In the latest episode of the Money Metals Midweek Memo, host Mike Maharrey challenged the optimistic mainstream narrative surrounding the U.S. economy, arguing that beneath strong headline numbers lies a far more troubling inflationary and monetary reality. Maharrey opened with a personal hockey story about an overhyped Canadian team that ultimately proved ordinary on the ice, using it as a metaphor …
Continue ReadingThe concept of North American security has undergone a quiet but profound transformation over the past decade. What was primarily understood, particularly after 9/11, in military and counter-terrorism terms—the protection of borders, interception of threats, coordination of intelligence—has expanded into an integrated geoeconomic framework in which trade policy, energy infrastructure, supply-chain architecture, and mineral endowments are now explicitly recognized as …
Continue ReadingMine disruptions, sulfuric acid shortages, and insatiable demand from data centers and renewables are pushing the red metal into uncharted territory. Copper just hit a price that would have seemed absurd a few years ago. Comex copper futures climbed to a record range between $6.53 and $6.69 per pound in mid-May, driven by a perfect storm of supply disruptions, chemical …
Continue ReadingChina moved this week to take tighter control of its rare earths producers amid an escalating tit-for-tat battle with Washington over everything from tariffs and semiconductor warfare to pressure over Iran and Hormuz. At the same time, an ominous Pentagon deadline looms large, with the entire American defense system to be banned from using any Chinese-origin rare earths materials beginning in January …
Continue ReadingGold held near record levels as renewed US inflation pressures reinforced expectations the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates elevated for longer. Bullion traded near $4,700 an ounce after falling 0.6% Wednesday when data showed US wholesale inflation accelerated in April at the fastest pace since 2022, while benchmark 10-year Treasury yields climbed toward their highest level since July. Higher …
Continue ReadingEuropean aluminium producers are facing mounting pressure as the European Union pushes forward with reforms to its Emissions Trading System (EU ETS), a move expected to increase operating costs across the region’s recycling and refining industries. While the reforms are intended to support long-term decarbonisation goals and cleaner industrial production, analysts and industry groups fear they could weaken the competitiveness …
Continue ReadingCopper is defying the ‘war discount’ usually applied to industrial metals, nearing an all-time high on Monday as a brutal supply crunch proves more powerful than the threat of a global recession The three-month contract on the London Metal Exchange climbed as much as 0.5% to $13,643 a ton, its strongest intraday print since the January 29 spike that briefly carried …
Continue ReadingBrazil’s Finance Ministry will take part in upcoming meetings of the BRICS bank and the G7 finance track. In addition to the economic impacts of ongoing wars, Dario Durigan is expected to bring up the issue of raw materials essential to the technology industry. Brasília – Negotiations on critical minerals and the economic impacts of the wars in the Middle …
Continue ReadingTD Securities strategists note Silver is maintaining its upside, trading resiliently despite higher energy prices. While recent CTA (Commodity Trading Advisors) buying has slowed, they see renewed interest from Chinese traders on SHFE (Shanghai Futures Exchange) and strong Chinese premiums. The open import arbitrage suggests Eastern demand is a key driver of Silver’s strength beyond systematic CTA flows. Chinese demand underpins silver …
Continue ReadingWith $72.4 billion on the table, Canada’s critical-minerals drive must thread the needle between the United States and China. Canada is hoping to become a critical-minerals mining and processing powerhouse for Western countries seeking to diversify their supply chains away from China. About 67 critical-minerals projects – which represent about half of all active mining proposals in Canada – are …
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