets out of… Read More Here

Copper International

Copper price crashes through $4.00, down 7%

March 5, 2021March 5, 2021 admin

Comex copper plunged on Thursday as doubts creep in about the sustainability of a rally that took the bellwether metal to within throwing distance of an all-time high. May delivery futures contracts fell 7.1% to $3.8490 a pound ($8,486 a tonne) in early afternoon trade in New York in massive volumes of 4.5 billion pounds or more than $17 billion worth of copper traded. The carnage spilled over onto equity markets with top copper producers hammered. For the week number two diversified miner Rio Tinto, Phoenix-based Freeport-McMoRan and Vancouver’s First… Read More Here

Cobalt Battery Metals International

Battery demand to maintain elevated cobalt prices – report

March 2, 2021March 2, 2021 admin

This year, Fitch Solutions expects a rebound in auto production, coupled with the accelerating EV uptake to keep cobalt prices on an uptrend. These sectors will serve as the primary battery end-market for cobalt chemicals such as cobalt hydroxide, the industry analyst says in its latest report. Battery metals have risen to the forefront of attention in 2021, as major economies continue to embark on green recoveries from the covid-19 pandemic. Cobalt, in both its metallurgical and chemical forms plays an important role in this increasing transition to greener energy infrastructure and… Read More Here

Gold International

Gold price slump continues, set for fifth straight drop

March 2, 2021March 2, 2021 admin

Gold failed to snap out its recent slump and is heading for a fifth straight decline on Monday, as benchmark US Treasury yields advanced once again following the whipsawing of rates seen late last week. Spot gold fell 0.5% to $1,724.86 an ounce by 1:40 p.m. EST, despite seeing gains earlier in the session. US gold futures were also down 0.4% to $1,721.60 an ounce. Meanwhile, the rate on 10-year treasuries jumped three basis points, further diminishing the appeal of the non-interest-bearing metal. The 30-year bond’s yield rose as much as 8… Read More Here

Gold International

Gold price weakness takes $1.5bn out of largest ETF

February 26, 2021February 26, 2021 admin

The recent weakness in the gold price trend was accompanied by significant outflows of funds from the largest gold ETF, according to Gold reporter. Investors withdrew $1.5 billion from the SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) in one week, according to data from the operator. As of February 24, the fund’s gold holdings were down 2.3% from the previous week. This represents a withdrawal or sale of 26.53 tonnes of the metal. Year-to-date, GLD gold holdings are down 63.5 tonnes. Officially, the fund must physically deposit 1/10 ounce of gold for each unit… Read More Here

Diamond International

Last quarter of 2020 saw recovery in polished diamond prices – report

February 26, 2021February 26, 2021 admin

Diamond price movements from October to December 2020 provide “reasons for optimism,” a new analysis by fintech company UNI states. According to the firm, retail demand trended positively, having first been propped up by an uptick in consumer optimism with the relaxation in covid-related flight restrictions during the third quarter, and then the holiday season demand. In UNI’s view, these two events helped stabilize and ultimately improve average prices for diamonds. However, the work of diamond miners also played a role. PRUDENT UPSTREAM STRATEGIES BY DE BEERS AND ALROSA HELPED MITIGATE STRESS… Read More Here

Copper International

Copper price extends rally; producers wary of costs

February 25, 2021February 25, 2021 admin

In early trade on Wednesday, the copper price for delivery in March was up 1.53% with copper futures exchanging hands for $4.23 per pound ($9,306 a tonne). The price of the red metal hit a nearly 10-year high this week as analysts expect that surging demand from the power and construction industries will overwhelm supply. The price spike has prompted top financiers from JP Morgan to Goldman Sachs to predict a commodities “supercycle” similar to that of the early 2000s when demand boomed in emerging nations. “I wouldn’t call it a ‘supercycle’ but there… Read More Here

Copper International

Copper supply expected to run into deficit in 2021 (Analysts)

February 24, 2021 admin

Copper was already trading near its eight-year highs in January, but red metal prices surged again in mid-February, with March contracts hitting $ 4.12 a pound on February 22 – approaching a All-time high of $ 4.58 a pound in 2011., as investors bet the tight supply will increase as the world gradually recovers from the covid-19 pandemic. Natalie Scott-Gray, Senior Metals Analyst at StoneX, predicts demand for copper in 2021 to grow about 5% year-over-year, beating supply, which she expects to grow by 2.3 % year over year. If his forecast comes… Read More Here