Search the Skillings archive
Charles Pitts is the publisher of Skillings Mining Review, the trade journal that has covered mining since 1912. He writes on the macro forces behind metal prices: commodity cycles, sovereign capital and the shifting sources of demand. His current work argues that hyperscale AI, and the gigawatt-scale power its data centres need, is becoming a buyer of lithium and copper in its own right, competing with the automotive supply chain for tier-one reserves.
The global gold mining sector is entering 2026 in a state of historic divergence. While bullion prices continue to test all-time highs, the industry's focus has…
By 2026, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) reporting in the mining sector has matured from a voluntary disclosure exercise into a regulated, investor-grade discipline. For executives…
As of June 2026, the silver market has entered a structural transformation that is challenging decades of traditional correlation with gold. While the two metals have…
The global nickel market enters 2026 at a critical juncture. After several years of persistent oversupply driven by an unprecedented production boom in Southeast Asia, the…
The lithium market in early 2026 has entered a phase that many analysts are calling the "Great Rebalancing." After the dramatic price correction and supply glut…
The global copper market is entering a period of unprecedented structural tightness in 2026, as a "perfect storm" of surging demand from artificial intelligence (AI) and…
Russia has officially signaled an aggressive expansion in its precious metals sector, with the country’s Natural Resources Minister, Alexander Kozlov, announcing that gold production could reach…
Mining drives the Australian economy today. However, new tax risks now emerge. The federal government proposes major changes. Capital Gains Tax (CGT) is shifting. Industry bodies…
Peru now leads a major shift. The nation seeks global energy dominance. Recent policy changes signal this new era. The government issued a Supreme Decree today.…
As we move into the second half of 2026, the global mining sector faces a paradoxical cost environment. While headline inflation has moderated in many developed…
Our newsletters on critical minerals, policy and the week’s deals, free through LinkedIn or by email.
Your privacy We use cookies that the site needs to work. With your permission we also use analytics cookies (Google Analytics and Microsoft Clarity) to see which stories are read and how the site is used, so we can improve it. We do not use advertising cookies or sell your data. Cookie Policy · Privacy Policy
Keep the site working and secure, and remember this choice. Always on.
Google Analytics and Microsoft Clarity: which pages are read, how readers move through the site, and where it is hard to use. Clarity can record how a page is scrolled and clicked; it masks what you type.
