Here’s a link, here’s an extract…
RIO DE JANEIRO, July 23 (Reuters) – Brazilian mining company Vale SA said on Thursday it produced 85.3 million tonnes of iron ore in the second quarter, a record for the quarter and second-highest ever for the firm.
The numbers should quiet recent market chatter the world’s largest producer of iron ore may be curbing plans to increase output after the iron ore price fell to some of its lowest levels in a decade.
Vale now looks on track to meet its 2015 iron ore production guidance of 340 million tonnes and preferred shares rose 2.5 percent in morning trade in Sao Paulo.
…and here’s a chart:
What you’re seeing in the iron ore space is what you’re about to see in the copper production sector:
1) A metal controlled by a handful of massive world producers
2) Prices for the metal drop
3) The big producers react by producing more
4) Prices drop further
5) The big producers remain profitable, but smaller and medium sized companies are squeezed to death
6) Exploration stage companies are killed by the price drop.
7) Big producers don’t care, they’re still above cost of production, they keep churning out the production and are rewarded by share price growth on the news of better numbers.
Copper still has a way to drop, people. Get used to the idea.