Dr. Copper Heading Back to School
Source: Geoff Candy, Mineweb  (1/3/12)
"When combined with the financialization of the market and the increased usage of other materials to replace the red metal, the murky nature of Chinese copper demand means the metal's honorary doctorate should probably be rescinded for the time being." More >

2012: The Recognition of the Age of Critical Technology Materials
Source: Jack Lifton, Resource Investor  (1/2/12)
"The rare earths supply frenzy has exposed an irreversible shift in the demand/supply picture for all technology materials." More >

Dangerous Rare Earth Supply Risk
Source: Ian Cooper, Wealth Daily  (12/29/11)
"The U.S. Department of Energy just warned rare earth supplies are facing some of their most critical supply levels. If things don't improve, many of our greatest technological advancements could start disappearing from store shelves." More >

Time to Buy the Rare Earth Metals ETF (REMX)?
Source: Eric Dutram, Zacks Investment Research  (12/29/11)
"While demand is slack right now, the incredible importance of the materials in this space and their wide range of applications ensures that they will always see a decent level of buying." More >

First Round Chinese Rare Earth Quota Allocations for 2012
Source: Gareth Hatch, Resource Investor  (12/29/11)
"Before we get into more specifics with the numbers, it is important to note that this announcement was unusual for three reasons. . ." More >

Platinum: Fire Sale on the Rich Man's Gold
Source: John Lee  (12/28/11)
"Historically, the price of platinum runs in tandem with the precious metals group (gold, silver, platinum and palladium). However, as platinum is less liquid and has a smaller investor set, it is much more volatile both on the upside and downside compared to gold." More >

Top 10 Commentaries of 2011
Source: Frank Holmes, U.S. Global Investors  (12/28/11)
"This week I thought we'd take a moment to reflect on the eventful year it's been for natural resources." More >

Critical Reading for Rare Earth Metals Investors
Source: The Critical Metals Report Editors  (12/27/11)
Rare earth element coverage has exploded since The Gold Report started covering this sector in early 2009. At that point, the REE junior mining market was a $2 billion industry. Today, REE juniors are a $10 billion+ industry—give or take a one-day market fluctuation, and Streetwise Reports now has a dedicated newsletter to cover the sector: The Critical Metals Report. Let's look back at how far we have come. More >

How to Invest in Graphite and the Future of Graphene
Source: Jason Hamlin, GoldStockBull Investment Strategies  (12/26/11)
"High-purity large-flake graphite is essential for the production of the lithium-ion batteries, where demand is growing rapidly due to the evolution of electric cars." More >

Canadian Juniors Are Playing For Results
Source: Rick Mills, Ahead of the Herd  (12/23/11)
"Juniors, not majors, own the world's future mines and juniors are the ones most adept at finding these future mines. They already own what the world's larger mining companies need to replace reserves and grow their asset bases." More >

DOE Report Finds Five Clean-Energy Related REEs at Risk in Short Term
Source: Dorothy Kosich, Mineweb  (12/23/11)
"The substantial capex required for the development of a rare earths mine, compounded by major miners' lack of interest in mining rare earths, may spell trouble in meeting future demand." More >

Hints on Due Diligence in Rare Earth Mining
Source: Anthony Alfidi, Resource Investor  (12/23/11)
"Professional investors prefer projects whose production costs are in the bottom quartile of their peer group. The problem with rare earths is that there are too few operating mines worldwide to construct statistically valid cost curves, so other factors must be considered." More >

Imitating Big Money Could Hurt You
Source: Kalyan Nandy, Zacks Investment Research  (12/21/11)
"Institutional buying can boost stocks to record peaks, meaning entry prices may not be attractive. Furthermore, institutions may book profits before you realize gains." More >

Rare Earth Metals Bears and Bulls: Anthony Alfidi
Source: Zig Lambo of The Critical Metals Report  (12/20/11)
Shrinking Chinese export quotas and market sentiment have made for unpredictable prices for rare earth elements, but the real opportunity lies with mining stocks. In this exclusive interview with The Critical Metals Report, Anthony Alfidi gives a rundown of his due diligence checklist and shares some junior companies poised for success in this exciting, yet challenging sector. More >

Manganese-Gallium Is Not the Next Neodymium-Iron-Boron
Source: Gareth Hatch, Resource Investor  (12/20/11)
"This new Mn-Ga compound is certainly very interesting, but unless someone finds a primary Ga deposit and can perfect inexpensive nanoscale material production, it's not going to 'revolutionize the production of magnets' anytime soon." More >

Rare Earth Mining Innovations: Anthony Mariano
Source: Sally Lowder of The Critical Metals Report  (12/13/11)
The worldwide hunt for new sources of critical metals has some miners hitting the beach, tapping sand and river placer deposits in search of naturally processed minerals. In this exclusive interview with The Critical Metals Report, internationally renowned scientist and rare earth expert Anthony Mariano discusses several innovative projects that could shift the direction of the rare earth industry. More >

Place These Rare Earth Metals on Your Watch List
Source: Shae Smith, Money Morning,  (12/12/11)
"While some rare earth mines are stand-alone mines, metals such as tellurium and gallium are mined as by-products.If copper, aluminum or zinc projects become uneconomical, that would likely mean a price spike for these rare metals." More >

Peru Reports Gold, Iron, Tin, Moly Production up in October
Source: Dorothy Kosich, Mineweb  (12/8/11)
"Peru's Ministry of Energy and Mining reported the production of iron ore, gold, tin, and molybdenum all increased in October 2011. However, Peruvian copper, lead and zinc output all declined during the same period." More >

The Age of Rare Earth Metals: Luisa Moreno
Source: Brian Sylvester of The Critical Metals Report  (12/6/11)
Just as the Bronze Age catapulted human civilization to new levels, so are critical metals changing the way we live in the modern world. Despite weak across-the-board market sentiment, Jacob Securities Analyst Luisa Moreno maintains that rare earths will continue to revolutionize our daily lives. In this Critical Metals Report exclusive, Moreno explains how to pinpoint investment opportunities as new projects inevitably come online. More >

The "Miracle Material" That Will Change the World
Source: Michael A. Robinson, Money Morning  (12/2/11)
"Stronger than steel and lighter than a feather, [graphene] will shape virtually every part of our daily lives by the end of this decade. The possible uses are almost limitless." More >

Decoupling Rare-Earth Junior Mining
Source: Jack Lifton, Resource Investor  (11/29/11)
"I have personally been involved with attempts to import both ore and scrap rare-earth permanent magnets into China for processing. Both projects were initiated by Chinese companies looking for supplies for the Chinese market. Both projects were denied licenses by the Chinese government." More >

Anthony Young: China, Molycorp and the Future of Rare Earths
Source: Brian Sylvester of The Critical Metals Report  (11/28/11)
Despite the name, rare earth elements are actually quite plentiful in the earth's crust—it's the companies that are close to producing these critical metals outside of China that are truly rare. In this exclusive Critical Metals Report interview, Analyst Anthony Young of investment bank Dahlman Rose & Co. discusses how two of the most developed rare earth mining companies are affecting environmental standards, offtake agreements and acquisitions within the industry. More >

Time for U.S. to Focus on Mining
Source: Jeb Handwerger, Gold Stock Trades  (11/23/11)
"Never have so many road blocks been thrown into the paths of uranium and rare earths. Sooner or later the realization must dawn on our leaders that these sectors represent true wealth and the most profitable places to invest stimulus funds." More >

Gareth Hatch: Navigating the Rare Earth Metals Landscape
Source: Brian Sylvester of The Critical Metals Report  (11/22/11)
Gareth Hatch, co-founder of Technology Metals Research LLC, gives us the lay of the land in the rare earth sector. Many variables are shaping this developing market, and from calculating global demand to anticipating individual project costs, data makes the difference in determining viable investments. Gareth Hatch gets down to the nitty gritty in this Critical Metals exclusive, and comes up with some promising projects in the works. More >

Rare Earth Metals Stocks Heavy with Potential Profits
Source: David Zeiler, Money Morning  (11/21/11)
"As the world builds more and more things that rely on rare earth metals—from hybrid car batteries to tablet computers to fiber optics—uses for them will continue to multiply." More >