Great Western Minerals Group (CVE:GWG,OTC:GWMGF) announced 2010 exploration results from the Saskatchewan-based Douglas River Rare Earth Project. The press release is quoted as saying: During the 2010 exploration program, geological mapping on the Beatty claim discovered a new showing named the Helipad showing. Like the historic showing, the mineralization is concentrated in porous sandstone channels within the Athabasca Sandstone in a parallel, north-south structure 50 m to the west of the original discovery.

Gold miners are expanding their focus in Africa to the northeast of the continent, a region that in the past, was largely bypassed by gold explorers. Northeast Africa already has a few gold deposits in the threshold size of one million troy ounces (the size limit the usually piques the attention of bigger miners.)

On Monday, Lithium Americas(TSE:LAC) received a bullish initiating coverage report from equity research firm Dundee Capital Markets, as the lithium explorer was noted for having the potential to be one of the lowest cost lithium carbonate producers in the world.

G&M reports on First Uranium’s (TSE:FIU) shares at an all-time low. The market news is quoted as saying: First Uranium lost 9 cents (U.S.) per share in the quarter, 4 cents worse than street estimates, with similarly disappointing cash flow figures. It also dropped its fiscal 2012 gold and uranium production guidance. First Uranium is developing gold and uranium extraction operations at the underground Ezulwini mine and its Mine Waste Solutions tailings recovery facility, both in South Africa. It has a $150-million (Canadian) convertible debenture expiring in June of next year and another $175-million of debentures due in 2013.

Mining Weekly reported that Verde (CVE:NPK) sees itself eventually meeting all of the demand for potash in Brazil. The market news is quoted as saying: “We’ve got 10.5-million tons of resources at 10.3%…we’re talking about a potential billion tons of potash there,” spokesperson Iwona Zakrzewski said.

Despite weeks of negotiations, India has yet to reach a potash supply agreement with major potash suppliers, includingCanpotex, and is holding out for a lower price in order to bridge the gap between the international price of potash and the benchmark import parity price fixed by the government.

Bloomberg reports that in New York, Oil traded near the highest this month. The market news is quoted as saying: Futures were little changed, with the biggest weekly gain in four weeks, after the U.S. Commerce Department said record exports in April helped the trade gap shrink 6.7 percent to $43.7 billion, the lowest since December. A separate report showed jobless claims unexpectedly rose.

Bloomberg reports that copper fell to a one-week low. The market news is quoted as saying: Copper futures for July delivery declined 2.4 cents, or 0.6 percent, to $4.0845 a pound at 9:58 a.m. on the Comex in New York.

Reuters reports that half of contractors in a strike at Chile's El Teniente mine have ended their strike. The market news is quoted as saying: Mine owner Codelco [CODEL.UL] expects to lift output to 51 percent capacity on Thursday after the world's top underground operation slowed production to 40 percent capacity over the weekend to protect staff workers amid escalating violence by protesters.

Bloomberg reports gold may decline for a second day in New York as speculation that Greece’s debt crisis is closer to being resolved curbs demand for precious metals. The market news is quoted as saying, Palladium for September delivery was little changed at $781.50 an ounce. Platinum for July delivery was 0.2 percent lower at $1,830.80 an ounce.

The Financial Post reported that Canadian potash producers have still not made an agreement on potash supplies to India. The market news is quoted as saying: Indian negotiator P.S. Gahlaut said that no resolution was reached at the conference, though talks will continue. “A big market like India should get a little preferential treatment. We can’t be equated with [smaller markets],” he said in an interview.

Bloomberg reports that in London, Copper inched up for a second day as banks from Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to JPMorgan Chase & Co. backed the metal’s prospects. The market news is quoted as saying: Three-month delivery copper on the London Metal Exchange rose as much as 1.1 percent to $8,958 a metric ton and traded at $8,949.75 at 3:12 p.m. Singapore time. Stockpiles of the metal in Shanghai Futures Exchange warehouses declined to the lowest in more than seven months last week, a sign that demand may be picking up in the world’s biggest consumer.