There is growing investor excitement in the upcoming exploration season at PolarX’s Alaska Range Project, as reflected in a report published this week by veteran analyst Gavin Wendt.
Nickel is the clear winner in a three-stage minerals and metals “beauty parade”, scoring top marks as an investment over the next 12-months, 24-months, and a shared second place in the five-year category with its battery cousins, lithium and cobalt (reports Tim Treadgold on Stockhead).
Interestingly, lithium and cobalt are not expected to join nickel as short-term winners because the current glut of material is overwhelming the market for electric cars which received a fresh setback this week when China cut subsidies for battery-powered vehicles.
About 85-113 million tonnes of global iron ore production will be lost this year, according to BMO Capital Markets, following updates from major producers Vale, Rio Tinto and BHP (reports MiningNews).
However RBC analyst Tyler Broda noted Vale's ability to draw down on stockpiles and tipped the Brazil-based miner would ship more tonnes into the seaborne market this year than in 2018, also pointing to the iron ore price easing.
Plus, Peak Resources among the juniors poised to jump into rare earths spotlight
The WA gold sector has not exactly been shooting the lights out of late.
Despite the local gold price trading at a near-record $1850 an oz, there have been a couple of small producers go out the back door and some that look they might any time soon.
Why, even one of the big boys, St Barbara, has got in the act, with its share price resetting 30% lower in one hit last week when it revealed lower long-run production figures for its Gwalia mine.
Rare earths made headlines this week thanks to a controversial takeover bid for Lynas Corporation
Rare earths made headlines this week thanks to a controversial takeover bid for Lynas Corporation, but whether the offer from Wesfarmers succeeds or not, the important message is that one of Australia’s biggest industrial companies has decided it’s time to invest in mining.
More specifically, the move on Lynas is fresh evidence that the electric car revolution is more than a passing fad, reinforcing the case for the broad family of metals needed in electric motors, either as fuel (lithium) or in other applications such as high-strength magnets (rare earths).
Mincor Resources (ASX: MCR) has taken a “significant step” in the pathway to restarting nickel mining
Mincor Resources (ASX: MCR) has taken a “significant step” in the pathway to restarting nickel mining from its assets around Kambalda in WA after signing a term sheet with BHP Nickel West.
This is the view of experienced resource analyst Brett McKay from Petra Capital in Sydney, who has set an updated price target of 84c per share for the stock (well north of the current price of 43c).
The term sheet sets out the major operating principles that will form the basis for an Ore Tolling and Concentrate Purchase Agreement (OTPC) with BHP Nickel West.
Australia's big miners have rallied hard, but that hasn't stopped Credit Suisse moving overweight (reports The Australian Financial Review).
Australian mining giants might have had a stellar run over the past 12 months, but Credit Suisse’s head of global equities, Andrew Garthwaite, believes they’ve got scope to push higher still on the back of some big global trends.
Credit Suisse moved overweight on the mining sector earlier this week, after seeing signs that the slump in global industrial production in the final quarter of 2018 was starting to bottom out.
While macroeconomic pointers show gold could climb strongly later in the year, Saxo Bank’s head of commodity strategy Ole Hansen says silver and platinum could give investors bigger gains (reports MiningNews).
Platinum has been unpopular in recent years as jewellery, investment and automotive demand have fallen.
It is currently at US$856 per ounce, and has fallen firmly behind palladium, which has spent the past month at over $1500/oz.
Hansen said platinum would come up again.
The 2019 Resources Rising Stars Conference will be held on Tuesday 4 and Wednesday 5 June 2019 at the scenic RACV Royal Pines Resort on the Gold Coast.
