We’ve all read a lot recently about the Indonesian export ban and it’s effect on the global market place. This year when Indonesia made good on it’s word to ban raw exports of metals the market responded with an increase in the price of many base metals. This also caused a stir among companies relying […]
East-East Trade
Russia and China are looking to shake up the international market by agreeing to make trade settlements in their own currencies. While this may not sound like a big shift, it is a fact that is taken for granted that nearly all international trade is presently done in American dollars. In a cold-shoulder move to […]
A Helping Hand for Indonesia
Recently on the blog I talked about how Indonesia, one of the world leaders in mineral ore export had banned just that in an attempt to increase local capacity through new infrastructure projects. Russia’s Vi Holding has just announced that it will be investing $500 million USD in an alumina refinery to be up and […]
Why Talk About Palladium?
Palladium is an interesting metal to say the least. It is one of the six metals that make up the Platinum Group of Metals or PGM. It is used in all sorts of production but particularly in the automotive industry. As demand for palladium has increased, the supply has not been able to keep pace […]
Another Win-Win for Nickel
I wrote recently about the seemingly ‘perfect storm’ that caused nickel prices to sky-rocket and investors like me to jump with joy. The factors I discussed last time were the export-ban from Indonesia and the continued rising need worldwide, but particularly in China. Well, if you could believe it, the situation is actually getting better […]
Indonesia’s Raw-Ore Export Ban
At the beginning of 2014 Indonesia, South East Asia’s largest economy and the world’s largest producer of nickel banned raw-ore exports. Since January’s ban, the price of nickel has risen on the global market 33.6% affecting the production of household items as diverse as stainless steel and rechargeable batteries. This begs the question, why would […]