Copper Perched Near Three-month Lows

Copper remained relatively flat on Thursday, closing at $6,992 after tumbling to a three-month low in the previous session.

The red metal was supported by comments that the Federal Reserve is not in any rush to withdraw monetary stimulus. Federal Reserve chair nominee Janet Yellen confirmed that “the timing for the Fed to pull back its $85 billion monthly bond-buying program hinges on the health of the economy.”

Copper hit a three-month low on Wednesday after Beijing failed to outline steps to boost its economic growth. That, along with a lack of growth in the Eurozone in the third quarter, pushed copper to an intraday low of $6,940 before it closed at $6,980.

“Copper was already under pressure when it broke below a very important technical level. People began short-selling below $7,100. The weaker European data also weighed on sentiment,” VTB Capital analyst Andrey Kryuchenkov told Reuters.

Taskeo has some ‘splaining to do

Taseko Mines (TSX:TKO) has come under a little bit of fire after claiming last week that the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency used incorrect information in its second review of the company’s proposed New Prosperity gold-copper mine in British Columbia’s interior. Earlier this month, the agency announced that upon reviewing the company’s second proposal for the mine, it believes New Prosperity will cause severe adverse environmental effects.

In response, Taseko issued a news release last week stating that Natural Resources Canada and the review panel used the wrong design in their analysis of the new proposal.

The environmental agency, however, is less than pleased by Taseko’s response and is asking the company to identify the basis for its claims.

“Kindly explain how and why Taseko was, or would have been, prevented from raising its concerns about any differences in the models used by Taseko and by (Natural Resources Canada) through submissions to, and testimony before, the review panel itself as part of the review panel process,” Yves Leboeuf wrote in a letter to Brian Battison, the company’s vice president of corporate affairs, and Karl Gustafson, the company’s legal representative at the review hearings.

The final decision on New Prosperity is still in the hands of the federal government.

Company news 

Resolution Copper, a US-based company owned by Rio Tinto (ASX:RIO,LSE:RIO,NYSE:RIO) and BHP Billiton (ASX:BHP,LSE:BLT,NYSE:BHP), is submitting plans this week detailing how it plans to run North America’s largest copper mine. Should the company get the necessary approvals and move into production, the Resolution copper project could produce over 1 billion tonnes of copper per year, 25 percent more than annual demand for copper based on current usage rates.

Red Tiger Mining (TSXV:RMN) achieved record production in October of 602 tonnes of COMEX grade 1 copper cathodes from its Luz Del Cobre copper mine in Sonora, Mexico. The company started producing from its open-pit mine in 2011.

The company passed its initial ramp-up phase on July 1. “Four months later, I’m extremely pleased to report that we achieved approximately 90% of our monthly design capacity in October,” CEO Thomas Utter said in a statement.

Securities Disclosure: I, Vivien Diniz, hold no investment interest in any of the companies mentioned.