Best Metals Forecaster Smirk Sees China Recovering: Commodities

Best Metals Forecaster Smirk Sees China Recovering: Commodities
By Phoebe Sedgman and Chanyaporn Chanjaroen

Industrial metals will rally through the middle of next year as the economy strengthens in China, the biggest user of everything from aluminum to zinc, according to the most accurate price forecaster tracked by Bloomberg.
Justin Smirk of Westpac Banking Corp. in Sydney beat as many as 25 others in predicting metals for two consecutive quarters on a rolling two-year basis, data compiled by Bloomberg Rankings show. He expects copper, nickel and zinc to gain through June and forecasts a 21 percent rise in aluminum.

South Africa: Retail sales growth healthy but slowing to 4.3% y/y in Sept from 6.7% in Aug

South Africa: Retail sales growth healthy but slowing to 4.3% y/y in Sept from 6.7% in Aug

Retail sales growth slowed in Sept to 4.3% y/y, after recording annual growth rates of 6.7% and 2.9% in Aug and July respectively. The growth slowdown may be partly attributed to the transport strikes of Sept, which likely disrupted retail sales during the month. In addition, retail sales may have been constrained by a pickup in retail inflation, coupled with slower growth in household disposable income (see charts). Retail inflation has recently risen from 3.9% y/y in August to 4.5% in September, while growth in household disposable income appears to be trending downward, equalling 3.7% y/y in Q2 2012 versus growth of 5.6% for the same period in 2011.

Mexico: Labour Reform Is Approved

Mexico: Labour Reform Is Approved

Nader Nazmi - Market Economics
Latam Macro Snapshot | 14 Nov 2012 16:32 |

Late last night the Senate passed a labour reform bill that had already been approved by the Chamber of Deputies. This bill will soon be signed into law by the outgoing President Felipe Calderon, ending years of failed efforts to reform Mexico’s labour market.

Colombia Weekly

Colombia Weekly

Central bank publishes neutral minutes. Notwithstanding concerns about soft Q3 growth, the Colombian central bank board is confident that robust growth is continuing in H2 thanks to strong domestic demand, according to the minutes of the 26 October board meeting, released on Friday.

Chile: BCCh stood on hold, as expected; neutral bias remained in place

Chile: BCCh stood on hold, as expected; neutral bias remained in place

Florencia Vazquez - Market Economics
Latam Macro Snapshot | 13 Nov 2012 22:00 |

Chile’s central bank kept the policy rate unchanged at 5.0% at today’s monetary policy meeting. The decision stood in line with both our forecast and the median estimate from the Bloomberg survey.

Foreclosed Homes Purchased by Colony Capital to be turned into Rental Properties

Foreclosed Homes Purchased by Colony Capital to be turned into Rental Properties
November 13, 2012

Colony Capital, a private real-estate investment firm, won an auction for 970 single family homes from mortgage giant Fannie Mae in a deal that cost the company $176 million. The properties are located in California, Arizona and Nevada, three states that have been hit particularly hard by the housing crisis that first began in 2008.

http://pacificbanc.wordpress.com/2012/11/13/foreclosed-homes-purchased-by-colony-capital-to-be-turned-into-rental-properties/

U.S. Oil Output to Overtake Saudi Arabia’s by 2020

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-11-12/u-s-to-overtake-saudi-arabia-s-oil-production-by-2020-iea-says.html

U.S. Oil Output to Overtake Saudi Arabia’s by 2020
By Lananh Nguyen

U.S. oil output is poised to surpass Saudi Arabia’s in the next decade, making the world’s biggest fuel consumer almost self-reliant and putting it on track to become a net exporter, the International Energy Agency said.

Major improvements in copper concentrate supply forecast

Major improvements in copper concentrate supply forecast
In the first eight months of 2012, its Y-o-Y imports of refined copper rose 57.7% to 2.39 mt and of concentrate 14.1% to 4.6 mt
Kunal Bose / Nov 13, 2012, 00:31 IST

India’s two standalone smelters without mine linkages, belonging to Hindalco Industries and Sterlite Industries, have reasons to be happy, with the International Copper Study Group (ICSG) saying the world could see supply surplus of copper concentrate in 2013. That would mark the end of over a decade-long tightness in availability of the mineral for smelting into metal. Principally, on the back of copper mines expansion in Chile and the Oyu Tolgoi copper-gold mine coming on stream, concentrate supply next year, according to ICSG, will see a 6.4 per cent rise.

Copper Mining Info

http://www.mine-engineer.com/

Copper Mining Info

Chile Cochilco Raises 2012 Copper Price View to $3.61 a Pound

Chile Cochilco Raises 2012 Copper Price View to $3.61 a Pound

Published November 12, 2012
Dow Jones Newswires

Chilean state copper commission Cochilco raised its 2012 copper-price outlook to an average of $3.61 a pound, from a previous outlook of $3.52/lb.