During the weeks ahead, analysts expect to see a merger and acquisition pandemic among precious metals companies. As gold regains long-term luster and financial markets experience pandemonium, certain mining companies could experience takeovers, inspiring what Blackmont Capital’s Richard Gray calls “an unprecedented increase in M&A activity.”
Photo: Vale Logo. Credit: Corporate Site. Less than a month ago, Stuart covered Brazilian mining giant Vale’s plans to hike the prices in their iron-ore contracts with Chinese buyers. On September 1, those prices increased 20 percent – and now, it seems like that increase is set to develop further. “Companhia Vale do Rio Doce [Vale] [...]
Copper tumbles according to this Guardian article and copper could explode if the dollar falls according to this Purchasing.com article. So which is it? According to the Guardian article, “All base metals are moving in conjunction at the moment,” said analyst Gayle Berry at Barclays Capital. “What we see is a broad-based movement in prices in [...]
Last week I penned a piece on the case for the bailout of GM as long as everybody else was begging with their cup out. In that piece, I pulled out the tissue to talk about the sad tale of pension woes and skyrocketing health care costs as reasons to feel sorry for GM. Well, that [...]
Congress doubts certain bailout talks, retirees have been hit with investment issues, and Sarah Palin is finally meeting some world leaders. Sure, there’s plenty of hard-hitting news to cover today. But this afternoon, let’s take a break from the CNN homepage, and instead focus on a question that’s plagued you for years: Where do precious [...]
The cautious expansion of Reliance Steel & Aluminum in Asia continues this month with their purchase of Singapore’s HLN Metal  Centre Pte. Ltd. for approximately $2.6 million. HLN  processes and distributes custom machined materials and components for the local electronics, semiconductor, and solar energy markets. Reliance has been an active investor in Asia in recent years. [...]
News that India’s largest aluminum maker Hindalco plans to raise $1.1b via a rights issue yesterday comes as no surprise and should not be seen as the company joining the ranks of major banks needing to raise capital. Last year Hindalco purchased Novelis, the rolled products business previously owned by Alcan until 2005. Hindalco has been carrying [...]
With the price for molybdenum up to about $33/lb from $5/lb in 2004 and more importantly holding firm in the face of a general slide in metals prices over the year, one has to ask why the CIMAT feel the need to offer incentives to boost demand? CIMAT ” The Centre for Advanced Interdisciplinary Research [...]
