International mineral market 1300-WMRSM-OG

The 21st century is often referred to as the age of mineral resources.
This is due to the economic development of the world, the growth of the global population and the need to meet its needs. Scientific and technological development, on the one hand, requires the supply of new, previously unknown or unused mineral resources (REE, critical raw materials), on the other hand, makes it possible to extract and process mineral deposits which were previously considered useless, e.g. due to their low quality characteristics or insufficient content of a useful component. Additionally, environmental protection requirements create demand for raw materials used for remediation of chemical pollution. The modern world bases its development on international economic cooperation. The students are introduced to the cross-sectional issue of the role and significance of mineral resources in the modern world, evolution and changes that take place on the raw materials market as a result of the influence of various factors, including those exogenous to economies such as military conflicts.
Over the centuries, raw material markets have evolved from monopoly on raw materials in colonial and neo-colonial times to international economic cooperation. International commodity exchanges with global (LME, NYMEX-COMEX) or regional (Kala Lumpur Stock Exchange) reach a great role in the process of mineral raw materials trading. In addition to the stock exchanges, international commodity organizations (e.g. OPEC, CIPEC, IBA) play, or are trying to play, a major role in this area of minerals. World mineral prices are determined by the mineral exchanges responding to global economic, political and social signals. Price levels influence the development or stagnation of international mineral projects designed to replenish reserves in new proven mineral deposits. The strategy of mineral companies must be adapted to changes in the global market. This is related to the processes of internationalization, globalization and concentration that are taking place in the global raw materials market. In the course of the lecture the examples of global mineral companies will be discussed e.g., Biliton, Vale, Freeport. The knowledge of legal aspects of mineral exploration and extraction in individual countries has a significant impact on the development strategy of such companies. The basic differences in legal regulations in force, e.g. in the USA, Canada, Australia or South Africa, will be presented and discussed, including those pertaining to ownership rights to minerals.

Course coordinators

Alicja Olędzka

Type of course

general courses

Prerequisites (description)

Interests in the area of international economic relations, importance of mineral resources in the modern world. Knowledge from such lectures as Mineral Resources of the World Ocean, International Economic Relations may be useful here.

Learning outcomes

Students will gain knowledge and understanding of the processes of change in commodity markets, including those that directly affect them (e.g. changes in the price of gasoline, construction materials, etc.). He/she will be able to assess the directions of changes that will take place in the raw materials market, how they will affect the share prices of domestic and international raw materials companies, which will help him/her, for example, in purchasing shares of raw materials companies listed on stock exchanges.
Students will correctly analyze the causes and course of processes in the international commodity market, recognize the signals that may affect changes in this market, understand the consequences that these changes will cause in the domestic economy.

Assessment criteria

Active participation during lectures in a discussion (during each lecture 20 minutes will be devoted to the discussion and presentation of the views of the students on the discussed topic), preparing a 10-minute speech on a topic selected and agreed with the lecturer from the scope of the lecture.

Practical placement

none