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General Market Commentary
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General Energy
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General Market Commentary
Uranium Is in the Early Innings of a Rally
The uranium market has enjoyed a recent resurgence of initial public stock offerings, amid prospects for significant growth in demand from emerging markets.
“In terms of an investment thesis today, there is perhaps no better commodity than uranium with its bull market finally under way on tightening fundamentals,” says Scott Melbye, executive vice president of uranium mining-and-exploration firm Uranium Energy (ticker: UEC).
Year to date, weekly spot prices for uranium have climbed by nearly 23%, to $29.15 a pound, on Nov. 19, from $23.75 on Dec. 25, 2017, according to data from nuclear market analysis firm UxC.
One big driver: Emerging markets such as China and Saudi Arabia are expected to see stronger demand for uranium, a radioactive metal used to fuel nuclear reactors, as economic growth feeds the need to generate more electricity.
The world’s largest uranium producer, Kazakhstan-based Kazatomprom, launched an initial public offering on the London Stock Exchange on Nov. 13. Kazakh sovereign-wealth fund Samruk-Kazyna offered nearly 39 million shares, including global depositary receipts, representing 15% of Kazatomprom’s share capital, according to World Nuclear News.
That followed an IPO by Uranium Trading (UTC), a uranium investment and trading company, earlier this month. The launch “speaks to the strong and growing investor interest in the uranium space,” says Melbye.
Within the past year, uranium investment companies like Yellow Cake (YCA.UK), which successfully launched a $200 million IPO in London in the summer, and Uranium Participation (U.Canada), which trades on the Toronto Exchange, “have purchased a combined 10.5 million pounds [of uranium oxide], and sequestered that material away from the spot market,” Melbye says.
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