One decade of ups and downs in rough and cut diamonds
The last two decades have been a carrousel of emotions in the mining industry: Oil and gold prices had steadily been growing since 2001. Oil spiked to maximum historical values in 2008 (and then crashed, to climb again for 3 consecutive years, plateau for 4 years, until mid 2014, crashing again, reaching nominal values of … Continue reading One decade of ups and downs in rough and cut diamonds
USGS Tantalum report (just published)
Two years ago I was involved in a very interesting tantalum project in the Republic of Congo (Brazzaville) – photo gallery here. I have since then followed with attention this metal’s market news (and its idiosyncrasies, being one of the 3TG minerals – subject to control under the conflict minerals framework). USGS just published a … Continue reading USGS Tantalum report (just published)
Angolan currency looses value (- 37%) in the last year
The Angolan currency (Kwanza- Kz) lost 37% of its value (in USD) as a result of last year’s crude oil price crash. A carbon-dependent economy (with oil and diamonds being, by far, the country’s largest exports), Angola was hard hit by the evolution of oil prices in the international markets. One USD was worth Kz … Continue reading Angolan currency looses value (- 37%) in the last year
Mineral commodities 2013 total mined volumes and values, average prices
Diamonds mined in 2013 total 14 bn USD. How do they compare with other mineral commodities? Rather than using somebody else’s compilations, I prefer to check values published by (commodity) specialised international organisations or public companies (OPEC, World Gold Council, KPCS, USGS, etc.). After some work, I have arrived to the estimates presented in the table … Continue reading Mineral commodities 2013 total mined volumes and values, average prices
Really? The price of diamonds collapsing?
No doubt the commodities have seen recently a sharp decline in price (do you remember oil at 150 US/bbl and gold at 1.600 US per oz or iron, or copper?). Yes, there are problems brewing in China (perhaps brewing is an understatement in face of the stock markets sharp decrease of the last few days) … Continue reading Really? The price of diamonds collapsing?
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