Copper Price Could Soften As Chinese and US Economies
Source: Mineweb.com  (5/19/08)
Although copper bulls say the copper price will reach $10,000/t and higher on the back of China's economic growth, the Virtual Metals Research Group says this is unlikely. They expect the copper price to soften after 2010 as slower growth in China and lower US demand coincides. More >

Uranium Juniors on a Limb
Source: Mineweb.com  (5/19/08)
...utilities have been avoiding discretionary purchases of uranium on the spot market. At the same time various traders and producers have continued to offer material for sale, resulting in downward pressure on the spot uranium price. This is reflected in the quoted prices of uranium juniors, where the average stock price trades some two-thirds off its highs. More >

Uranium Still Has a Bright Future
Source: Sydney Morning Herald  (5/19/08)
In a long report last week, Merrill Lynch analysts said the spot price of uranium had now fallen close to the marginal cost of mine production, so it should stabilise around current levels. "Uranium's outlook is robust," the investment bank said, citing growing global demand for nuclear power now that it's often seen as "green". More >

Uranium Industry Experiencing "Sustained Growth"
Source: Business Spectator  (5/16/08)
Contract prices for uranium have risen to around $US90 a pound, from less than $US20 a few years ago, and "energy security and the response to climate change, have combined to provide highly favourable circumstances for the future development of the world’s uranium industry", according to a Deloite report commissioned by the Australian Uranium Association. More >

Base Metals - A Selective Bull Market
Source: Mineweb.com  (5/16/08)
In the bull market across industrial commodities (and more recently the soft commodities), the role of the individual fundamentals can sometimes get "lost". However, they have been critically important in determining the relative performance of the individual metals. More >

US Investors Say It's Time to Buy Stocks, Favor Brazil, Energy
Source: Bloomberg  (5/15/08)
Forty percent of respondents singled out energy as the best place to put their money over the next 12 months, followed by health care and drugs, at 30 percent, technology, at 22 percent, and financial services, with 15 percent. Investors could choose more than one industry. More >

Nuclear Power Is in Demand
Source: Seeking Alpha  (5/15/08)
Looking at the figures, you'd think the world has embraced nuclear energy once again with open arms. There are currently 439 nuclear plants in operation worldwide, 33 under construction and 94 that are in advanced planning stages, according to Jeremy Gordon, a spokesperson for the World Nuclear Association in London. More >

Senate May Kill Solar Rally
Source: Eric Savitz, Seeking Alpha  (5/14/08)
Solar stocks have been rallying on reports that the House this week will approve a bill that includes extensions of tax credits for renewable energy sources such as wind, solar and biomass. And while it does appear likely that the measure will pass, there is reason to believe it will get killed off in the Senate in its present form. More >

Will Utilities Keep Shining?
Source: The Motley Fool  (5/13/08)
The utility sector might seem dull compared to many other areas of the market. But utility stocks often have decent yields and low volatility, and they offer safe haven when markets are roiled. More >

Cameco Says Long-Term Uranium Market Will Remain Strong as Q1 Profits More Than Double
Source: Mineweb.com  (5/13/08)
Cameco President and CEO Gerald Grandey noted that long-term market prices have only declined by $5 to $90 per pound. Meanwhile utility companies' uncovered uranium requirements are growing at the same time uranium suppliers are already heavily committed. More >

New Fund Offers Technology Twist to Alternative Energy Investment
Source: Investment News  (5/13/08)
In October, the San Jose, Calif.-based company unveiled the Firsthand Alternative Energy Fund (ALTEX) to invest in technologies aimed at reducing oil consumption. The fund invests in companies developing the use of solar, wind, fuel cells, hydroelectric power and other forms of alternative energy. More >

Stock Prices Jump in the Junior Uranium Sector
Source: Stockhouse.com  (5/12/08)
Looking at the Toll Cross Junior Uranium Index, we see a 4.4 percent increase to 344.28 from 329.91, fuelled by rallying junior companies in the sector. Compared to last week, junior explorers were up eight percent, advanced explorers jumped six percent, production visibility companies gained 10 percent, and producers gained eight percent. More >

Speed Bumps Ahead for Oil and Gas Stocks
Source: Barron's  (5/12/08)
After a 13.7% gain in just six trading days through last week and 46% since Feb. 6, this is one overheated market. There are many reasons to think that it has gone too far, or at least too far, too fast, and that makes it very tempting to pick the top. More >

Report Says Developing Countries Eye Nuclear Power
Source: Reuters  (5/12/08)
More than 40 developing countries have recently approached United Nations officials to express interest in starting nuclear power programs, the Washington Post reported on Monday. More >

New Way to Ride Nuclear Revival
Source: Kiplinger.com  (5/12/08)
Investors who want to ride nuclear's revival without betting on individual stocks have a new option. Invesco PowerShares last month launched an exchange-traded fund called the Global Nuclear Energy Portfolio (symbol PKN). More >

10 Global Trends to Follow for the Next 18 Months
Source: Money Morning  (5/12/08)
Energy will be a recurrent theme in the months to come. Crude oil will remain in the forefront of the profit plays to come. But that’s not all: Alternative energy opportunities such as uranium and so-called "green energy" investments will benefit from soaring prices for conventional energy sources. More >

B.C.'s Uranium Ban Is Irrational, Economically Irresponsible
Source: Vancouver Sun  (5/9/08)
Saskatchewan, the nucleus of Canada's uranium industry, proves every day that uranium can be mined safely and responsibly. Discoveries and development in that province have made Canada the world's single largest uranium supplier, accounting for roughly 30 per cent of global production. More >

Commodities Dynamics Are Changing
Source: egoli.com  (5/9/08)
... it is fair to assume that the price for most commodities, soft and hard, precious metals and energy included, is predominantly determined by three key factors: supply-demand, US dollar and financial investors (not necessarily in that order). This is why it is so difficult to accurately predict where prices for a certain commodity will be in a year or even six months. More >

Uranium Miners on the Prowl as Spot Prices Fall
Source: Mineweb.com  (5/9/08)
Yellowcake miners and processors are on a massive mission, flexing their financial muscles investing in new uranium projects and expanding existing ones, in the face of the metal's spot price that has recently caught a cold. More >

Money Morning Boosts Oil Target to $225
Source: Money Morning  (5/8/08)
Investment Director Keith Fitz-Gerald, one of the first global financial gurus to predict triple-digit oil prices, has boosted his target price for crude oil from $187 to $225. More >

Nuclear Energy Heats Up U.S. Presidential Campaign
Source: Reuters  (5/6/08)
McCain, a Republican senator from Arizona who has wrapped up his party's nomination, is by far the most enthusiastic about the carbon-free fuel source, regularly calling for more nuclear power plants at campaign stops throughout the nation... More >

Nuclear Industry Executives Receive Call to Action
Source: PRNewswire  (5/6/08)
No matter who is elected president in November, it seems clear that climate change will dominate the national debate over energy and environmental policy in 2009 and beyond," said NEI President and Chief Executive Officer Frank L. (Skip) Bowman. More >

Coal, the New Gold
Source: Mineweb.com  (5/5/08)
In line with increasing recognition that commodities are an identifiable "asset class", seven years into the commodity prices supercycle, investors and speculators are increasingly sophisticated in sector rotation. Where oil majors and big gold stocks have long been known and recognised as equity investments, the newer wave of capital flows has identified listed coal stocks and listed iron ore stocks as the plays of 2008 - so far at least. More >

US Recovery Could Push Oil Much Higher
Source: Roger Nusbaum, Seeking Alpha  (5/5/08)
Oppenheimer Fund Manager Bill Wilby says that when the U.S. does get back on track it could push oil up to $200 per barrel. More >

Uranium Mining Appears Ready to Surge
Source: United Press International  (5/4/08)
In five Western states where uranium is mined, 43,153 claims were filed last year, up from 4,333 in 2004, the Los Angeles Times reported Sunday. The area of interest includes near the Grand Canyon, where U.S. Interior Department records show there are more than 1,100 claims within five miles of the national park, compared to only 10 in 2003. More >