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Ambrose Evans-Pritchard: Sanctions will hurt Europe more than Russia

Section: Daily Dispatches

Greater Russia Is Now a Full-Spectrum Commodity Superpower, Less Vulnerable to Sanctions than Europe Itself

By Ambrose Evans-Pritchard
The Telegraph, London
Friday, February 25, 2022

In a matter of hours, the world order has turned drastically less favourable for the western democracies.

Vladimir Putin’s seizure of Ukraine elevates Russia into a full-spectrum commodity superpower, adding critical market leverage over global grain supply to existing strategic depth in energy and metals. 

... Dispatch continues below ...


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Asante Gold Announces Significant Gold Intercepts
From Its Near-Mine Exploration Drilling at the Bibiani Gold Mine

Company Announcement
via Globe Newswire and Yahoo Finance
Wednesday, December 15, 2021

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Canada -- Asante Gold Corp. (CSE: ASE / FRANKFURT: 1A9/ U.S. OTC: ASGOF) announces significant gold intercepts from its ongoing near-mine exploration drill program at its Bibiani Gold Mine in Ghana.

Asante initiated the exploration program in late September 2021. This program includes extensive induced polarization and ground magnetic surveys across the entire lease, RC, and diamond drilling, plus a high-level structural geology review targeting near-mine areas with high potential for new discoveries. The program objective is to grow the resources to be included in our comprehensive mining plan being prepared for the second quarter of 2022, with plant startup scheduled for the third quarter of 2022.

The company is pleased to report early results from the Walsh Satellite pit:

-- WADD21-002: 18 meters @ 3.85 g/t Au from 141 meters, including 16 meters @ 4.22 g/t Au.

-- WADD21-005: 12 meters @ 4.41 g/t Au from 174 meters.

-- WADD21-004: 8 meters @ 4.8 g/t Au from 137 meters.

-- WADD21-007: 4 meters @ 7.49 g/t Au from 170 meters.

-- WADD21-010: 3 meters @ 5.17 g/t Au from 187 meters

-- WADD21-003: 3 meters @ 5.96 g/t Au from 140 meters; 3 meters @ 4.60 g/t Au from 160 meters.

The results confirm the extension and grade continuity of the mineralization beneath the current US$1,500 design shell. These recent assay results improve the existing deposit model and will support an update of the Walsh mineral resource estimate. We anticipate adding ounces to the existing resource. Follow-up drilling is continuing, focusing on deepening and extending the Walsh Pit to its economic limit. ...

... For the remainder of the announcement:

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/asante-gold-announces-significant-gold-145900306.html


We wake up to the sobering reality that Russia is too pivotal for the international trading system to punish in any meaningful way. It influences or determines everything from bread in the shops, to gas for Europe’s homes and power plants, to supply chains for aerospace and car plants, or soon will do if Kyiv falls.

Who knew that almost 90pc of Europe’s imports of rapeseed oil comes from Ukraine, or Spain's jamon iberica depends on grain feed from the black earth belt of the Ukrainian steppe?

Ukraine turns Putin’s neo-Tsarist empire into the Saudi Arabia of food, controlling 30pc of global wheat exports and 20pc of corn exports.

It is not just Brent crude oil that has spiked violently, hitting an eight-year high of $102. Aluminium smashed all records on Thursday. Chicago wheat futures have hit $9.32 a bushel, the highest since the hunger riots before the Arab Spring. 

Do not confuse this with inflation. Rocketing commodity prices are a transfer of wealth to exporters of raw materials. For Europeans at the sharp end, it acts like a tax, leaving less to spend elsewhere. It is deflationary for most of the economy. If it continues for long, we will slide into recession. 

So while there is brave and condign talk of crippling sanctions against Russia, it is the West’s pain threshold that is about to be tested. My presumption is that Fortress Russia will endure this contest of self-reliance more stoically than Europe’s skittish elites. ...

... For the remainder of the analysis:

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2022/02/24/greater-russia-now-full-spectrum-commodity-superpower-less-vulnerable/

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