Look Beyond Gold for Compelling Risk/Reward Ratios: Michael Curran
Source: Kevin Michael Grace of The Metals Report   (9/24/13)
Diversify, diversify, diversify—that's Michael Curran's advice for metals investors. So if you've been obsessively eyeing gold and silver prices, you might want to focus your attention elsewhere in the mining sector, says the Beacon Securities mining research analyst. Nothing wows the market like discoveries, and exploration success in the copper, zinc and uranium spaces are making some shareholders very happy indeed. In this interview with The Metals Report, Curran shares his top speculative picks for a diversified mining portfolio. More >

Paul Renken: It's Time for Retail Investors to Capture Metals Upside
Source: Brian Sylvester of The Metals Report  (9/17/13)
When gold and silver took a plunge, institutional investors went bargain shopping right away, says Paul Renken, mining analyst with VSA Capital. Now it's time for retail investors to ride upside momentum in copper, zinc, tungsten and phosphate. In this interview with The Metals Report, Renken shares his outlook for base and minor metals, as well as the companies that could outperform on the back of climbing commodity prices. (Hint: It's not usually the majors.) More >

Is the Peruvian Government Becoming More Mining Friendly?
Source: Brian Sylvester of The Gold Report  (9/16/13)
With a credit rating higher than Mexico and Brazil, Peru should be high on the list of mining investors, but confidence has been shaken over the last few years when the government revoked some high-profile mining licenses. According to Lima-based Kallpa Securities Managing Director Ricardo Carrión and President Alberto Arispe, recent government actions might signal a reset, with the government even acting as a mediator between mining companies and the local communities. In this interview with The Gold Report, Carrión and Arispe detail the state of mining exploration in Peru and discuss companies actively exploring, including one that just received its long-awaited environmental approval.
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David Franklin: Is Platinum the New Gold?
Source: Peter Byrne of The Metals Report  (9/10/13)
The Goldrums of June are giving way to a new dawn for platinum group metals, says David Franklin, a market strategist at Sprott Asset Management. While white metal miners face a variety of challenges, there is an increasing demand for platinum and palladium from vehicle manufacturers in the U.S. and China. And supplies of the hard-to-find metal are vanishing day by day. Now is the time to buy into existing stockpiles of the precious metal, Franklin tells The Metals Report. More >

Zinc Faces Structural Deficit as Demand Outstrips Supply: Glencore
Source: Andy Blamey, Platts  (9/10/13)
"According to Glencore's presentation, a 5% increase in demand equates to around 600,000 mt of new zinc mine capacity needed every year; by 2016 nearly 2 million mt of new annual production will required." More >

The Impending Shakeout in the Rare Earth Sector: Who Will Survive?
Source: Gareth Hatch, Technology Metals Research  (9/5/13)
"Though there are exceptions, in general the supply chain doesn't care which REE projects will successfully come to fruition, only that enough come to fruition such that their ability to secure REE metals, oxides and other compounds from sources outside of China, at a reasonable price, is realized." More >

Peruvian Precious Metals Repeating a Winning Formula
Source: Alec Gimurtu of The Gold Report   (9/4/13)
The management team that took Prodigy Gold from a $25 million market cap junior to a $340 million buyout in less than three years is back with a new company that it believes is tailor made for applying its formula for success. In this interview with The Gold Report, CEO Brian Maher and VP of Corporate Development Kimberly Ann discuss their latest project, how they are "managing through change" and what differentiates them in an industry of over-promoting and under-delivering juniors. Clear communication is part of the formula, but there is more than talk when it comes to advancing a great project in South America's largest gold producing region. More >

Anthony Mariano: Calling Next-Generation REE Investors
Source: Brian Sylvester of The Metals Report  (8/27/13)
If you thought you had rare earth element mining all figured out, think again. Dr. Anthony Mariano and his son, Anthony Jr., work as geological consultants to many rare earth companies, and say even they have more to learn. But if you're looking for a sector that will nurture your inner nerd, rare earth elements may be the play for you. In this interview with The Metals Report, geek out with the Marianos as they talk rare earths and igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks. More >

Mark Seddon: Why You Should Look Twice at an Ugly Duckling Metal
Source: Alec Gimurtu of The Metals Report  (8/20/13)
Tungsten just doesn't have the sex appeal that made investors fall for the rare earth story. But maybe that's its trump card, considering the boom/bust cycle that swept rare earths didn't touch tungsten's slow, steady price increases. Analyst Mark Seddon of Tungsten Market Research has long been watching the often ignored metal, and asserts that tungsten is a harder sell, but a better buy for investors. In this The Metals Report interview, Seddon outlines tungsten's finer points and suggests miners are poised to reap rewards. More >

Will Copper Prices Drop Further? Just Look at Oil Investments
Source: Stuart Burns, Resource Investor  (8/15/13)
"While the media reports copper's price falls as a loss of faith by investors, the reality is they are being influenced by the same supply and demand judgments used by buyers." More >

Electric Transportation Could Jump-Start Rare Earth Markets: Patrick Wong
Source: JT Long of The Metals Report  (8/13/13)
Remember when CD players cost hundreds of dollars? The same volume-based price slide is starting to take place with electric vehicles, according to Patrick Wong, CEO and director of Innovation Metals Corp. Wong believes that hybrid and electrical cars are on the cusp of overtaking standard automobiles as the vehicles of choice. And when they do, the rare earth markets that supply the materials needed in every electric car battery and drive motor will take off. In this interview with The Metals Report, Wong encourages investors to get into the market before they get left behind. More >

China to Begin Trial Run of Rare Earth Products Exchange
Source: Dorothy Kosich, Mineweb   (8/12/13)
"Rare earth trading systems are currently undergoing testing and are expected to become operational in China in October." More >

Dan Hrushewsky: Low-Cost, High-Margin Mining in West Africa
Source: Brian Sylvester of The Gold Report  (8/7/13)
There are two things investors pay too much attention to, according to Jennings Capital Analyst Dan Hrushewsky: metals prices and grade. Why? Extremes of low and high prices never last, and high grades don't always make for economic deposits. In this interview with The Gold Report, Hrushewsky explains the metrics behind his all-in cash cost estimates and profiles West African projects that are connecting the dots. More >

Eight Catalysts That Can Move Your Mining Stocks: Jocelyn August
Source: Brian Sylvester of The Metals Report  (8/6/13)
Catalysts can move mining equities substantially up or down, so being aware of upcoming news and events is key to portfolio management. Sagient Research's Jocelyn August advises investors to look for miners with good management teams that are transparent in their announcements and consistently meet their deadlines. In this interview with The Metals Report, August outlines the eight biggest catalysts in the mining space and discusses companies with anticipated near-term catalysts. More >

Counterpoint: Supply and Demand in the Rare-Earths Market 2015–2020
Source: Jack Lifton, Technology Metals Research  (8/1/13)
"In the rare-earth total supply chain, China is most of the global ball game." More >

Chris Berry: Rare Earth Stocks Show Signs of Life, but Will the Uptrend Stick?
Source: Alec Gimurtu of The Metals Report  (7/30/13)
Prices for rare earths and some rare earth mining stocks are showing positive price action following China's crackdown on illegal mines. But is this the beginning of a sustained recovery, or just a temporary blip on the screen? House Mountain Partners founder Chris Berry explores these questions in this interview with The Metals Report and shares his macroeconomic outlook. As Berry reminds us, V-shaped recoveries are preferred, but rare. That means investors must cultivate patience and courage. More >

Now Is the Time to Build New Mines, But It Ain't That Easy
Source: Lawrence Williams, Mineweb  (7/29/13)
"Financial analysis suggest now is the ideal to start work on mega mining projects before price cycles turn up again, but this is easier said than done." More >

Could Small Modular Reactors Goose Uranium Prices?
Source: Tom Armistead of The Energy Report  (7/23/13)
Nuclear power is the best option for clean base-load power generation, according to Gold Stock Trades Editor Jeb Handwerger. As proof, he points to signs that even environmentalists are beginning to favor it. Meanwhile, uranium stocks are rising and large nuclear construction programs overseas should keep upward pressure on them. But as Handwerger explains in this interview with The Energy Report, the future of nuclear power generation may lie with small modular reactors, and the U.S. is leading their development. More >

Ron Struthers: Have Flake Graphite Prices Bottomed?
Source: Brian Sylvester of The Metals Report  (7/23/13)
After a spike in flake graphite in 2011, have prices finally reached bottom? Ron Struthers, the publisher and editor of Struthers' Resource Stock Report, believes so. In this interview with The Metals Report, Struthers talks about how market psychology and fundamentals may play out in the graphite and rare earths spaces as new mines inch toward production. More >

The Results Are (Almost) In for Rare Earth Competitors: Alex Knox
Source: Brian Sylvester of The Metals Report  (7/16/13)
Western rare earth companies are in a conditioning period, optimizing on every front to get the leanest capital costs possible. In the next six months, Geologist Alex Knox expects a big shakeout across the rare earth space as companies release amended PEAs and feasibility studies. "That," says Knox in this interview with The Metals Report, "is when smart investors will be able to look at the numbers and pick out the winners." Knox helps us jump the gun by identifying companies with lean, mean stats. More >

Why Stephan Bogner Believes You Should Be 100% Invested in Precious Metals
Source: Brian Sylvester of The Gold Report  (7/15/13)
Now is the time to be brave, to buy when everyone else is selling, advises Stephan Bogner, analyst with Rockstone Research and CEO of bullion dealer Elementum International. Content to go against the grain, Bogner believes investors should be 100% invested in precious metals, both in physical metals and equities. He is interested not only in companies that are profitable now but also in ones that will someday be in the black again. In this interview with The Gold Report, he describes his ideal portfolio, which includes companies operating in far-flung places. More >

Survey: Companies 'Utterly Unprepared' for SEC Conflict Minerals Compliance
Source: Dorothy Kosich, Mineweb  (7/15/13)
"The PwC survey determined that the single biggest challenge for companies is getting accurate information from their suppliers." More >

A Radical Solution for the Rare Earth Supply Crunch: Jack Lifton
Source: Alec Gimurtu of The Metals Report  (7/9/13)
Iron miners don't make cars, so why should rare earth miners make magnets? According to longtime rare earth expert/consultant Jack Lifton, "mine to magnet" vertical integration strategies are little more than pie in the sky schemes. But Lifton just might have the perfect solution for the world's rare earth element supply problems. In this interview with The Metals Report, Lifton tells us how a non-Chinese international rare earth toll refinery would get separated rare earths downstream more efficiently, while simplifying miners' business plans. Find out which companies could be part of the solution. More >

John Kaiser's Strategies for Success in a Bloody Market
Source: JT Long of The Gold Report  (7/8/13)
With so many junior mining companies going into hibernation, John Kaiser of Kaiser Research Online fears that the entire mining sector could fall dormant. In this interview with The Gold Report, he outlines approaches to discovery and development that smart, nimble companies are deploying to stay alive. Whether precious, base or critical metals, or in jurisdictions as exotic as Morocco and as familiar as Nevada, these are the basics required for survival in today's brutal market.
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China Releases Second Round of 2013 REE Export Quotas
Source: Gareth Hatch, Technology Metals Research  (7/8/13)
"Last week, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) announced the second round of allocations of rare-earth export quotas for 2013." More >