Lithium mining operations in Namibia. Source: Desert Lion Energy Inc.Desert Lion Energy Inc. [DLI-TSXV; DSLEF-OTCQB], a Namibian lithium development company, said Tuesday April 2 that it has entered into a non-binding offtake agreement with German chemical company BASF SE. Under the agreement, BASF would be able to purchase lithium hydroxide from a planned Desert Lion production facility to be loc...Read More

Analyzing drill core samples at the Nechalacho rare earth elements project at Thor Lake, Northwest Territories. Source: Avalon Advanced Materials Inc.Avalon Advanced Materials Inc. [AVL-TSX; AVLNF-OTC] said Tuesday April 2 that it hopes to start production at its Northwest Territories rare earth elements project by 2020.Avalon made the announcement in a report that details the progress the company...Read More

Gold futures finished lower Monday after upbeat readings on economic activity in China and the U.S. helped to momentarily soothe some worries over global growth, providing a lift to equity markets and a drag on assets perceived as havens. Gold for June delivery GCM9, +0.07% the most active contract, fell $4.30, or 0.3%, to $1,294.20 an ounce. May silver SIK9, +0.16% was off 1.1 cents, or less th...Read More

Figure 1 - Plan View of Drilling in BMZ1 and Other Areas in the Yaragu?? System. Click to EnlargeContinental Gold Inc. [TSX:CNL; OTCQX:CGOOF] ("Continental" or the "Company") is pleased to announce additional high-grade assay results from 15 holes drilled into the Yaragu?? system as part of the infill and definition drilling program at its 100%-owned Buritic?? project in Antioquia, Colombia. The C...Read More

Three-month base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were slightly firmer during morning trading on Tuesday April 2, up by an average of 0.2% but still down from Monday's highs.Nickel once again led the way with a 0.5% rise, this after a 0.9% rise on Monday, with the metal's three-month price recently quoted at $13,180 per tonne, up from Monday's close at $13,115 per tonne.Copper, aluminium...Read More

The Tuesday Market Minute Global stocks mixed as stronger-than-expected U.S. and China factory data cloud the trade war impact on economies in other parts of the world.European stocks edge higher as the single currency retreats following soft inflation data that likely leaves the ECB with few options beyond further easing in President Mario Draghi's final months in Frankfurt.U.K. lawmakers...Read More

[Editor’s note: This story was previously published in May 2018. It has since been updated and republished.]Do you think penny stocks are best left to amateur traders who don’t understand that cheap stocks are cheap for a reason? It’s not an entirely unfair assessment. Many of these young (and doomed) companies are the beneficiaries of great sales pitches, but their investors oft...Read More

Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Tuesday April 2 that are worth another look.China's threshold for electric vehicles to receive subsidies in 2019 has been increased again while the value of subsidies has been cut sharply, which was expected by the majority of market participants who are now cautiously checking the resulting impact on the battery supply chain....Read More

Brazilian miner Vale's revenue from its cobalt business rose in 2018 despite reduced sales thanks to high cobalt prices, according to its production results released on Wednesday March 27. Vale's cobalt sales volumes totaled 4,974 tonnes in 2018, down from 5,013 tonnes a year before. But cobalt revenues were higher year on year at $313 million last year compared with $258 million in 2017. Cobalt p...Read More

There is an old Wall Street indicator called the hot waitress economic index. According to Investopedia:The hot waitress economic index is an informal measure of the state of the economy that is compiled by counting the number of attractive people working as waiters/waitresses. According to the hot waitress index, the higher the number of good looking servers, the weaker the current state of the...Read More

The prices for flat steel products imported into the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia have increased over the past week, with levels of demand remaining low but consistent, Fastmarkets heard on Tuesday April 2.Demand among end-users has been weak, so buyers were unwilling to place orders for large tonnages, sources told Fastmarkets.UAEChina-origin hot-rolled coil (HRC) was on offer to the UAE...Read More

We have just published our April 1st Insights A real rally requires some Energy. We are a bit later than usual this week as we have been busy rolling out and working on lots of new features for our INK Research and Canadian Insider users. Last week, on Canadian Insider we introduced INK Edge outlooks along with a new look for our company pages. Over at INKResearch.com, we have been implementing a...Read More

Export prices for Chinese cold-rolled coil (CRC) and hot-dipped galvanized coil (HDG) were largely stable again during the week to Tuesday April 2 amid thin trading due to low selling interest and weak overseas demand.In particular, buying interest from Southeast Asia was muted due to the recently concluded election in Thailand as well as the upcoming elections in Indonesia and the Philippines, Ch...Read More

A few Chinese hot-rolled coil exporters lowered their prices on Tuesday April 2 to stimulate trading activity despite gains in the domestic market.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,860-3,870 yuan ($575-577) per tonne, up 20-30 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tianjin): 3,790-3,810 yuan per tonne, up 20 yuan per tonneMills raised their prices during the day in response to the gains in the futures ma...Read More

Prices for steel rebar and billet in the United Arab Emirates were again unchanged this week as a result of continuing moderate demand, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday April 2.Domestic rebarLocal rebar producers in the UAE kept their prices unchanged for May production, with demand expected to stay weak because Ramadan starts early in the month.The country's largest producer, Emirates Steel, h...Read More

China's domestic rebar prices picked up some strength on Tuesday April 2 on gains in the futures market and good demand, though export offers fell with mills attempting to secure more orders from abroad. Domestic Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,850-3,900 yuan ($574-581) per tonne, up 20 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Beijing): 3,860-3,900 yuan per tonne, up 20 yuan per tonneGains in the futures market...Read More

The latest bids, offers and deals in the global markets for rebar, wire rod, steel beams and other long steel products. Latest transaction: rebar, wire rodRebar East China, domestic, grade III 16-25mm...Read More

Turkish deep-sea scrap import prices fell sharply after confirmation of transactions done late last week, sources said on Tuesday April 2.A steel producer in the Marmara region booked a European cargo, comprising 22,000-23,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20) at $308 per tonne and 5,000 tonnes of bonus at $318 per tonne cfr on Thursday March 28.And a mill in the Izmir region booked a UK cargo, comprising...Read More

Physical iron ore prices continued to rise on Tuesday April 2, closing in on $90 per tonne with yet more seaborne supply disruptions reported.MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index: $89.89 per tonne cfr Qingdao, up $1.20 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Pilbara Blend Fines Index: $89.01 per tonne cfr Qingdao, up $1.20 per tonne. MB 62% Fe Iron Ore Index-Low Alumina: $92.14 per tonne cfr Qingdao, up $1.91 per tonne. MB 58%...Read More

By: Keith WeinerA number of commentators have predicted that the rules of the Basel III bank regulations will cause gold to skyrocket (no, this article is not about our view that gold does not go up, that it's the dollar going down, that the lighthouse does not go up, it's the sinking ship going down in the storm).Will it? It would be easy to say as with all of their other predictions of gold...Read More