MCP – TradingStocks.me

Content

Posts Tagged ‘MCP’

Oct

2011

Full list of rare earth stocks and rare earth element mining stocks

by Fred Mason

With mainland China locking down exports of rare earth metals, rare earth mining companies on the other side of the Great Wall are scrambling to go into production. Analysts argue that the relatively small size of the rare earth metals market outside of China (which currently controls as much as 95 percent of the world’s supply of rare earths) will only support the emergence of a five or six new mines. The first major rare earth producers to emerge, then, will likely dominate the market outside China for decades to come.

There are a handful of leaders: Avalon Rare Metals (AMEX:AVL), Iluka Resources (PINK:ILKAF), Kenmare Resources (PINK:KMRPF) and Lynas Corp. (PINK:KMRPF). But beyond them, there’s a scrum of juniors furiously trying to get feasibility studies underway. The best finds will likely get gobbled up, or, perhaps, go to production on their own one day. Here’s a comprehensive list of the leading rare earth stocks and their year-to-date performance (in an admittedly crummy market):

Stock	Ticker	YTD Return
5N PLUS INC.	PINK:FPLSF	-5%
Alkane Resources Limited	ASX:ALK	14%
Arafura Resources Limited	ASX:ARU	-61%
Artemis Resources Ltd	ASX:ARV	-63%
Assore Limited	JNB:ASR	n/a
Astron Limited	ASX:ATR	18%
Avalon Rare Metals	AMEX:AVL	-57%
China Molybdenum Co., Ltd.	HKG:3993	-53%
CHINA RARE EARTH HLDGS	PINK:CREQF	-61%
Companhia de Ferro Ligas Bahia Ferbasa	SAO:FESA4	n/a
Compania Minera Autlan SAB de CV	MXK:AUTLANB	n/a
FORUM URANIUM	PINK:FDCFF	-73%
FRONTIER RARE EARTHS	PINK:FREFF	-65%
Galaxy Resources Limited	ASX:GXY	-58%
General Moly, Inc.	AMEX:GMO	-55%
Great Western Minerals Group	CVE:GWG	17%
Greenland Minerals and Energy Limited	ASX:GGG	-59%
Hazelwood Resources Limited	ASX:HAZ	-45%
HUDSON RESOURCES INC	PINK:HUDRF	-68%
HUNAN NON-FERROUS METALS	PINK:HNFRF	n/a
ILUKA RESOURCES LTD	PINK:ILKAF	34%
KENMARE RESOURCES LT	PINK:KMRPF	16%
LYNAS CORP LTD	PINK:LYSCY	-5%
Matamec Explorations Inc.	CVE:MAT	-59%
Molibdenos y Metales S.A.	SCL:MOLYMET	n/a
Molycorp, Inc.	NYSE:MCP	-34%
Neo Material Technologies Inc.	TSE:NEM	-19%
North Mining Shares Co Ltd	HKG:0433	-23%
Osaka Titanium Technologies Co., Ltd.	TYO:5726	-15%
PROPHECY RESOURCE	PINK:PCYRF	57%
Quest Rare Minerals Ltd	AMEX:QRM	-71%
Rare Element Resources Ltd.	AMEX:REE	-68%
RTI International Metals, Inc.	NYSE:RTI	-14%
TASMAN METALS LTD.	PINK:TASXF	-54%
Thompson Creek Metals Company, Inc.	NYSE:TC	-59%
Titanium Metals Corporation	NYSE:TIE	-12%
TOHO TITANIUM COMPANY LIMITED	TYO:5727	-34%

WHY THE TREND WILL CONTINUE 10 reasons why we’ll see gold over $2,000 an ounce	START-UPS-TURNED-TITANS The unofficial tech IPO calendar for 2012
EVERYBODY EATS, SOMETIMES How to invest in food stocks	DUE DILIGENCE Misinformation plagues rare earth stocks
POWERING THE FUTURE How to invest in lithium stocks	THE GROUND BENEATH OUR FEET How to invest in fertilizer stocks

Tags: ASX:ALK, ASX:ARU, ASX:ARV, ASX:ATR, ASX:GGG, ASX:GXY, ASX:HAZ, AVL, CVE:GWG, CVE:MAT, GMO, HKG:0433, HKG:3993, JNB:ASR, MCP, MXK:AUTLANB, PINK:CREQF, PINK:FDCFF, PINK:FPLSF, PINK:FREFF, PINK:HNFRF, PINK:HUDRF, PINK:ILKAF, PINK:KMRPF, PINK:LYSCY, PINK:PCYRF, PINK:TASXF, QRM, rare earth stocks, rare earths, REE, RTI, SAO:FESA4, SCL:MOLYMET, TC, TIE, TSE:NEM, TYO:5726, TYO:5727
Posted in mining stocks | No Comments »

Mar

2011

How far can Molycorp stock climb? (NYSE:MCP)

by Fred Mason

In seven short months, shares in Molycorp, Inc. (NYSE:MCP) have risen more than 270 percent. Can the trend possibly continue? Perhaps. Molycorp is, at the moment, the only commercial producer of rare earth metals in the Western Hemisphere.

While MCP mines just 3 percent of the global rare earth supply, China mines the other 95 to 97 percent – and the Middle Kingdom isn’t playing nice right now. Late last year, the country announced it would throttle back rare earth exports by 35 percent during the first half of 2011. That’s after China slashed export quotas by 72 percent during the second half of 2010, according to Bloomberg.

The Gillette News Record reports that world demand for rare earths in 2010 was about 127,000 tons. That could reach 188,000 tons by 2015. With deep cuts in the supply coming out of China, prices for rare earth metals have spiraled out of control. Cerium, for example, has jumped 600 percent, according to the Seattle Times, from less than $10 a kilogram to nearly $70.

“The use of these materials has really skyrocketed, with demand outstripping supply literally overnight,” Molycorp CEO Mark Smith told the paper. “We’ve got some serious issues in this industry. It’s going to be a tough year.”

As the world’s only significant rare earth producer outside of China, MCP’s shares have skyrocketed. Investors and government officials hope the company can ease supply concerns as other rare earth mines around the world struggle to enter production. It won’t happen overnight. Molycorp’s investing $500 million to boost production at its Mountain Pass, Calif., mine. The company should be processing 1200 percent more dirt than it currently does by 2014 for an output nearing 50,000 tons of rare earths.

Still, it won’t be enough to satisfy demand as the metals are used in an increasing array of high-tech industrial goods from electric car batteries to wind turbines. A single wind turbine contains more than a quarter ton (500 pounds) of rare earth minerals, the Gillette News reports. A single electric car can require as much as 60 pounds of rare earths. The greener our economy gets, the more we’re going to rely on companies like Molycorp – and, so long as China keeps its choke hold on the market, that could mean the 270 percent climb in MCP’s shares is justified.

GO LONG Top 10 best stock sectors for 2011	IPO CALENDAR The unofficial tech IPO calendar for 2011
THE OTHER FACEBOOK Five reasons to invest in the RenRen.com IPO	FERTILE GROUND How to invest in fertilizer stocks
BE YOUR OWN BOSS Five cheap franchises to start with less than $10,000	THIS COUPON’S FREE Groupon CEO is a weird guy with good advice

Tags: green stocks, MCP, rare earths
Posted in commodities, energy stocks, mining stocks, precious metals | No Comments »

Mar

2011

Lynas Corp to begin concentrating rare earths ore this month (LYSDY)

by Fred Mason

In the race to replenish the rare earth metals supply on the back of export limits from China, Colorado-based Molycorp, Inc. (NYSE:MCP) is the undisputed leader. Molycorp supplies about 3 percent of the world’s rare earths and a host of companies from Canada to Russia are rushing to get mines online to help meet demand.

Australia’s Lynas Corporation Limited (ASX:LYC, PINK:LYSDY) will soon join Molycorp as the only company outside of China that’s producing rare earths. Lynas announced on Monday that it should be ready to start feeding rare earth ore into its Mount Weld Concentration Plant during the last week of March, according to ProactiveInvestors.

The concentration process will finely ground down the ore separating the metal from the rock so it can be shipped to the Lynas Advanced Materials Plant in Malaysia. There, the concentrate will be further separated into rare earths products and sold to market. Lynas expects to begin processing concentrate in September 2011.

That’s big news for Lynas as prices of rare earths have soared in recent months. Cerium has jumped 600 percent, according to the Seattle Times, from less than $10 a kilogram to nearly $70. Lynas’ Mount Weld, which is the world’s largest known rare earths deposit outside of China, is equivalent to a buried treasure chest. As production nears, investors have cheered Lynas shares, pushing them up more than 300 percent over the past year.

CHECK YOUR DATA

Misinformation plagues rare earth stocks

GLOWING NUMBERS

Uranium price forecast for 2011 and 2012

SILVER SHEEN

Three triggers that could push silver over $50 ounce

MUSICAL CHAIRS

World’s largest economies in 2050 will look very different

GOLD BUGS

Triggers that could push gold to $5,000 per ounce

SECRET METALS

How to invest in rare earths stocks

Tags: ASX:LYC, LYSDY, MCP, molybdenum, pink sheets, rare earths
Posted in Australian stocks, commodities, mining stocks | No Comments »

Mar

2011

Misinformation plagues rare earth stocks

by Fred Mason

The spectacular run-up in rare earth stock prices has a lot of writers and analysts calling for a top. I’m not convinced that’s the case – particularly as so many of the arguments against rare earths are misinformed. The argument that’s in vogue now? The WTO has ruled China’s rare earth export quotas illegal.

That’s simply untrue. The WTO has ruled that China’s raw materials export quotas on nine industrial ingredients including zinc and coke are illegal, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Nowhere in the current WTO case were rare earths mentioned, which means that the current ruling does not apply to rare earths. Still, experts believe the ruling will pave the way for a similar case against China – one that specifically addresses quotes on rare earth minerals. Keep in mind that the process does not happen overnight, though. The current WTO raw materials case was launched in 2009. If China appeals the decision that could further delay the launch of a rare earths case against China, and again that process would take several years to pan out.

In that time, several rare earth mines around the world will likely be in production from Canada to Australia and the United States. By then, China will have likely accomplished what it set out to do in the first place, too. Namely, building up rare earth metals strategic reserves and luring more high-tech companies to the Middle Kingdom.

Rare earth minerals are used in smart phones, electric car motors, wind turbines, flat-panel TVs and other high-tech electronics and industrial equipment. Prices for the metals have skyrocketed since China, which controls 95 percent of the world’s supply of rare earths, has ratcheted back exports over the past two years.

Even if China didn’t have export quotas in place, worldwide supply of the metals would be insufficient for the growing demand. Demand for rare earth is expected to rise to 180,000 tonnes by 2014, according to ResourceInvestingNews.com.

Colorado-based Molycorp, Inc. (NYSE:MCP) currently produces about 3 percent of the world’s rare earths, according to the Seattle Times, and the company’s rushing to get more production out of its Mountain Pass mine. MCP is currently the only commercial producer of rare earths in the Western Hemisphere. Australia’s Lynas Corporation Limited (ASX:LYC) is expected to begin mining rare earth metals as soon as late March.

COPPER BUGS

How to Invest in Copper

GLOWING NUMBERS

Uranium price forecast for 2011 and 2012

SILVER SHEEN

Three triggers that could push silver over $50 ounce

DROPPING DOLLARS

Signs double digit inflation is coming to U.S.

GOLD BUGS

Triggers that could push gold to $5,000 per ounce

SECRET METALS

How to invest in rare earths stocks

Tags: ASX:LYC, MCP, rare earths
Posted in Australian stocks, commodities, mining stocks | No Comments »

Feb

2011

Is the rare earth price trend doomed to fail?

by Fred Mason

The dramatic rise in prices for rare earths is a tale of supply and demand. China, which formerly supplied as much as 95 percent of the world’s rare earth supply, has been tightening it’s grip on the export of the metals for the past year and a half. That’s led to incredible surges in demand for rare earths, which are increasingly used in high-tech products from electric cars to iPads and wind turbines.

Lathanium oxide is up 769 percent over the past seven months, and Cerium oxide is up 990 percent, according to Fool.com. Stocks in formerly obscure rare earth mining companies have rocketed up, too, with Molycorp, Inc. (NYSE:MCP) serving as the poster child for the frenzied run-up. Shares in the Colorado-based company have risen more than 200 percent over the past six months.

How long can the party last? That’s the million dollar question. China’s crack-down on rare earth exports could soon come under fire. A cluster of countries including the U.S. filed a raw-materials case with the WTO against China. The case alleges that China’s export quotas are illegal. China argues it’s limiting exports to protect its environment, but the WTO appears to disagree. Although the case applies strictly to raw materials including zinc and coke, if successful, it could open the door to future cases that specifically address China’s rare earth policies.

We’re not there yet, though. China could appeal the WTO’s decision and further draw out the process. If the appeal fails, China could shrug its shoulders and ignore the ruling altogether, coping instead with WTO sanctions. If China complies with the ruling, though, the U.S. and other countries will likely try a similar tact in getting China to open up its rare earth exports. The whole process would start over afresh; new case, new WTO ruling, new appeal, threat of sanctions, etc.

We’re not talking about a process that happens overnight, but if China does decide to open back up rare earth exports of its own volition during Q3 2011, we’ll likely see a dramatic plunge in prices for the metals. I, for one, think this is unlikely. Especially since news broke recently that China’s building a handful of enormous storage facilities to house rare earth strategic reserves. Actions speak louder than words, and China looks determined to build up a stockpile of the precious goods no matter what the cost.

Analysts at Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan agree. Both companies upgraded shares in Molycorp this week on China’s rare earth export quotes stating that the disruption “could cause supply outside of China to fall by as much as 40 percent.” “It all adds up, in Morgan Stanley’s thinking, to a stock worth $63 a share minimum – and perhaps as much as $140 a share,” writes Rich Smith at Fool.com.

China’s Great Dam on rare earths may not hold forever. Cracks are showing on the surface, but I don’t think we’ve seen the end to the run-up in prices yet. So long as rare earth mines outside of China struggle to move into production, growing demand for the metals is going to keep pushing up prices. Once the dam breaks, though, you’re going to want to make sure you’re on high ground.

RARE WHAT? How to invest in rare earths stocks	DROPPING DOLLARS Signs double digit inflation is coming to U.S.
BYE BYE OIL Death to Exxon? A sythentic fuel maker hopes so	GO LONG Top 10 best stock sectors for 2011
SILVER SHEEN Three triggers that could push silver over $50 ounce	$5 BILLION MAN Five stocks picks for 2011 from John Paulson

Tags: MCP, rare earths
Posted in Chinese stocks, economy, mining stocks, precious metals, stock tips | No Comments »

Feb

2011

Three reasons to invest in Avalon Rare Metals Inc. (AMEX:AVL)

by Fred Mason

While they’re still four years from actual production, Avalon Rare Metals Inc. (AMEX:AVL) has enough metal in the ground to warrant a serious look. The company’s market cap has catapulted 70 percent higher to $678 million after shares moved off the OTC market and onto the AMEX on Dec. 27. Here are three reasons to consider buying shares in Avalon even with the stock’s recent gains:

1) Rare earths outlook. China’s thirst for rare earth metals has tossed the sector into chaos. China supplied 95 percent of the world’s rare earth’s supply last year, and early this year, the country announced it would forcibly trim exports by 35 percent during the first half of 2011 while simultaneously raising tariffs on the metals. China’s so concerned with future supplies of rare earths that its silently moved to create its own rare earth strategic reserves, per a report from the Wall Street Journal. That’s catapulted shares in rare earth mining stocks higher with Avalon up more than 70 percent in a month and a half.

2) Bargain basement rates per ton. In an excellent piece at SeekingAlpha.com, contributor Michael Filloon compares Avalon’s Total Rare Earth Oxides (TREOs) holdings to its peers on a price-per-ton basis. “Avalon (AVL) has a market cap of 633 million; it has 4.298 million tons of TREO, which values their rare earth oxide at $147 per tonne,” Filloon writes. “Arafura (ARAFF.PK) had a market cap of $390 million; it has .84 ton of TREO, which values their rare earth oxide at $464 per ton. Quest Rare Minerals (QSURD.PK) has a market cap of 281 million; it has 551 million tons of TREO, which values their rare earth oxide at $511 per ton.” Filloon’s list keeps going all the way up to Molycorp, Inc. (NYSE:MCP), which has a rare earth oxide valuation at $3,025 per ton. Filloon’s quick to point out, though, that Molycorp’s far closer to production than Avalon.

3) Possible takeover target. Avalon’s Nechalacho Rare Earth Element Deposit in Canada’s Northwest Territories is chock full of heavy rare earths – among the rarest elements in the rare earths category. Demand for heavy rare earths is expected to surge in coming years, and it makes sense that a company like Molycorp – which has an abundant source of light rare earth elements at its Mountain Pass, Calif. mine – might be looking to diversify its rare earths portfolio. “Who knows,” writes Wyatt Investment Research, “as Molycorp becomes more cash-rich and in a position to make acquisitions, Avalon might show up on that company’s short list of targets.”

RARE WHAT? How to invest in rare earths stocks	BE YOUR OWN BOSS Five cheap franchises to start with less than $10,000
DROPPING DOLLARS Signs double digit inflation is coming to U.S.	RARE FINDS Top 3 most popular rare earths stock symbols and investments
IPO CALENDAR The unofficial tech IPO calendar for 2011	BLACK GOLD Could oil hit $250 barrel in 2011?

Tags: ARAFF.PK, AVL, MCP, QSURD.PK, rare earths
Posted in AMEX, commodities, mining stocks, precious metals | No Comments »

Feb

2011

China’s rare earth mining policies threaten national security

by Fred Mason

The recent revelation in the Wall Street Journal that China’s building up strategic reserves of rare earths metals has stoked fears that the Western World could begin falling behind in technological innovations.

China currently controls about 95 percent of the world’s supply of rare earths, and the Chinese government is moving aggressively to keep more of the metals inside the country. Last month, China took 11 rare earth mines under state control around the time it announced it was throttling back exports of rare earths by 35 percent through the first six months of 2011.

New information uncovered by the Journal, indicates China’s building massive storage facilities for rare earths in Inner Mongolia. The strategic reserves facilities will likely house more rare earths than the 39,813 tons of the metals that China exported last year.

The news has hurtled rare earths prices skyward as mines around the world struggle to go into production to meet the surge in demand. Prices for rare earths, which are a necessary ingredient in electric vehicles, iPhones and wind turbines, rose by about 130 percent last year. Even more disconcerting than the price surge is the threat that innovation at American companies and universities could, in fact, be hampered by the plunge in rare earths supplies.

“We must do away with hostile regulations that have driven U.S. manufacturing to foreign shores and prevented mining rare earths in North America,” writes Jeb Handwerger, editor of GoldStockTrades.com. “It is time we support meaningful legislation which protects our most important and cutting edge technologies before it is to late. Investors must monitor this situation closely as interest in rare earths is becoming an international geopolitical issue and there may be bidding wars to own mines closest to production.”

Handwerger points to three rare earths stocks outside of China that are the closest to production: Lynas Corporation Limited (ASX:LYC), Molycorp, Inc. (NYSE:MCP) and Avalon Rare Metals Inc. (AMEX:AVL). All three stocks surged in trading yesterday with Avalon Rare Metals up more than 12 percent.

RARE WHAT? How to invest in rare earths stocks	TRADING RARE EARTHS Top 3 most popular rare earths stock symbols and investments
SILVER SHEEN Three triggers that could push silver over $50 ounce	BYE BYE OIL Death to Exxon? A sythentic fuel maker hopes so
RISING TIDE Top five stock picks for 2011	BLACK GOLD Could oil hit $250 barrel in 2011?

Tags: AVL, LYC, MCP, rare earths
Posted in commodities, economy, mining stocks, precious metals, tech stocks | No Comments »

Feb

2011

Top 3 most popular rare earths stock symbols and investments

by Fred Mason

For the first time in China’s history, the country appears poised to become a net importer of rare earths. Expect prices to surge in the U.S and Japan in coming years if suppliers in other countries can’t keep up with demand.

“(There are) early signals that China is moving from sell-side to buy-side. China becomes a new market opportunity for producers outside China,” Chinese Society of Rare Earths director Chen Zhanheng said at a recent presentation in Canada.

China is the world’s biggest producer of rare earths with exports peaking at 60,000 tons and tapering off to 39,000 tons in 2009. That’s a huge drop-off considering that China currently supplies 97 percent or more of the world’s rare earths metal supply.

Chairman Nick Curtis, who heads up Australia’s Lynas Corporation, Ltd. (PINK:LYSCY), told The Australian he believes China will become a net importer of rare earths within five years. That’s good news for Lynas, which mines Mount Weld in Western Australia – the richest known deposit of rare earths in the world (Although we’d be remiss if we didn’t point at that Curtis recently sold 7 million shares worth $13.5 million in his company citing “personal balance sheet management” needs.)

Still, it’s clear that China’s throttling the market for rare earths thanks to a combination of export quotes and rising domestic demand within the country. Rare earths are increasingly used in high-tech goodies including iPhones, Blackberries, electric vehicles and wind turbines. That new demand for rare earths has pushed shares in miners up rapidly. Lynas, for instance, has risen more than 235 percent in the past year.

If you’re considering investing in the rare earths stocks, here are three options – all of which trade on U.S.-based exchanges:

1) Thompson Creek Metals Company, Inc. (NYSE:TC). With interests in nine mines or projects in the U.S. and Canada, Thompson Creek is a molybdenum miner that’s also begun diversifying into copper and gold with its Mt. Milligan mine in British Columbia (which should drive up profits starting in 2013). Shares in Thompson Creek are up 21 percent over the past year, and the company’s still trading at a P/E of 11.

2) Molycorp, Inc. (NYSE:MCP). Molycorp, Inc. has been on an absolute tear since its IPO last July. Shares have scorched up more than 400 percent in just over six months. That makes me extremely nervous to buy in here (as I imagine it should any investor). Molycorp began mining Neodymium and Praseodymium in 2007 and is scheduled to start extracting Bastnasite ore from its Mountain Pass., Calif., mine this year.

3) General Moly, Inc. (AMEX:GMO). Molybdenum-miner General Moly currently holds 80 percent interest in the Mt. Hope project in Nevada. The other 20 percent interest is in the hands of Korea-based steel producer POSCO (NYSE:PKX). General Moly also owns 100 percent of the Nevada-based Liberty project, which (based on a pre-feasibility study) should produce 503 million pounds of molybdenum over a 33-year mine life. The Mt. Hope project could be in production as early as 2013.

Don’t want to pick an individual company? The Market Vectors Rare Earth/Strategic Metals ETF (Public, NYSE:REMX) currently holds positions in more than 20 companies including rare earths and strategic metals producers. Shares in REMX are up 28 percent over the past year.

RARE WHAT? How to invest in rare earths stocks	BE YOUR OWN BOSS Five cheap franchises to start with less than $10,000
SILVER SHEEN Three triggers that could push silver over $50 ounce	BYE BYE OIL Death to Exxon? A sythentic fuel maker hopes so
RISING TIDE Top five stock picks for 2011	BLACK GOLD Could oil hit $250 barrel in 2011?

Tags: GMO, LYSCY, MCP, molybdenum, PKX, rare earths, REMX, TC
Posted in AMEX, Australian stocks, Chinese stocks, commodities, ETFs, mining stocks | No Comments »

Jan

2011

Rare earths miner Arafura Resources Limited (ASX:ARU) redoubles efforts

by Fred Mason

China’s recent announcement that it will slash its exports of rare-earth metals by 35 percent has a small Australian mining company, Arafura Resources Limited (ASX:ARU), redoubling its efforts to get its rare-earth deposits out of the ground. The company issued $37.6 million AUD in debt to help get its rare-earth mines at Nolans Bore and the Whyalla Rare Earths Complex in Australia operational by 2013.

Both mines are lumped together as the “Nolans Project,” and Arafura expects to be pulling some 20,000 tonnes of rare earth oxides from the sites every year for the next 20 years. If they can meet that target, they’d be controlling roughly 10 percent of the world’s rare-earths supply.

Still, they face stiff competition from Lynas Corporation (PINK:LYSCF) and Colorado-based Molycorp, Inc. (NYSE:MCP). MCP hopes to double its rare earths output by 2012 to 40,000 tonnes from 20,000 tonnes, according to a Bloomberg interview with CEO Mark Smith. “We will be making some presentations in the first quarter to our board of directors on the economics involved of doubling production,” Smith told Bloomberg.

Investors were bullish on shares in MCP and ARU on Monday pushing both stocks up nearly 15 percent. The stocks tapered off yesterday, but it remains a race against time to see which company can ramp up to meet global demand for rare earths the fastest.

Tags: ASX:ARU, LYSCF, MCP, rare earths
Posted in Australian stocks, commodities, mining stocks | No Comments »

Dec

2010

How to invest in rare earths stocks

by Fred Mason

China’s growing stranglehold on the production of commodities and metals like coal, iron ore, tungsten, antimony and tin give the Chinese government more control over foreign businesses than we might like to admit. And yet, it’s China’s control over heavy rare earth materials that really makes me nervous.

Consider this: China currently produces 99 percent of the world’s rare earths supply. It seems Beijing has realized it can exploit that control, too, by cracking down on illegal rare earths mining within the country and limiting exports abroad. On Tuesday, China’s commerce ministry announced its export quotas for rare earth metals will drop by 35 percent during the first six months of 2011.

Why does that matter? Because heavy rare earths are vital in the production or operation of high-tech goodies like iPhones, Blackberries, wind turbines and nuclear power plants.

Shares in rare earth stocks rocketed up on the news. Want to get in on the action? Here’s a short list of rare earths stocks:

Molycorp, Inc. (NYSE:MCP); +394 percent YTD
Rare Element Resources Ltd. (CVE:RES); +263 percent YTD
Neo Material Technologies Inc. (TSE:NEM); +68 percent YTD
Lynas Corporation Limited (ASX:LYC); +255 percent YTD
Medallion Resources Ltd. (CVE:MDL); +157 percent YTD
Ultra Uranium Corp. (CVE:ULU); +54 percent YTD
Fieldex Exploration Inc. (CVE:FLX); -15 percent YTD

Not interested in picking individual rare earths stocks? There’s at least one rare earths ETF that will help you diversify in the sector: the Market Vectors Rare Earth/Strategic Metals ETF (NYSE:REMX). The relatively new ETF launched in October and has risen 22 percent since then with a big chunk of the gains coming on Tuesday’s export news out of China. The ETF was up 7 percent yesterday.

Tags: FLX, LYC, MCP, MDL, NEW, rare earths, REMX, RES, ULU
Posted in base metals, ETFs, mining stocks, precious metals | No Comments »

Posts Tagged ‘MCP’

Full list of rare earth stocks and rare earth element mining stocks

Related

How far can Molycorp stock climb? (NYSE:MCP)

Related

Lynas Corp to begin concentrating rare earths ore this month (LYSDY)

Related

Misinformation plagues rare earth stocks

Related

Is the rare earth price trend doomed to fail?

Related

Three reasons to invest in Avalon Rare Metals Inc. (AMEX:AVL)

Related

China’s rare earth mining policies threaten national security

Related

Top 3 most popular rare earths stock symbols and investments

Related

Rare earths miner Arafura Resources Limited (ASX:ARU) redoubles efforts

Related

How to invest in rare earths stocks

Related

Killer Articles

Top 10 best gold and silver ETF funds

3 reasons NOT to invest in Groupon’s IPO

From start-up to titan: The unofficial tech IPO calendar for 2012

How to invest in water stocks

World’s largest economies in 2050 will look very different

How to invest in cotton stocks

How to buy Chinese Yuan

Five cheap franchises to start with less than $10,000

Why invest in silver?

How to Invest in Copper

Archive

Tag Cloud

Blogroll