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Canadian Media Resource Articles

Climate-obsessed Trudeau has put Canada at the mercy of Trump tariffs – by Geoff Russ (National Post – November 27, 2024)

https://nationalpost.com/

The Liberals have throttled the energy industry, leaving us vulnerable to protectionism

Donald Trump has threatened to slap punishing 25 per cent tariffs on “all” Canadian goods imported into the United States. This is expected to happen soon after the U.S.-president elect moves back into the White House in the new year. No Canadian, even pro-Trump conservatives, should fool themselves about the damage that these tariffs could impose on Canada.

Despite dealing with two protectionist administrations in Washington over the past nine years, the decisions made by Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government have not put Canada in a strong position to deal with what could be an existential threat to many Canadian industries.

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‘Let’s do this’: Crowsnest Pass mayor wants proposed coal mine sooner than later – by Bill Graveland (CTV News Calgary – November 26,2024)

https://calgary.ctvnews.ca/

A mayor in southwestern Alberta is hoping for an immediate meeting with Premier Danielle Smith to discuss a coal project his community has voted in favour of being built. “The sooner the better,” said Crowsnest Pass Mayor Blair Painter. “Let’s do this.”

Residents of the municipality, which saw its last coal mine close four decades ago, voted 72 per cent “yes” to a simple referendum question: “Do you support the development and operations of the metallurgical coal mine at Grassy Mountain?”

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Four Barrick Gold employees detained in Mali in second wave of arrests over foreign miners’ revenues – by Geoffrey York (Globe and Mail – November 26, 2024)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Barrick Gold Corp. says four of its local employees have been “unjustly imprisoned” in Mali in a second wave of arrests of its staff in the West African country where one of its biggest gold mines is located.

Mali’s military regime, which took power in a 2021 coup, has been putting pressure on foreign mining companies to give the government a bigger share of their revenue. It has been seeking US$417-million from Barrick, alleging that the company failed to pay all its required taxes – a charge the company rejects.

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Mining’s old guard needs strong medicine – by Frik Els (Mining.com – November 22, 2024)

https://www.mining.com/

MINING.COM’s ranking of world’s 50 most valuable miners enjoyed a combined market capitalization of $1.51 trillion at the end of Q3, up by single digits since the start of the year compared to rip-roaring broader US and world markets.

Much of the drag on the index comes from the top – the mining industry’s traditional Big 5 – BHP, Rio Tinto, Glencore, Vale and Anglo American. With the exception of Anglo, which received a fillip from BHP’s approach, the stocks are deep in the red for 2024.

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Cleveland-Cliffs CEO still keen on acquiring U.S. Steel as uncertainty weighs on Nippon bid – by Niall McGee (Globe and Mail – November 26, 2024)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. chief executive Lourenco Goncalves says he is still interested in buying United States Steel Corp. to create an American champion, as regulators continue to deliberate over whether to allow Japan’s Nippon Steel Corp. to buy the company.

Cleveland-based Cliffs, which recently acquired Canadian steelmaker Stelco Holdings Inc., attempted to buy its Pittsburgh-based competitor U.S. Steel in the summer of 2023. But Nippon Steel swooped in with a higher bid late last year that U.S. Steel’s board backed.

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Another wake-up call to ready for war as Canada slumbers on – by John Ivison (National Post – November 26, 2024)

https://nationalpost.com/

A report by the Business Council of Canada notes Canada’s rivals are investing heavily, while Ottawa has failed to spend on military capabilities. On the day that Vladimir Putin said NATO members are now directly involved in the war in Ukraine because they have supplied missiles being used to bomb Russia, Justin Trudeau was announcing a yuletide $6.3-billion GST holiday on Christmas trees, beer and popcorn.

Canada, remember, is the country that can’t afford to hit its NATO spending target of two per cent of GDP for another eight years. The chief of the defence staff, Jennie Carignan, has warned Canadians they may have as little as five years to prepare for emerging threats from Russia and China.

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[Antimony] The Secret Metal That Helped Win WWII is Back, And Prices Are Soaring – by Editor Oil Price (Yahoo Finance – November 24, 2024)

https://finance.yahoo.com/

More than 100 years ago, a ship left a Nova Scotia harbor carrying a precious cargo that few today would recognize as valuable. The crew, full of optimism, was bound for Wales hoping that the metal they carried would lead them to riches. Unfortunately, they never made it.

A German U-boat lurking in the cold Atlantic waters fired a torpedo and the ship went down, sinking to the ocean floor along with its mysterious cargo. At the time, the metal seemed unimportant, but its true value wasn’t fully realized until later. Fast forward to today and that same metal is critical to modern military and industrial applications.

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Donald Trump threatens 25% tariff on products from Canada, Mexico – by Alexander Panetta (CBC News World – November 25, 2024)

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/

Damaging fee would drive up costs for exporters

Donald Trump has levelled his most severe threat against Canada in years, warning that on his first day in office he might impose punishing economic sanctions across North America.

The U.S. president-elect threatened Monday evening to slap a 25 per cent tariff on all products entering the country from Canada and Mexico on Jan. 20, 2025, his inauguration day, unless those countries curb the flow of drugs and migrants across their borders. “This Tariff will remain in effect until such time as Drugs, in particular Fentanyl, and all Illegal Aliens stop this Invasion of our Country!” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social.

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First Nation goes to court, accusing B.C. of not consulting over major gold mine – by Ashley Joannou (Canadian Press/CTV News B.C. – November 25, 2024)

https://bc.ctvnews.ca/

A First Nation says it wasn’t meaningfully consulted before the British Columbia government “effectively greenlit” what has been called the world’s largest undeveloped gold mining project.

The Tsetsaut Skii km Lax Ha Nation has applied to the B.C. Supreme Court for a judicial review of the province’s decision to issue a “substantial start determination” for Seabridge Gold’s KSM Mine Project in Northwestern B.C., part of the final stage of the environmental assessment process.

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Opinion: Arkansas just found a large lithium deposit. But lithium ain’t what it used to be – by Gus Carlson (Globe and Mail – November 23, 2024)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Gus Carlson is a U.S.-based columnist for The Globe and Mail.

Just weeks after a discovery that could transform humble Arkansas into an unexpected global powerhouse in a green-tech future, the state is learning the hard way that, as in life and love, when it comes to lithium, timing is everything.

A study released last month by the U.S. Geological Survey and the Arkansas Department of Energy and Environment revealed a huge deposit of lithium – the essential element in batteries for electric vehicles – in a limestone aquifer known as the Smackover Formation in the southwestern section of the state.

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Troilus Gold brings potential funding from credit agencies to $1.3 billion – by Staff (Mining.com – November 21, 2024)

https://www.mining.com/

Troilus Gold (TSX: TLG) continues to receive the financial backing of global export credit agencies (ECAs), this time from Export Development Canada (EDC), to support the development of its copper-gold project in Quebec.

On Thursday, the company announced a new letter of intent (LOI) from EDC for up to $300 million. This, together with the LOIs recently signed with the export credit agencies of Germany, Finland and Sweden, brings the total potential funding to $1.3 billion.

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Why police are in a standoff with people working an abandoned South African mine – by Sheena Goodyear (CBC Radio As It Happens – November 21, 2024)

https://www.cbc.ca/radio/asithappens/

Illegal mining is a ‘very complicated problem’ that needs more than a police crackdown to fix, says advocate

For weeks, police have been stationed at the opening of an abandoned gold mine in South Africa, trying to smoke out the people illegally working deep inside. Since the standoff began, more than 1,000 miners have emerged to face arrest, one decomposing body has been recovered, and community members have gone to court to ensure their loved ones underground continue to get food and water.

It’s not clear how many miners are still underground in Stilfontein, in the country’s North West province. Police say they number in the hundreds. But community members say there are thousands of people below, either unwilling to come out and face arrest, or too frail to get out on their own.

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Gold price ends the week with 5% gain as safe-haven demand drives price action – by Neils Christensen (Kitco News – November 22, 2024)

https://www.kitco.com/

(Kitco News) – The gold market has ended a three-week selloff with a vengeance, as prices look set to close Friday above $2,700 an ounce. Not only has gold surpassed last week’s losses, but the precious metal is also experiencing its best rally since October 2023.

As of 1:40 p.m. ET, December gold futures were trading at $2,712 an ounce, up 1.39% for the week. Additionally, prices have risen 5.4% since the start of the week. While gold has significantly rebounded since Republican candidate Donald Trump became President-elect, some analysts suggest these gains could be more fragile than they appear.

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Gold just topped $2,700 an ounce, but here’s why that price could double over the next half decade – by Kristian Koschany (Bloomberg News – November 22, 2024)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

Gold is on track for its biggest weekly increase since October 2023, buoyed by a sharp rise in safe-haven demand following an escalation in the Russia-Ukraine conflict. As of Friday, midday in Toronto, spot gold had risen more than five per cent this week to top $2,700 an ounce, with year-to-date gains nearing 30 per cent.

The latest surge comes after Ukraine reported Russia’s use of a new type of ballistic missile in an attack on Dnipro, a development seen as a direct signal to Kyiv’s Western allies. Heightened geopolitical risks, particularly involving major powers or regions, often drive investors towards gold and other safety assets.

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Indonesia Curbing Nickel Supply to Support Locals, Eramet Says – by Eddie Spence (Bloomberg News – November 21, 2024)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — Indonesia is squeezing supplies of nickel ore to protect smaller local miners as the market for the battery metal endures a prolonged slump, according to Eramet SA.

The French miner, which operates the world’s largest nickel mine in Indonesia’s North Maluku province, was this year given a sales quota by the Asian nation that was 29% less than it expected, causing its share price to plunge in October.

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