The TSX woke up after a four-day holiday slumber to jump more than 200 points in early trading on Monday, though most of those gains were due to surging oil prices, which were in turn buoyed by Israel’s air strikes in Gaza. The uranium sector, and the mining sector as a whole, saw little activity, even as sellers lowered prices to attract potential year-end buyers.
The uranium sector is quieting down for the holidays, as expected. Activity in the spot market is dropping, as is the metal’s spot price. But bulls are confident uranium prices will pick up again in the New Year, thanks to continued strong investment and ambitious global expansion plans for the nuclear sector.
Spot uranium prices fell US$1 this week, in the face of an expected seasonal market slowdown and a new anti-nuclear campaign launched in Paris by a group of international dignitaries. And a new report released at the UN climate change talks in Poznan, Poland, maintains nuclear power fits alongside other technologies ready to fight climate change.
The amount of uranium mined in Saskatchewan is second to none. With new mines in development and increases in exploration, Saskatchewan is reaping big rewards from the nuclear “renaissance”. But some argue that there is a dark side to what is happening in Saskatchewan and in the nuclear industry in general. UraniumInvestingNews’ Luke Brocki digs in.
Where is Saskatchewan's Uranium Industry Headed?:
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Spot uranium prices have just seen a meteoric rise and an equally impressive fall. The metal was buoyed to US$138 a pound U3O8 last summer by eager speculators and hedge funds. In the months that followed, it became evident that short-term supply exceeded demand for the metal and a price correction brought it its price to less than half of last summer’s record levels. It now rests at US$63 a pound U3O8.
If you are like many people, the last time you read about commodities in the news was when Bre-X Minerals collapsed in 1997, after news broke that the company had falsified results and the gold they had reported was nowhere to be found. But the opportunities in the junior commodity market are significant. Digging gold out of the ground is something that captures …
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
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