Automotive markets just about everywhere are in decline this year. The question is: to what extent is this a cyclical downturn as opposed to a structural shift? Need buying strategies for steel? Request your two-month free trial of MetalMiner’s Outlook The Financial Times article reported Indian passenger vehicle sales fell 31% last month from the […]
Stuart Burns
Will Stock Market Falls Lead a Commodity Price Collapse?
We are not stock market investors at MetalMiner. While we may hold shares, either as direct punts or as part of pension or investment funds, we do not consider ourselves stock market experts and, as such, rarely cover market movements unless part of a wider review of financial markets. Need buying strategies for steel? Request […]
Pakistan is Sitting on a Gold Mine
A recent article in the ever insightful Stratfor Worldview this month underlines how the world is not short of copper ore deposits — they are, at least in this example, just in the wrong place. Need buying strategies for steel? Request your two-month free trial of MetalMiner’s Outlook The article covers a long-running dispute between […]
Glencore to Halt Production at World’s Largest Cobalt Mine in the DRC
These are trying times for Glencore, as the cobalt market price collapses due to surging supply and weak copper prices undermine the fundamentals for the miner’s Mutanda copper and cobalt mine in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Financial Times reported Glencore will halt production at the world’s largest cobalt mine from the end […]
Renminbi Cracks Seven for First Time Since Financial Crisis
The Chinese currency, the Renminbi, has been on a downward trend since the spring, apart from a brief recovery on the back of a resumption in trade talks. But this week the currency dropped through the psychologically important Rmb 7 to the dollar barrier, hitting 7.1114 — a level not seen in the 11 years […]
U.S. Announces Another Round of Tariffs on Chinese Goods
It should come as no surprise that President Trump last week announced the imposition of a 10% tariff on an additional U.S. $300 billion worth of Chinese goods from Sept. 1. The new tariff would come on top of the 25% levy that Trump already imposed on $250 billion worth of Chinese imports — resulting […]
Have We Already Reached Peak Iron Ore?
Copper has been buffeted by macroeconomic and political news, suffering from trade tensions and fear of slowing growth in top consumer China. Conversely, iron ore has been trading at recent five-year highs this month, topping U.S. $130/ton amid reports of tight supply and robust demand. (We wrote last week about the apparent disparity between copper […]
Western Carmakers are Struggling in China
Automotive executives running carmaking joint ventures in China must be asking themselves regarding the current performance situation: is it a downturn in the lower end of the car market or backlash against trade war? Need buying strategies for steel? Request your two-month free trial of MetalMiner’s Outlook The Financial Times reported Ford’s plants in China […]
Aluminum Dissonance: Why Have Prices Softened Despite Supply Deficit?
That the aluminum market is in a deficit is a widely accepted fact — but it still remains hard to see in practice. Usually when markets are in deficit, prices rise. Primary aluminum as quoted by the LME, however, has been at best sideways for the last year or more. Prices have gradually softened within […]
Aluminum’s Short-Term Fundamentals are Less Than Promising
The short-term fundamentals for aluminum do not look promising, if Alcoa’s latest report is to be believed. Need buying strategies for steel? Request your two-month free trial of MetalMiner’s Outlook The major primary producer is struggling to create positive net cash flow, a measure of the firm’s ability to pay down its substantial debt, reporting a […]
