There have always been periods like this, feast or famine business, it just seems like an extreme but remember that no matter how bad things get, they can always get worse, and usually do until the turn comes ... 'The story is always brightest at the top, bleakest at the bottom.' - forgot who said that, and in better words too
If Kinross can deal with the russian mob, they should be able to deal with anybody, so a net positive on the political front which is most important, eh ... Barrick has some heft in that department too, Newmont is the one who probably needs it the most, to pick up their lousy performance
On boom and bust - about fourteen years ago i was selling wood from a certain place for 125ish per cubic metre, peak price was 135 if memory serves ... well now i can get a few sticks of the same grade from a nearby place, depending on price, knew prices were way down but decided to touch base with the log buyer anyway, old friend, so called him up and asked ... no we don't want the wood, he says, got lots of our own, bought on the stump higher, you'd be shocked at the price anyway so don't ask ... no i say, just tell me for laughs ... oh geez he says, well price is 43 technically but if you actually bring any in i'll drop it to 33 ... lol, not necessary, my hard costs on that deal under current state of affairs would be minimum 65ish, so it's purely academic ... and unlike some metals, this won't come back anytime soon, the world simply has too much plantation wood coming out for producers to have much pricing power, and until US housing comes back there will be none at all ... but there was a day, used to be wild swings both ways |
