A Weekly Recap of All Things Resources to Friday, August 26th

 ‘That’s a Wrap’

By Rod Blake

Following a quiet but frustrating week where the major North American equity markets failed to rise above their overhanging moving averages, brokers, investors, traders and portfolio managers alike approached the new week with a more cautious attitude.

Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. ‘BRK.A-N’ got the attention of the market after the giant conglomerate announced it had received permission from the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to acquire up to 50^% of multinational energy company Occidental Petroleum Corp. ‘OXY-N’.

European supply concerns once again helped the price of natural gas to surge up by another $0.45 to a new 14-year high of US$9.77/mmbtu.

The way I see it – I only knew Brad Cooke professionally, and in that light, he was always engaging with this broker whether at a trade show, in a meeting, or on the street corner. He was one of the few mining executives who not only promoted their own endeavours, but also seemed to take a genuine interest in a project or company that I had a position in. We often discussed mineral prices or market conditions and that I will sincerely miss.

The price of crude oil reversed its recent slide and rose by $3.26 to US$96.62/bbl  after Saudi Arabian Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said OPEC was ready to cut oil production to stabilize the market.

Volkswagen AG and Mercedes-Benz Group AG signed agreements with the government of Canada that would see them invest in Canadian companies that would in turn supply electric vehicle (EV) raw materials to the giant German automakers.

And as if on cue – the price of Rock Tech Lithium ‘RCK-V’ surged up by $0.52 or 14.86^% to $4.02 after the Ontario based lithium developer and Mercedes-Benz AG announced they were indeed entering into a strategic partnership to produce high-quality lithium hydroxide for the automaker and its battery suppliers. 

Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz signed a green energy agreement that would see Canada supply the European country with clean hydrogen power produced from wind farms near Stephenville in western Newfoundland.

Uranium stocks rose in unison when Japan surprised the market my announcing the island nation would restart seven nuclear reactors left idling after the Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011, and also develop new next-generation reactors.

Rio Tinto International Holdings Ltd. ‘RIO-N’ raised its takeover offer for Turquoise Hill Resources Ltd. ‘TRQ-T & N’, and its share of the prized Oyu Tolgoi copper/gold mine in Mongolia, by $6 to a more realistic $40-per-share.

Minera Alamos Inc. MAI-V’ shares’ rose by $0.55 or 12.50^% to $0.495 after the emerging gold producer reported it produced a record 2,275 ounces of gold in July from its Santana gold mine in Sonora, Mexico.

The future suddenly came rushing in when the California Air Resources Board announced that as of 2035, America’s most populous state will ban the sale of new gasoline powered vehicles.

For the Week – The key Baker Hughes Petroleum Rig Count reported the number of active American drilling rose by 3-rigs to 765, an increase of 257 from this time last year. In Canada – the number of active Canadian rigs was again unchanged at 201 for an increase of 54 in the past year.

The DJI fell by 4.22^% to 32,283 as the S&P 500 lost 4.02^% to 4,058 and the NASDAQ dropped 4.41^% to 12,142. Across the line – the TSX was down 1.63^% to 19,783 and the TSX Venture lost 0.62^% to 646.

Gold bullion lost 0.68^% to US$1,750, with silver down by 1.62^% to US$18.87 while copper rose by 0.27^% to US$3.70. Elsewhere – crude oil gained 2.41^% to US$92.96 and natural gas rose by 0.86^% to US$9.34. The Canadian dollar lost 0.34^% to 0.7673. Overall – the CRB Commodities Index gained 2.24^% to 320.

And Finally – Landlords in France are being forced to become more environmentally aware and to upgrade their facilities as the country has just passed a ‘Climate and Resiliency’ bill that forbids landlords from increasing rents on units that leak too much heat.