Report Says Mining Industry in Next Phase of the Boom, but Short-Term Volatility Remains

According to a new report titled “Mine- Back to the Boom” from Pricewaterhouse- Coopers, it was a tale of two halves in 2009 for the global mining industry. The trends seen at the end of 2008 continued into the beginning of 2009, with commodity prices continuing to fall, tough price negotiations with customers an issue and challenging market conditions overall. As the year went on, however, companies responded by restructuring their balance sheets, closing mines and cutting production to reduce costs. As a result, the market capitalization of the top 40 global mining companies increased 118%, returning to the heights of 2007.