Top Stories This Week: Case for Uranium Builds, Palladium Breaks Records

It was a week of bumpy trading action for the gold price, which moved between about US$1,760 and US$1,790 per ounce during the period.

Market participants were eyeing Wednesday’s (April 28) US Federal Reserve meeting, but there were no major surprises — the central bank left interest rates unchanged and will keep its bond-buying program steady. Gold dropped initially on the news, but then quickly rebounded.

While it’s always good to keep an eye on gold, it’s also worth noting that palladium reached yet another all-time high this week, rising above the US$3,000 per ounce mark for the first time.

The metal is key in catalytic converters, which are used to reduce vehicle emissions, and its price is being affected by both demand- and supply-side issues.

With palladium in mind, we asked our Twitter followers on Thursday (April 30) if they thought the metal would eventually pass the US$3,000 level. The 75 percent of respondents who said “yes” were almost immediately proven right when the metal hit that amount the next day.

We’ll be asking another question on Twitter next week, so make sure to follow us @INN_Resource or follow me @Charlotte_McL to share your thoughts.

Taking a step away from precious metals, I had the chance to speak with Justin Huhn of Uranium Insider about what’s going on in the uranium market right now. He gave a great overview of current supply and demand dynamics, and answered a question that many investors probably have right now as more eyes gravitate to the commodity: Is this time really different for uranium?

For Justin, the answer is yes. He explained that all elements of the fuel cycle are now essentially moving up together — that includes cost of conversion as well as SWU, or separative working unit, which he described as essentially the cost of enrichment.

U3O8 prices have been less consistent, but Justin believes that move is coming. Aside from that, institutions have now started to take large positions in the uranium market.

“All of the elements of the fuel cycle are now moving up sort of together. Conversion and SWU (separative working unit) have moved more consistently than U3O8, but we think that move is coming” — Justin Huhn, Uranium Insider

Our conversation took place before the announcement that Sprott Asset Management will take over management of Uranium Participation (TSX:U,OTC Pink:URPTF), so we weren’t able to talk about that.

The move will create a new entity called the Sprott Physical Uranium Trust, which like Uranium Participation will offer exposure to the uranium price. Sprott’s other physical trusts are listed on the NYSE Arca exchange, and the plan is for the Sprott Physical Uranium Trust to list there as well as on the TSX.

The news appears to have been positively received — Haywood Securities analysts have suggested it could accelerate their bullish outlook on the commodity.

“The news does have sector-wide implications for the ever-tightening uranium demand/supply balance and could accelerate our bullish stance on the sector and commodity” — Haywood Securities

Finally, INN’s Melissa Pistilli took a look this week at plant-based foods, a market sector that’s growing quickly, but is still fairly young. Behemoths include Beyond Meat (NASDAQ:BYND), which has gone mainstream since being founded more than a decade ago. In the years since then it’s seen enormous growth and now has a market cap of over US$8 billion.

Smaller companies have been inspired by Beyond Meat, and are making moves as they attempt to repeat its success. This is an industry we’re only just starting to look at, and we’d be interested to hear your thoughts — leave us a comment to tell us if you think plant-based food stocks have potential.

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Securities Disclosure: I, Charlotte McLeod, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

Editorial Disclosure: The Investing News Network does not guarantee the accuracy or thoroughness of the information reported in the interviews it conducts. The opinions expressed in these interviews do not reflect the opinions of the Investing News Network and do not constitute investment advice. All readers are encouraged to perform their own due diligence.