Metals - Mining

Prices for cobalt recovered strongly in the second half of 2003 and the fi rst half of 2004 as growing demand for cobalt coincided with some short-term diffi culties on the supply side. World production of cobalt has increased steadily in recent years, almost trebling to 42,500 since 1993, an average annual growth rate of over 11%py. The dominance of African copper-cobalt producers has been replaced by a more even spread of output between leading producing countries, with Canada, Norway and more recently Australia, together with exports from Russia, replacing lost production in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The strongest growth in production of cobalt has come in Finland, where output grew at over 16% between 1990 and 2002, largely as a result of the aggressive expansion of capacity by OM Group.

The medium-term outlook for demand for cobalt now appears to be relatively optimistic, as superalloy production is benefi ting from renewed confi dence in the aerospace industry and the battery sector looks to be returning to the rates of growth seen in the 1990s. The factors that could put the brakes on growth in the cobalt market include a desire on the part of the Chinese government to control growth to prevent the economy overheating and the effects that high oil prices could have on world economic growth.

'The Economics of Cobalt' analyses the key trends, issues and developments in the market. It provides a clear insight into all areas of the industry and an authoritative analysis of the prospects for the future.

Countries covered in the report include:
Albania, Australia, Belgium, Botswana, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Canada, China, Congo, Cuba, France, Guatemala,Indonesia, Ivory Coast, Japan, Madagascar, Mexico, Morocco, New Caledonia, Norway, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Russia, South Africa, Tanzania, Turkey, Uganda, UK, USA, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Report Contents:
1. Summary
2. Occurrence, geology and reserves of cobalt
3. World production of cobalt
4. Review of cobalt-producing countries and companies
5. International trade in cobalt
6. World consumption of cobalt
7. End-uses for cobalt
8. Cobalt prices

For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/c18105

Laura Wood
Senior Manager
Research and Markets
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