Metal

Codelco’s quest to recover from a 25-year production low hit a financial roadblock in Q1, as currency swings and maintenance costs slashed profits despite marginal copper output gains. The Chilean miner’s struggles highlight the challenges facing national champions in volatile commodity markets. By the Numbers Key Headwinds Silver Linings Industry Context What’s Next? Why This […]

Vedanta Resources is weighing a U.S. initial public offering (IPO) for its Zambian copper unit, Konkola Copper Mines (KCM), aiming to raise $1 billion to expand production and meet surging global demand for the metal. The move comes as the Indian mining giant seeks to monetize high-grade African assets after years of legal turmoil and aborted deals—but […]

In Mississippi County, Arkansas—dubbed “The Land of Steel”—President Trump’s tariffs have delivered a industrial boom, with sprawling mills run by Nucor and U.S. Steel humming at full tilt. But the region’s crumbling towns and vanishing workforce reveal the harsh reality behind America’s manufacturing revival: there aren’t enough workers to sustain it. The Jobs Are Here. The Workers Aren’t. […]

Copper prices climbed to a two-week high Tuesday, buoyed by a sliding U.S. dollar and technical buying, but analysts cautioned the gains may be short-lived as President Trump’s trade tariffs cast a long shadow over industrial metal demand. Price Action Drivers of the Rally Why It’s Fragile Market Paradox What’s Next?

Gold’s unstoppable rally breached 3,500perounceforthefirsttimeever∗∗asinvestorsfledtothemetalamidaperfectstormofpoliticalchaos,dollardistrust,andvoraciouscentralbankbuying.Thesurge—whichhasadded∗∗3,500perounceforthefirsttimeever∗∗asinvestorsfledtothemetalamidaperfectstormofpoliticalchaos,dollardistrust,andvoraciouscentralbankbuying.Thesurge—whichhasadded∗∗800 to gold’s price since January—reflects a seismic shift in global markets as President Trump’s renewed Fed attacks and trade wars accelerate a retreat from traditional assets. Why Gold Is Defying Gravity Market Reactions What’s Next? The Big Picture Gold’s rally signals a collapse in faith in fiat currencies and traditional safe havens. With […]

A $5 billion unsolicited bid by U.S. investor James Cameron for Kazakhstan’s mining powerhouse Eurasian Resources Group (ERG) has been rebuffed, even as the company positions itself to capitalize on Central Asia’s untapped rare earth reserves. The rejection comes amid a global scramble to break China’s stranglehold on critical minerals essential for defense and green […]

China is weaponizing its dominance of critical minerals, with new data revealing drastic drops in exports of gallium, germanium, and antimony—metals vital for semiconductors, missiles, and renewable energy. Since imposing export controls in 2023 (and a full U.S. ban in December), Beijing’s opaque licensing system has throttled global supply, reshaping trade flows and sparking a price […]

The Trump administration will accelerate permitting for 10 mining projects across the U.S. as part of a sweeping effort to secure domestic supplies of copper, lithium, antimony, and other critical minerals essential for defense, energy, and technology. The move, announced Friday, leverages the FAST-41 program to slash bureaucratic delays while the White House weighs new tariffs on mineral imports to […]

Ukraine is racing to seal a landmark minerals pact with the U.S. by next week, hoping to lock in Washington’s wavering support amid its grinding war with Russia. A Memorandum of Intent signed Thursday sets an April 26 deadline for finalizing the deal, which could grant American firms exclusive access to Ukraine’s rare earths, lithium, and gas transit […]

Erik Prince—the controversial security contractor and Trump ally—has inked a deal with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to clamp down on mineral smuggling and recover lost tax revenue, even as Rwanda-backed M23 rebels tighten their grip on the country’s resource-rich east. The agreement, negotiated before the rebel offensive escalated in January, coincides with U.S.-DRC talks […]