Molybdenum prices are currently hovering around the $9 per lb mark, a drastic decline from last Augusts’ high of $34. Molybdenum managed to hold its price point longer than other metals; but in the fourth quarter of 2008 the steel industry’s defeat sent molybdenum on a free fall.
Molybdenum has crashed from $33 per lb in mid ’08, to its Friday closing value $8.70 per lb. Analysts predicts the metal is in for a slow recovery this year, and is anticipated to average $11.00 per lb.
As the shock waves spread around the global economy; many analysts are starting to hedge their bets on when a recovery will start. In their Global Metal’s Report released this week, Morgan Stanley gave their take on the near future for the molybdenum market.
Molybdenum, a seemingly invincible metal this year finally took a hit in the fall as economic malaise spread. The alloying metal is down 65% this year, and this decline was seemingly overnight.
Japan wants to test the moly market, and will do so by issuing a temporary cut in the November nickel stainless molybdenum (SUS316) steel output. Output will be cut approximately 10%, and for the time being, the curb in production will only last a month to see how the market reacts.
Molybdenum exploration has been on a fast track this year, as a shortage in supply and an increase in demand have pushed prices of the alloying metal up and up. Until recently, moly has held stable despite all the challenges on Wall Street.
The London Metal Exchange will add molybdenum to its arsenal in the second half of 2009. The move was announced on Sept 4th, when the LME board voted in favour of adding both molybdenum and cobalt to its futures trading. The move was met with mixed reviews.
TTM Resources Inc. is a Vancouver, British Columbia; Canada based publicly trading resource Exploration and Development Company, focused on four assets in British Columbia, Canada.
The molybdenum market is bracing for price increases in September on increased buying activity from stainless steel mills and mounting concerns over a consistent supply. The availability of ferromolybdenum remains tight as output falls at a number of major producers.
SIRIOS RESOURCES INC. began the diamond drilling program on its molybdenum-copper-gold property TILLY in James Bay, Quebec. For more information, click here For company’s website, click here
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