Archive | Commodity Super-Cycle and Decline

https://www.bloomberg.com/

The U.S. election of Donald Trump lit a fire under metals markets in 2016 as investors took a liking to his pro-business agenda. Now, copper and other metals are tanking as Trump’s trade war against China threatens to derail economic growth.

Copper sunk to an almost one-year low and has fallen 16 percent from a high in June. All the major metals were in the red on Wednesday as the U.S. unveiled tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese-made products.

Mining stocks also took a hit, with Glencore Plc and Kaz Minerals Plc falling more than 4 percent. Even gold, considered a haven asset, fell as trade angst boosted the dollar, making commodities more expensive for holders of other currencies. Continue Reading →

http://www.miningweekly.com/

The lives of people living in countries whose economies are dependent on mining have, on average, improved faster than those of people in other countries over the past 20 years, a report by the International Council of Mining and Metals (ICMM) has found.

The ‘Social progress in mining-dependent countries’ report, which was published on Tuesday, uses the lens of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to determine social progress in mining-dependent countries and finds that most of those countries have significantly improved their social performance over the 20 years leading up to the launch of the goals in 2015.

People in the 25 countries that are considered mining-dependent are now generally healthier, better educated and enjoy improved access to affordable and clean energy, water and sanitation. They also enjoy access to telecommunications and financial services, ICMM says. Continue Reading →

https://www.bloomberg.com/

Donald Trump’s attempts to re-balance global trade have already sent the metals world into a tizzy. As countries respond to U.S. tariffs and sanctions, the disarray is set to increase.

Steel prices and aluminum premiums are shooting up in the U.S. thanks to tariffs, threatening to wreak havoc on manufacturers. Everywhere else metal prices are on a roller-coaster ride, with copper and zinc retreating on fears of slowing demand. If equity investors have stayed sanguine so far, metal investors are voting with their feet.

The next steps may be more dramatic as the U.S. and China engage in trade-war brinkmanship that may involve hundreds of billions in tariffs on everything from cars to soybeans. Continue Reading →

https://www.bloomberg.com/

A rout in commodities deepened as the threat of a trade war between the world’s two biggest economies intensified, hitting markets from steelmakers to soybeans.

As the tit-for-tat trade dispute between the U.S. and China stepped up, a Bloomberg gauge of commodities fell to the lowest since early April, with agriculture being the worst hit. . Almost all raw materials fell after President Donald Trump threatened tariffs on another $200 billion of Chinese goods.

A Bloomberg agriculture index fell to the lowest since at least 1991, while global mining stocks sank to the lowest in 18 months. Industrial metals fell, with copper, nickel and zinc all giving up more than 2 percent. Continue Reading →

http://www.miningweekly.com/

PERTH (miningweekly.com) – New data from advisory firm PwC has found that the top global mining companies were reaching near boom profits, with net profits up 126% in the last year. Net profits for the top 40 mines reached $61-billion in 2017, and are forecast to climb further to $76-billion in 2018.

Market capitalisation also increased by 30%, to $926-billion in 2017, while revenue for the top miners increased by 23% to $600-billion, and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) rose 38% to $146-billion.

PwC Australia mining leader Chris Dodd said on Tuesday that strong balance sheets were tempting the top 40 mining companies to pursue bold investment and growth opportunities, but many remained focused on maintaining a robust and flexible balance sheet to avoid the misgivings of the past. Continue Reading →

https://www.australianmining.com.au/

The commodities industry downturn from 2013–2016 had a massive effect on companies in Australia and around the globe – with most mining companies going into survival mode. Since mid-2016 though, the market has been in a strong recovery cycle and, some say, it has now reached its peak.

Where we are now is really at an inflection point and, depending on where the global economic cycle moves, commodities will follow accordingly. There are exciting opportunities emerging as well, coming from new technologies especially that can help drive more sustained growth for the industry.

Ernie Thrasher, Chief Executive Officer at Xcoal Energy & Resources explained that “we are at a point where either the global demand will sustain this commodities cycle, or we’re at a point where the recovery cycle has reached its end and we may see another downturn up ahead.” Continue Reading →

https://www.economist.com/

THE notion that the gentle flap of a butterfly’s wings can cause chaos on the other side of the world is well known. But commodity markets have been tested in recent weeks by what could be called the 800-pound-gorilla effect: the idea that chest-beating in the White House can unleash turmoil in global metals, agricultural and energy markets.

President Donald Trump has slapped sanctions on Russia’s biggest aluminium producer, Rusal, intensified a trade tiff with China and tweeted a gibe against OPEC, the oil-producing cartel.

His actions have shaken commodity markets at a time when speculation in futures is near the record heights of 2012, making markets even more volatile (see chart). Aluminium, nickel and palladium prices have soared and then plummeted. Soyabean markets are under threat. Oil prices are at their highest levels for more than three years. Continue Reading →

https://www.reuters.com/

HONG KONG, April 4 (Reuters) – China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is one of those rare things that virtually everybody seems to have heard about, but equally, very few people can actually claim to have a detailed understanding of what it means.

This dichotomy was in evidence at the Belt and Road conference, hosted by Mines and Money, in Hong Kong on Tuesday, with views ranging from the BRI will be the driver of a new super-cycle for commodities to that it’s more of a marketing slogan aimed at boosting the image and influence of the government in Beijing.

On the side of thinking of the BRI as a sort of a Marshall plan for Asia, Africa and even Europe are a set of impressive sounding numbers, which dwarf the scale of the U.S. initiative that helped to rebuild Europe after World War II. Continue Reading →