A gathering of prospectors and mine developers in Toronto began with an upbeat mood, despite the spreading coronavirus. By the time it ended, reality set in, with signs of financing drying up.
The Bloomberg Industrial Metals Subindex Total Return has tumbled more than 10% since mid-January as the virus outbreak spread globally, disrupting the global supply chain and dimming demand outlook for raw materials.
“It’s slowing everything down,” SilverCrest Metals president Christopher Ritchie said in an interview, referring to the outbreak. “It’s not going to clear up anytime soon — financing, marketing, moving projects forward — most people are just stuck, from a junior-mining perspective.”