The first week of 2009 was a sleepy one for molybdenum with thin trading volume as many customers remained on holidays. Activity in China was by far the slowest, with Chinese molybdenum oxide and ferromolybdenum producers halting spot molybdenum offers to overseas customers.
After moly held its position over months of poor market sentiment, the metal has been hit hard. Just over a few weeks, the market price of molybdenum oxide has fallen by a whopping 30%.
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 has been a strong performer in 2008; in fact it is just recently that the metal experienced a little downside. The dip in prices could be attributed to the negative market sentiment, as moly’s fundamentals are still strong.
The market volatility over the past two weeks has finally it moly. The alloying metal has held its own for months, while most of the other metals declined rapidly as news about the downturn in the economy permeated the markets.
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.
Linear Metals encountered strong molybdenum mineralization in Offsets to Higher Grade Zones at the KM project. The company announced: Based on the encouraging results received to date from the KM61 Project, it is expanding the original 25,000 metre delineation drill program to 28,000 metres. Two drills continue operating at the project with one drill targeting [...]
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.
Creston Moly Corp. (CMS) is a Tier 1 TSX-V listed company actively developing its 100% owned Creston Molybdenum Deposit in Mexico's mining friendly state of Sonora.
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.
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