Objective Capital Rare Earths, Speciality and Minor Metals Investment Summit
The Strategic Importance of Minor Metals as a Diversified Investment
18 March 2010
by Chris Eibl, Tiberius Asset Management
Similaire à Objective Capital Rare Earth and Minor Metals Investment Summit: The Strategic Importance of Minor Metals as a Diversified Investment - Chris Eibl
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Objective Capital Rare Earth and Minor Metals Investment Summit: The Strategic Importance of Minor Metals as a Diversified Investment - Chris Eibl
1. Investment Conferences
RARE EARTHS, SPECIALITY
& MINOR METALS
INVESTMENT SUMMIT
9.30 – 9.55
The Strategic Importance of Minor Metals
as a Diversified Investment
Chris Eibl – Managing Partner, Tiberius Asset Management
THE LONDON CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY ● THURSDAY, 18 MARCH 2010
www.ObjectiveCapitalConferences.com
2. Tiberius Group
Tiberius
Asset Management AG
Strategic Metals
March 2010
3. Agenda
I. Tiberius Group
II. Executive Summary
III. Investment Case
IV. Investment Universe
V. Challenge and Solutions
4. I. Tiberius Group
Introduction
Tiberius Group
A Swiss firm specialized in commodity management, with its headquarters in Zug as well as
offices in Geneva and Germany
Expertise in physical metals trading through subsidiaries
30 employees with wide-ranging experience in commodity trading, portfolio management
and research.
A model-supported, quantitative investment philosophy with a structured and transparent
investment process.
The firm’s core competence lies in the active management of long- only and long/short
portfolios.
Total assets currently under management by the Tiberius Group: 2 billion USD, of which
1.5 billion is invested in commodity futures.
Tiberius is regulated by FINMA, the Swiss Banking Commission
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5. Agenda
I. Tiberius Group
II. Executive Summary
III. Investment Case
IV. Investment Universe
V. Challenge and Solutions
6. II. Tiberius Group
Executive Summary
Executive Summary
Strategic Metals is a collective term for raw materials that already have or will have an
important impact in various fields of high technology development. This will include
communications technology, IT hardware technology, battery technology, defense technology
and various others. Strategic Metals include minor metals, rare earth, platinum group metals
and other raw materials.
These metals all share similar characteristics:
1. Deposits are found in geopolitical instable countries and access to them is difficult
2. None of these materials are being mined through primary sources
3. Importance in the end product is more important than price
4. Scarcity and low stock levels globally
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7. II. Tiberius Group
Core Message
Core Message to our Investors
The race for strategic metals has begun –
China, the US and Europe are trying to secure
access to these strategic raw materials through
physical stock pile purchases or securing
deposits. The goal of an innovative
commodity investment manager should be to
find suitable solutions for investors within the
financial industry.
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8. Agenda
I. Tiberius Group
II. Executive Summary
III. Investment Case
IV. Investment Universe
V. Challenge and Solutions
9. III. Tiberius Group
Investment Case
Geopolitical Aspect
Civil warfare and internal instability has hindered
infrastructure development, limiting material
extraction in deposit rich countries.
As finite supply markets, strategic metal prices have
been skewed to upside because of lack of investment
input and resource accessibility in areas of high
politically instability.
Geological studies suggest that the exponential
population growth may still outpace new supply as
underdeveloped nations become more sophisticated.
China has already gained a competitive advantage
through its Chinese Africa Development (CAD) fund;
the CAD mandate invests in African infrastructure in
exchange for resource supply chain control.
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10. III. Tiberius Group
Investment Case
Geopolitical Aspect
DRC While the Congo is known for a plethora of deposits and natural resources,
the two strategic metals of particular interest shown by China through its
loan and investment mechanisms have been Copper and Coltan. Civil war
and unrest make it difficult to sustain stable supply.
ZIMBABWE As another country that has been the recipient of financial assistance from
China, Zimbabwe is also rich in natural resources such as, but not limited
to, chromium ore , nickel, copper, iron ore, vanadium, lithium and tin. The
government of Mugabe however makes it difficult for European investors
to get active there.
TURKMENISTAN Although the country is slowly moving towards democracy , its
authoritarian government, post Soviet Union collapse, has
limited any foreign direct investments and, thus for, overall trade. As a
country rich with natural and energy resources, the lack of political
transparency and conformity to international standards have limited the
accessibility to Turkmenistan’s deposits.
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11. III. Tiberius Group
Investment Case
Geopolitical Aspect
• Export rates are already expensive as a
deterrent from producers to sell their
Duties & Taxes - Chinese export tariffs 2009 raw materials abroad
Commodity Export tariff • As the major global producer of many
minor metals, China itself has become
Aluminum ores and concentrates 15.00% the biggest consumer of their own
Chrome ores and concentrates 15.00% material
Cobalt ores and concentrates 15.00%
• There is further speculation that China
Ferro-Alloys 20.00% will increase tarriffs even higher as
Magnesium scraps 10.00% materials are becoming more scarce
Manganese ores and concentrates 15.00%
Molybdenum 15.00% • If this comes into realization, the
International consumer market will have
Silico-chrome 20.00%
to rely more on supplies outside China.
Silico-manganese 20.00%
Silico-tungsten 20.00% • China‘s conformity to WTO and
Tantalum scrap 10.00% international trade standards is heavily
Titanium ores and concentrates 10.00% dependent on its future relations with
Tungsten 5.00% the US
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12. III. Tiberius Group
Investment Case
Supply and Demand
The below grid shows global demand measured through economic
output relative to global production. If economic output continues
to increase at 3.8% annually, as in the past 20 years, then this ratio
will substantially increase for certain materials.
Source: Rohstoffe fuer Zukunftstechnolgien, 2009
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14. III. Tiberius Group
Investment Case
650%
• Tiberius MM Index Tiberius MM Performance Index vs GSCI/DJUBS (MoM)
Components:
550%
Bismuth
Cadmium 450%
Chromium
Cobalt
Indium 350%
Iridium Tiberius MM
Magnesium 250% S&P GSCI INDEX
Molybdenum
Ruthenium DJUBS INDEX
Titanium 150%
• Equally weighted
50%
• No Rebalancing
-50%
Tiberius MM Index is simply a performance tracker relative to major commodity future
indexes; it has clearly outperformed the others. However, this index is for indicative
purposes only as it does not take into consideration liquidity factors for sourcing material
along with rebalancing methodologies of the futures indexes.
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15. III. Tiberius Group
CASE STUDY
Cadmium is a market which has much
smaller capacity output from the supply
side than most metals. Therefore it is
subject to extreme price movements to
the upside and downside
2400%
COPPER
1900%
CADMIUM
1400%
When compared to Copper, the
best performing base metal, it’s 900%
easily seen how Cadmium has
outperformed copper since 2000. 400%
-100%
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16. III. Tiberius Group
CASE STUDY
• The Rhodium market will be fairly
balanced in the next 2 to 3 years.
• Any pick up in auto demand can
quickly put the market back into deficit
and, thus for, higher prices.
• As of November 2009, China
surpassed all other countries to
become the world’s largest auto
producer
• As a huge producer of gasoline
vehicles, China will need more
Rhodium to make catalytic converters
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17. III. Tiberius Group
CASE STUDY
Cobalt Consumption Applications:
Metallurgical Magnetics Chemicals Ceramics
Super Alloys • Alnico • Batteries • Glass Colors
Water Resistant • Rare Earths • Catalysts • Enamels
Coatings • Soft Magnetic • Adhesive • Pottery
Materials • Pigments, Colors • Chinaware
High Speed Steels
• Medicine
Prostethics
• U.S. imports up to 78% of domestic Production Sources • Struggle for available Cobalt between
Cobalt as environmental efforts have U.S. and China has caused supply
curbed domestic production squeeze in the past
• Nickel Industry
48%
• Leading global producer, Democratic • Copper supply scarcity can diminish
Republic of Congo (DRC) at around 40%, • Copper Industry newly refined Cobalt introduced into the
has been unable to meet market market
expectations because of infrastructure
37% & Others
underinvestment • Cobalt consumption is mainly generated
• Primary/Direct from aerospace, rechargeable battery,
• Political tension within DRC and 15% Operations hybrid-electric and gas-to-liquids
frequent labor strikes result in less industries
Cobalt exports
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18. Agenda
I. Tiberius Group
II. Executive Summary
III. Investment Case
IV. Investment Universe
V. Challenge and Solutions
19. IV. Investment Universe
Investment Universe
Characteristics and Categorization
• Strategic Metals are the elemental cousins of Base and Precious Metals, but with a usage
level equal to or greater than the latter within the industrial process.
• Minimal Global Production, usually less than 150,000 Metric Tons per annum
• Central in the production of many industrial goods because of their chemical properties
(ex: Cellular Phones, LED TV‘s, Cars)
• No primary production sources as Minor Metals are largely produced as by-products of
other minerals
• No exchange traded or listed products; trades via physical market only with no forward
curve - this can change as the LME is looking to introduce futures contracts on selected
metals. It has already launched Cobalt and Molybdenum contracts.
• Commonly applied as alloys, chemical mixtures to lower purity, influence color and/or add
durablitiy
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20. IV. Investment Universe
Investment Universe
Investment Universe
Minor Metals Rare Earth Elements Platinum Group Metals Other
Antimony Lanthanum Ruthenium Lithium
Bismuth Cerium Rhodium Niobium
Cadmium Praseodymium Palladium Uranium
Chrome Neodymium Platinum Zirconium
Cobalt Promethium Osmium Tantalum
Gallium Samarium Iridium
Germanium Europium
Indium Gadolinium
Magnesium Terbium
Manganese Dysprosium
Mercury Holmium Bold: strategic metals that are
Molybdenum Erbium Considered core investments
Rhenium Thulium
Selenium Ytterbium
Silicon Lutetium
Titanium
Tungsten
Vanadium
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21. IV. Investment Universe
Investment Universe
Investment Universe – investment limitations
• Portfolio holdings will include accessible material with a forecasted short supply bias or
signficant demand increase
• Prospective investments will be on radar until liquidity allows for market entry/exit
• Dynamic market conditions can change a metal from investable to non-investable or
vice versa
• Liquidity and counterparty trading risk is essential for an investment decision, therefore
adjustments of portfolio construction will be based upon these
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22. Agenda
I. Tiberius Group
II. Executive Summary
III. Investment Case
IV. Investment Universe
V. Challenge and Solutions
23. V. Challenge and Solutions
Challenge and Solutions
• Strategic Metals have an investment case which should be made accesible to strategic long
term investors
• It is the role of the investment managers to act with respect to the market characteristics
• Investment solutions need to be hybrid between physical and paper structures
• Investment strategies shall be determined for long term market participants
• Tiberius has found an investment solution via hybrid fund structure
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