The Uncertainty of Crowds...   March 10, 2011
With Libyans having joined the movement to overturn aging autocracies the Arab street action has moved into a geopolitically more difficult territory. Concern over Libya’s oil exports are showing up as higher crude pricing. Libya’s 1.6 M barrels/day of crude output may well undergo disruptions, but the Saudis could replace that if prices move high enough to cause concern. As troubling is the unpredictability of Muammar Gaddafi and those around him. They seem more likely to go down fighting than the western leaning autocrats have been, and that is more likely to cause splintering of the country and concern similar shifts elsewhere in the region. Markets are reflecting this heightened uncertainty with continued gains for precious metals and US$ as well as oil. We expect the US$ and oil to peak before gold and its cousins do.

Uranium supply shortage looms for nuclear industry   March 10, 2011
Although a host of uranium exploration companies are touting "near production" projects, industry experts question the ability of many to bring them to production ahead of the expected surge in demand.

Rio Tinto raises Riversdale bid to $3.9bn   March 10, 2011
n an effort to garner the support of two key shareholders that have held up the deal, Rio Tinto has sweetened its offer for the Mozambique-focused coal miner.

Which Commodities Are Benefiting From QE2?   March 10, 2011
Haven’t we seen this movie before? The economy enters a recession; we have a bear market, the Fed cuts interest rates drastically flooding the global financial system with cash, and commodity prices begin to soar.

Crude Oil's March Madness a Boost for Refiners   March 10, 2011
Frank Holmes writes : March Madness is still a few weeks away for college basketball fans, but the madness of March is in full swing for the oil sector. Turmoil in the Middle East sent oil prices up more than 6% last week - following a 5.2% gain in February. We also happen to be entering a time of year that has historically been good for energy prices and energy equities in recent decades.

U.S. Dollar Long-term Chart   March 9, 2011
The weakness with this US Dollar DX index is that it is highly weighted to the developed economies of Europe and Japan. As such it may not reflect erosion of dollar purchasing power vis a vis the BRICs, and external measures such as gold, oil, and silver. It may be masked by the mutual weakness of central banks all inflating their currencies in unison.

Underestimating Lots of Money   March 9, 2011
According to Harper's Index, the "estimated value of Chinese household income that goes unreported is $1.4 trillion."

To put it in perspective, the follow-up item is "Portion of China's GDP this represents: 1/3."

Rare Earth Prices Soaring...   March 9, 2011
The Middle East Turmoil has created a sell off in equities and a run to the safe haven assets of precious metals and oil. Even though rare earth prices are soaring, many investors have overlooked a key sector which has pulled back providing a bargain opportunity before the rare earth crisis intensifies.

Silver ETF hits record, gold steady   March 9, 2011
Despite a rebound in oil prices, investors waiting to see if the international community would agree to a no-fly zone, kept gold prices steady and pushed the world's largest silver ETF to a new high.

Newmont's Indonesia unit considering Jakarta IPO   March 9, 2011
The US gold and copper miner's Indonesian unit is seeking to raise around $500m through the IPO of a 10% stake in the company in Jakarta in the next twelve months.

What's Wrong with Government Debt   March 8, 2011
The news abounds with arguments and even riots over so-called austerity measures. Whether in the Middle East, Europe, or even certain US states, the public is realizing just how deep a hole various governments have dug for themselves. In this article I'll outline Uncle Sam's position and then explain why it's such a problem.

What a gold:silver ratio below 40:1 tells you   March 8, 2011
The last time the gold:silver ratio stood below this level was in February 1998 just after silver rallied 33% in 5 weeks, much is the same in the current situation but, investment demand is much higher.

Lanco bags Griffin coal for A$730 m   March 8, 2011
In what is considered the largest investment made by any Indian company in West Australia, India's Lanco Infratech finalised the acquisition of Australia's Griffin coal mines for $760 million.

Boart expects boost from increased exploration   March 8, 2011
The world's largest provider of drilling services to miners, Boart Longyear, says it expects solid revenues and earnings in 2011 as strong metals prices boost exploration spending.

Hanoi gold shops stop dealing in dollars   March 8, 2011
Major gold shops in the Vietnamese capital, which double as money changers have reportedly stopped dealing in dollars, as local authorities step up a campaign to battle inflation and shore up the local currency.

Global Food Prices Panic?   March 7, 2011
Growing demand, falling production, a market based upon speculation. Global food prices have increased for the 8th consecutive month. Most commodity groups have risen. The ones who are going to pay the invoice are the world's poor, as per the humanitarian catastrophe looming in Somalia. The world can no longer feed itself under this model.

2010 exploration budgets increased 45%   March 7, 2011
Thanks to strong metals prices, the world's mining and exploration companies last year have restored a significant portion of the $5.5 billion cuts in global exploration programs made in 2009.

Dealmaking the name of the game at PDAC 2011   March 7, 2011
Against a backdrop of raging metals prices, this year's PDAC conference is expected to become a bonanza for dealmakers looking to take advantage of the high prices and strong sentiment.

Hyperinflationary Deluge Is Imminent   March 7, 2011
Tyler Durden writes: A deluge of an unprecedented magnitude is both inevitable and imminent. The consequences of the economic and political mismanagement will have a devastating impact on the world for a very long time. And the consequences will touch most corners of the world in so many different areas; economic, financial, social, political and geopolitical. The adjustment that the world will undergo in the next decade or longer, will be of such colossal magnitude that life will be very different for coming generations compared to the current social, financial and moral decadence. But history always gives us lessons and the one that is coming will be necessary and eventually good for the world. But the transition and adjustment will be extremely traumatic for most of us.

Mining majors and South Africa   March 7, 2011
If recent announcements are anything to go by, the world's mining majors seem to be "voting" with their feet on South Africa and they aren't all coming running.

Are gold cash costs headed for extinction?   March 4, 2011
The gold cash cost per ounce measure has long been the standard for gold miners trying to explain their businesses but, a move to a more complete way has been suggested.

Panama repeals mining law as Inmet develops   March 4, 2011
Panama’s government repealed a new mining law following an uproar from indigenous groups and environmentalists, raising concerns about the stability of the country’s mining regime just as Inmet Mining develops its major copper project.

Impending Crude Oil Correction By Mass Rollover   March 4, 2011
Thanks to Muammr Gaddafi’s airstrikes near a Libyan oil terminal, and protests in Iran adding to the continuing chaos in Middle East and North Africa (MENA), on Wednesday, March 2, Brent oil settled at its highest level since August 2008 at $116.35 a barrel, while WTI futures on NYMEX also advanced to $102.33 per barrel.

SA Mines Minister says "processes" are underway   March 4, 2011
SA mines minister, Susan Shabangu, says drop in Fraser rankings is "not a surprise", but it is working to solve the problems.

Take Two Coins and Call Me in the Morning    March 4, 2011
The final trading session of this most eventful week began on a relatively upbeat note in precious metals, following yesterday’s rather minor (1.5% from the recent high in gold) setback, which, for now, we will refrain from calling a “correction.” Crude oil rising past $103.00 on the back of continuing skirmishes in Libya, and a US dollar apparently stuck near the 76.40-76.50 zone on the trade-weighted index (and still at nearly a four-month low against the euro) gave rise to scattered early buying, but metals players were still cautious ahead of the 8:30 AM release of the US Labor Department’s employment data for February.

Gold New Record High...   March 3, 2011
Gold prices settled at a new record high yesterday, as unrest in North Africa and the Middle East pushed the safe haven currency to $1,435/oz. Silver surged to new 30-year record nominal highs at $34.74/oz. Prices surged in dollars and all major currencies and look set to reach record highs in other currencies.

Taps for the Dollar   March 3, 2011
It now appears that the United States has finally succeeded in its efforts to destroy confidence in the U.S. dollar. Given the currency's reserve status, its ubiquity in financial markets, and the economic power and political position of the United States, this was no easy task. However, to get the job done Washington chose the right man: Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke. Thanks to Bernanke's herculean efforts, investors across the globe have now been fully weaned from their infantile belief that the U.S. dollar will remain the ultimate safe haven currency.

Inflation and the Value of Gold Explained   March 3, 2011
Rod Rojas writes: As the story goes, someone asked an economist how his wife was doing, and the economist answered "compared to what?"

Joking aside, this is one of the most important questions one can ask when dealing with many economic problems.

Gold back from record highs, but for how long?   March 3, 2011
No sooner has gold leapt to new highs yesterday than talk of a Libyan peace plan brought it back. Where gold goes from here short term may now depend on whether Arab world unrest fades or not.

U.S. Mint Suspends Sales of Silver Eagles   March 3, 2011
This news was initially reported by Patriot News Radio, which you can listen to in this video clip. While the information is true and current as displayed on the U.S. mint page here, it is not anything new. The Mint has not sold uncirculated American Eagle silver coins directly on their site for two years, but has continued minting “bullion coins” that are distributed to dealers.