Mining’s old guard needs strong medicine
A new report details subpar investor returns in the mining industry over the last decade, particularly big cap diversified companies which have not adapted to new realities.
The gold market has been relatively quiet of late with the metal hovering either side of $1,300 for the better part of two months.
After last year’s white-knuckle ride culminating in the metal’s worst performance in more than 30 years, there are those who welcome the calm.
Sister silver’s wild price fluctuations is why traders often refer to it as the devil’s metal, or in today’s idiom: Gold on crack.
However like gold punters, silver traders are no longer swinging for the fences as they did in previous years: volatility in the silver price is at a decade low.
Investment firm US Global Investors has put together an interactive chart of the price of different commodities over the last decade.
It shows that despite 2013’s 28% plunge, on a 10-year basis gold is actually the least volatile of all the metals. And the price of silver, despite its reputation, isn’t all that devilish. That honour goes to Old Nick – nickel.
Gold’s highs and lows this year are 15% apart versus 32% or $600 an ounce in 2011, gold’s most volatile year since crazy 1980.
2013 was pretty rough for silver, but this year the metal has hardly moved at all. As of Friday it’s added 5c to its closing price on 31 December 2013.
Based on current trends 2014 looks like it could continue to be a quiet year.
But there are those who disagree: See here and here.
Click here for the US Global Investors Commodity Periodic Table
Image by Brian Donovan.
