PTM Shareholders
Asian steel demand is driving LME nickel warehouse inventories to new 5-year lows and correspondingly pushing prices near recent 5-year highs of over US $17,000 / ton. Minmetals Nonferrous Metals Co. of China''s recently reported bid for Noranda strongly supports the Asian appetite for metals, and reinforces China''s official policy of seeking new sources of raw material supply. (charts and article below)
Similarly, world demand for platinum continues to grow past the record 6.5M Ozs consumed in 2003, largely due to escalating automotive catalytic converter usage, again fuelled by growing Asian demand. (chart and article below)
With 7 active Ni-Cu PGM projects worldwide including 2 active drill programs in the Northern Limb of the Bushveld Complex, one pending in the Western Limb, and Phase III drilling about to begin on the Lakemount Ni-Cu PGM project in Wawa Ontario, Platinum Group Metals Ltd. is ideally positioned to benefit from these trends.
I encourage you to contact me at your earliest convenience to discuss this.
John Foulkes
Manager, Corporate Development
Platinum Group Metals Ltd. (PTM:TSXV / PTMQF: OTCBB)
toll free (866) 899-5450
phone (604) 899-5450
cell (604) 614-2999
info@platinumgroupmetals.net
http://www.platinumgroupmetals.net
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chart below:
http://www.kitconet.com/charts/metals/base/lme-warehouse-nickel-5y-Large.gif
chart below:
http://www.kitconet.com/charts/metals/base/spot-nickel-5y-Large.gif
chart below:
http://www.kitco.com/LFgif/pt00-04.gif
China Minmetals targets Canada''s Noranda
By Charlie Zhu and Nicole Mordant
SINGAPORE/VANCOUVER, July 8 (Reuters) - State-owned China Minmetals Nonferrous Metals Co. is preparing a multibillion-dollar bid for Canadian miner Noranda Inc. (NRD.TO), sources familiar with the situation said on Thursday, evidence of the booming Chinese economy''s deep hunger for metal and a move that could propel a purchase price skyward.
In addition to the trading house''s bid, which challenges an expected offer from Brazil''s CVRD for control of Noranda, a third overseas company is also planning an approach, said one of the sources who is involved in the bidding action.
"A bid process is under way," the source said, declining to identify the third player or the size of the stakes the bidding companies were seeking in Noranda, the world''s third-biggest zinc producer and ninth-biggest copper producer.
The information leaks come in the wake of Noranda''s statement in June that it had received "several expressions of interest" from potential buyers and was reviewing ways to maximize shareholder value.
Brascan Inc. (BNNa.TO) (BNN.N) , which controls the Toronto-based firm through its 42 percent interest, said it supported the review, which could see Brascan''s C$2.8 billion ($2.1 billion) stake sold off.
Noranda did not name the interested parties but sources close to Companhia Vale do Rio Doce (CVRD) (VALE5.SA: ) (RIO.N:) have said the world''s biggest iron ore producer is putting the finishing touches on a bid.
"If true, the existence of multiple bidders is likely to result in a higher price than would be the case if Noranda was negotiating with only one suitor," BMO Nesbitt Burns analyst Victor Lazarovici wrote in a midday note.
FEEDING THE DRAGON
A metals analyst in Canada said that with the involvement of a state-owned company like Minmetals, which does not have the same shareholder pressures as a public company, all bets were off on how high the price could go, especially given China''s appetite for metals.
"It''s a state-owned company, they have almost unlimited financial resources behind them," the analyst said.
China''s huge need for base metals, to fuel an economy that grew 9.8 percent in the year through the first quarter, has helped drive metals prices to multiyear highs.
Copper demand is set to grow more than 10 percent in 2004 to around 3.3 million tonnes, around a fifth of global consumption. Zinc consumption is set to rise 8 percent.
A senior Minmetals official in Beijing, who declined to be identified, said the company was interested in investing in overseas mining projects, but he was not aware if it was seeking to buy Noranda.
A Brascan spokeswoman and a Noranda spokesman declined to comment on Thursday on whether the firms had had any discussions with or received a bid from Minmetals.
Noranda''s stock was unchanged at C$23 on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Thursday afternoon. Brascan''s class A stock dipped 26 Canadian cents to C$36.99.
Minmetals has hired Citigroup to advise on a bid for control of Noranda, another source said. A senior Citigroup banker handling mergers and acquisitions declined to confirm or deny the Minmetals plan.
THIRD BIDDER
Brazil''s CVRD is seeking a 52 percent stake in Noranda, including Brascan''s interest, in a part-cash proposal, an official at a fund that co-owns CVRD said on Wednesday.
Speculation has been rife on the identity of a third bidder, with Switzerland''s XStrata Plc. (XTA.L) getting the most mentions. The diversified mining group could not immediately be reached for comment.
Minmetals'' overseas ambitions are clear. In April, it said it had bought a 51 percent stake in Texas-based Sherwin Alumina, aimed at easing a shortage of alumina in China.
Noranda also produces aluminum and owns 60 percent of Falconbridge Ltd. (FL.TO) , the third largest nickel producer.
Minmetals is controlled by giant China Minmetals Corp., which holds stakes in more than a dozen companies listed in mainland China or Hong Kong, and has nearly 50 subsidiaries abroad. It had revenues of $11.68 billion in 2003, according to its Web site (
www.minmetals.com.cn).
(Additional reporting by Polly Yam in Hong Kong and Robin Paxton in Singapore)
article below:
http://www.platinum.matthey.com/media_room/1089108005.html
General Motors overtakes Volkswagen in Chinese car sales - 6th July 2004 (DeHavilland Information Services plc.)
Shanghai General Motors Co, an alliance between General Motors and the Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp, has become the number one selling car manufacturer in China.
For the first time, Shanghai General Motors sold more cars over a monthly period than Volkswagen AG''s local venture with Shanghai Automotive, Shanghai Volkswagen Automotive Co.
According to Bloomberg, which cites the Shanghai Daily, figures released by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) show that Shanghai General Motors sold 24,040 cars in June while Shanghai Volkswagen Automotive sold 20,805 cars.
CAAM explained that demand for Shanghai General Motors cars was driven by the introduction by new models and price reductions.
General Motors is to double its production in China to around 1.3 million units as part of a $3 billion three-year project.
The rapidly expanding Chinese car market is likely to increase demand for platinum used by car manufacturers in autocatalysts to lower emission pollutants.