China has imported so much corn for its pigs that it has collapsed its ports. More grain purchases as herds recover from swine fever. China will import up to 26 million tons of corn this year and next.

China has embarked on an unprecedented surge in corn purchases this year, with some vessels being delayed for up to a month out of southern ports due to congestion, incurring high demurrage fees (delayed by a preset deadline). sometimes to load or unload a ship).

At least two ships laden with American corn have been waiting for weeks before they could dock Thursday, according to Bloomberg ship tracking data . The Priscilla, with 71,400 tons, had been anchored off the port of Zhanjiang, in Guangdong province, since May 11, and the Krini, with 75,100 tons, had been waiting since May 16 near the port of Huangpu, in the same Province.

Grain purchases from China have increased this year as pig herds rebound from a devastating outbreak of African swine fever. Imports of corn have quadrupled in the first four months compared to the previous year , while those of sorghum increased fivefold in April compared to the previous year. Barley shipments have also increased. The delays can add to the rising costs of raw materials that the government is struggling to control.

The National Development and Reform Commission, which is the head of the country’s economic planning, recently highlighted the need to manage long and complex supply chains when it comes to stabilizing prices , and urged regional authorities to maintain supply of all type of products, from corn to pork and vegetables.

A Chinese buyer has claimed that his cargo of US corn arrived in February, but had to wait a month before unloading it at the Nantong port in eastern Jiangsu province, a delay that resulted in heavy delay charges.

Feed mills are not the only buyers. The government has been sending corn from Ukraine and the US to replenish depleted state reserves after years of sales. According to the US Department of Agriculture, China will import a record 26 million tons of corn this season and the next.

China is also the world’s largest soybean importer, but many buyers are port-based shredders with their own silos. In the case of corn, the buyers are mainly state feed mills and silos, many of which are located indoors.

The firm PundiX Labs confirmed that it will join the adoption of bitcoin as legal currency in El Salvador, which took place from a law passed on Tuesday, June 8, 2021. The technology company will provide 100 points of sale as a donation. so that merchants can accept payments with the cryptocurrency.

The announcement was first made known by Zac Cheah himself, founder and CEO of PundiX, through a post on Twitter. Subsequently, the person in charge of International Technological and Economic Affairs of El Salvador in the United States, Mónica Taher, replied the news through a publication on the same social network.

Monica Taher expressed on Twitter her happiness for the PundiX donation. Source: Monica taher / twitter.com
According to the official PundiX site, the points of sale (also known as POS in English, for the acronym of Point of Sale ) have a minimum cost of 499 dollars and have no monthly maintenance fee; there is also a cheaper model whose price starts from 270 dollars.

Therefore, the firm’s donation would be between USD 27,000 and USD 49,900, depending on the model provided to merchants. Regarding the method of distribution of the devices, details have not yet been provided. It has also not been reported when they will begin to be delivered.

As Cheah’s message expresses, the company’s intention is to contribute to the “quick and easy” adoption of bitcoin in El Salvador. For her part, the Salvadoran official thanked the company for its initiative, as it allows “empowering entrepreneurs” in the country.

Far from settling for this, the CEO of PundiX posted another message in the early hours of Wednesday, June 9. In this case, he promised to donate another 100 cryptocurrency collection devices “to the government of the next Central American or Latin American nation to join the revolution.”

The legalization of bitcoin as a currency in El Salvador was completed in the last hours of Tuesday, as reported by CriptoNoticias. The approval was by a qualified majority in the Congress of the nation; 62 of the 84 deputies voted in favor of the project , which was presented by President Nayib Bukele himself for express treatment . The president had released the news on Saturday, June 5, at the Bitcoin Conference 2021, held in Miami.

PundiX, a benchmark for bitcoin payments in Latin America
Zac Cheah has publicly stated his appreciation of these types of adoption initiatives. He makes it more than clear on his Twitter profile: for example, he retweeted a post by a user who said: “The #LeyBitcoin will make El Salvador a pioneer among bitcoin nations. It is a revolutionary act. We are fortunate to witness this historic moment and to be a part of it.

However, its arrival in the different countries of America was already planned since 2019, when it planned to expand to Argentina, Brazil and Colombia, in addition to Venezuela. Today, the company has a headquarters in São Paulo, Brazil, operates throughout Latin America and even added in 2020 the alternative of processing payments with PayPal , as reported by this medium.

Copper is a bellwether of the global economy. You’ll find this malleable metal everywhere – it’s in our wiring & plumbing, and our consumer electronics. When consumption rises, so does the price of copper.

So as our world emerges from the global pandemic, investing in copper makes sense. But you shouldn’t just choose any company. In this post, we’ll discuss four copper stocks that have captured our attention.

Jiangxi Copper (OTCMKTS:JIAXF)

China is where COVID-19 began. But thanks to their strict measures, they recovered very quickly. As you might expect, their economy has roared back to life. In Q1 2021, GDP shot up 18.3% YoY.

But what does this have to do with copper? As we mentioned above, copper is in many building materials and electronic consumer products. And with growth surging, demand for this mineral has been rising in lockstep.

On the Chinese mainland, there’s no company better positioned to profit than Jiangxi Copper, This firm is this country’s most prominent copper miner, producing 1.64 million tons of cathodes (sheets of pure copper) in 2020.

Back in January of that year, things looked gloomy. At that time, their OTC stock crashed to 0.24 per share as the COVID-19 outbreak peaked. However, as the country recovered, JIAXF rebounded to its present value of 2.17 per share.

But as good as their track record has been, it’s just the beginning. As the world recovers, they’ll increase their orders from China. And as they do, increasing economic activity will pull up copper demand right along with it. We like this stock.

Glencore (OTCMKTS:GLNCY)

If you’re going to adopt a strong copper position, why not go with the best? Swiss-based Glencore is one of the world’s largest producers of copper, digging out 1.26 million tons of ore in 2020. They are also well-diversified, with mines on five continents. And best of all, copper isn’t all they do. They also produce other minerals, like nickel, zinc, and lead, and even oil & gas.

With such a broad base of mineral/energy commodities in its portfolio, GLNCY is well-positioned to ride the post-COVID recovery wave. Already, it has fully recovered from the stock market crash of 2020. But they haven’t stopped there – over the past 15 months, GLNCY has gone from 2.37 to 9.32 per share.

However, the world is only starting to emerge from its economic slumber. As it does, demand for ALL commodities will spike. And Glencore will be there to supply them. While GLNCY is starting to get pricey for an OTC stock, it represents a well-established, well-diversified firm. We recommend buying a few GLNCY shares to rep the blue-chip section of your portfolio.

Taseko Mines Ltd (NYSEAMERICAN: TGB)

America may be the world’s wealthiest nation, but their neighbor to the north isn’t far behind. From sea to sea, Canada possesses mineral wealth that is the envy of the world. And that bounty includes copper – in 2019, its mines produced a half million tons of the shiny metal.

But sadly, the stock price of leading producers (like Teck Resources) are out of reach for many investors. Thankfully, it’s relatively easy to find junior copper miners that are a much better deal. For example, we love the value that Taseko Mines offers. This company owns Gibraltar Mine, an open-pit copper operation in British Columbia. Every year, they dig up 140 million pounds of copper ore, as well as 2.5 million pounds of molybdenum. That’s enough to make this operation the second-largest of its kind in Canada.

However, as of 2021, Gibraltar is the only mine in Taseko’s portfolio. This fact alone makes some investors hesitant to invest. But this situation is set to change soon, as TGB plans to break ground on three additional mines – Harmony, Prosperity, and Aley.

Since last year, many investors have piled into TGB, pushing its price from 0.22 to 2.44. And as the economy continues to improve and Taseko’s plans unfold, that number will likely go higher. Further, TGB is on the NYSE AMERICAN exchange. This stock exchange has more forgiving listing standards than the NYSE, but it still offers superior protection and liquidity compared to the OTC markets.

Turquoise Hill Resources Ltd (NYSE: TRQ

Never heard of Turquoise Hill Resources before? Neither have we, but you might have heard of its predecessor, Ivanhoe Mines. For decades, this Canadian mining major has had shovels in the ground everywhere from Australia to Myanmar, producing minerals like iron, gold… and copper.

Then in 2012, mining mega-corp Rio Tinto acquired them. They renamed their new acquisition Turquoise Hill Resources, leaving them to do what they did best. To this day, Turquoise continues to produce a wide range of minerals all over the world.

However, one project, one that’s been in the works for over 20 years, might be about to turn a corner. And if it does, it could change everything for this firm. In Mongolia, TRQ has been building out the infrastructure of an open-pit copper mine called Oyu Tolgoi. When it hits peak production, company representatives say the mine will produce 430,000 tons of copper – or about 3% of GLOBAL production – every single year.

However, as of June 2021, we feel that TRQ’s stock price hasn’t caught up to this reality. At its 2020 low, you could have bought this equity for less than 4.00 per share. Today, TRQ sits at 17.44 per share – pricey for penny investors, but it’s still less than half TRQ’s price six years ago.

If Oyu Tolgoi fulfills its promise, and copper spikes in the coming months (spoiler alert: it will), then we see TRQ as a solid pickup for your blue-chip portion of your portfolio.