Blog

Copper hit $7,000 a tonne for the first time since 2018 on Wednesday, as strong demand in China and hopes for a wave of “green” stimulus measures lift the price of the vital industrial metal.

What makes for a good commodity stew? A dollop of demand strength. A sprinkle of supply concerns. A rising cost curve. Minimal threats from alternatives. We see all these ingredients and more for the copper sector and are thus more bullish than...

The metals sector has the biggest relative-value edge in commodities, in our view, especially with rising debt-to-GDP, zero rates and quantitative easing so entrenched, and as declines in most currencies vs. gold spill over to other hard assets....

A deficit in the copper market is set to deepen over the next several years as supply of the widely used metal struggles to keep up with strong demand from the power and construction sectors, compounded by the proliferation of electric vehicles.

Copper rose above $3 a pound for the first time in more than two years on Wednesday, on the back of falling inventories, a lower US dollar, unprecedented Chinese economic stimulus and ongoing worries about pandemic-hit supply from top producer...

The coronavirus pandemic is set to pave the way for “the age of copper,” according to the director of energy, climate and resources at Eurasia Group, as governments double down on investments that will drive up demand for the red metal.

Copper advanced to 12-week high on Thursday as China’s $700 billion stimulus program focussed on so-called “new infrastructure” and “new urbanization” kicked into gear.

Production of battery metals such as graphite, lithium and cobalt will have to increase by nearly 500% by 2050 to meet the growing demand for clean energy technologies, the World Bank reported Monday.

In China, it was called “qi,” the symbol for health. In Egypt it was called “ankh,” the symbol for eternal life. For the Phoenicians, the reference was synonymous with Aphrodite—the goddess of love and beauty.

Mark Bristow, chief executive officer at Barrick Gold, discusses the miner's acquisition strategy, industry consolidation, and production partnerships with Bloomberg’s Danielle Bochove on "Bloomberg Markets: The Close.

According to Wood Mackenzie’s analysis, the metals and mining industry will need to invest $240bn in base metals and gold over the next five years to meet energy transition and other end-use sector requirements.

The threat of a long trade war limited mining activity and kept manufacturers from adding to their stocks. The result: Inventories at warehouses tracked by the three international exchanges, a last resort for supply, have shrunk by about 37% since...

Copper rose 6.7% in December. The month saw an average price of $2.74/lb, improving on an otherwise stagnant 2019 for the red metal, which saw an average price of $2.72/lb, down 20c or 7% from its $2.92/lb average in 2018.

Copper, often called “Dr. Copper” due to its correlation with the economic cycle, could be the trade of 2020, as most industry analysts expect a “lift-off” for the metal as global demand recovers.

We believe copper is poised for a rally back to $3.00/lb in 2020 as economic conditions improve (modestly) and we expect limited supply growth before 2021.

If in doubt about the case for investing in copper, whether the metal itself or through a copper-mining company, then the man to ask is the boss of the world’s second biggest gold-miner, Barrick Gold.