ThinkstockIn a little more than two weeks, Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) will report third-quarter results, and there is every reason to believe that those results will not be pretty. The consensus estimates…
ThinkstockSince late June, copper prices have been trending upward, from a low of around $3.00 a pound to around $3.30 on Tuesday. Production is estimated to be 167,000 metric tons (tonnes) above…
ThinkstockNot even the size of London-listed Glencore Xstrata’s $8.47 billion asset impairment came as much of a surprise to observers of the mining industry. The amount, which includes a $7.7 billion goodwill…
Paul Ausick ThinkstockThe U.S. Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has subpoenaed documents and other communications and records going back to 2010 from a metals warehousing firm. Reuters reports exclusively that “a source with direct…
ThinkstockFor the second time in as many weeks, key commodities companies have been slapped with lawsuits alleging that the two banks boosted aluminum prices by manipulating warehouse stockpiles. Today’s lawsuit in Florida…
ThinkstockSunday’s New York Times story on the shenanigans played by Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) at its aluminum warehouse in Detroit is nothing especially new. What is new is that the…
ThinkstockFor the second time in less than a week, a diamond miner has said that it will have to figure out a way to become more profitable in a tough economic environment.…
ThinkstockIf the value of something actually is determined by the price someone is willing to pay for it, Rio Tinto PLC’s (NYSE: RIO) diamond assets are worth far less than the mining…
ThinkstockAs the world’s largest mining companies look to shed assets as they seek to boost investor returns, the mining sector is drawing interest from private equity firms. Blackstone Group LP (NYSE: BX),…
ThinkstockThere are a variety of ways to invest in precious metals. Buying gold or silver bars and coins is one. Exchange traded funds (ETFs) are another. A third way is by investing in mining…
ThinkstockAfter more than a year of twists and turns and negotiations, the $75 billion merger between Glencore International and Xstrata became official today. The new company will also get a new name…
ThinkstockIt was just at the end of last week that we gave a pre-earnings update for Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) in our DJIA earnings season scorecard, warning that the market was expecting…
ThinkstockRising stockpiles of virtually every commodity had led to a sharp drop in long-dated noncommercial (speculative) futures. Slowing growth in the United States and elsewhere is getting the blame for the 31%…
When the holidays wound down and we started off 2013, all the Wall St. firms started to put out their top stock picks for the year. We covered those various lists so…
ThinkstockIn an announcement today in Beijing, China’s National Development and Reform Commission, the country’s top planning agency, said that steel production in the country has reached a point where only modest growth…
