Commodity Markets: Mining, Price Forecasting & Freight

A comprehensive vocabulary flashcard set defining key terminology across mining cycles, parameter metrics, shipping vessels, freight operations, and commodity market analysis.

Minerals

Solid, naturally occurring, inorganic substances in the earth's crust, with over 4,000 different types existing.

Metals

Elementary substances naturally occurring within minerals, which are crystalline when solid and refined from metallic ores.

Grade

Metal content of ore measured either as a percentage (for copper, zinc, nickel, lead, iron ore) or in grams/tonne (for gold, silver, and other precious metals).

Strip Ratio

The ratio of waste to ore in open pit mining, indicating the top layer of geological matter that must be removed to access the ore.

Metallurgy

The characteristics and chemical process involving mined ore, which often contains impurities that require removal and increase production costs.

Hydrometallurgy

A chemical method of refining copper mining products to achieve a 99.99% electro-won cathode.

Pyrometallurgy

A heat application process for refining copper concentrate (28-35% Cu) through matte, blister, and anode stages to a 99.99% cathode.

Mining

The process of extracting the rock containing metals and minerals (the ore body) from the earth's surface.

Concentrating

Applying energy to crush and grind rock to liberate mineral-containing rock from waste material to produce a concentrate, or washing coal to remove impurities.

Smelting and Refining

The process of applying energy to transform mineral concentrate into high-purity metal ready for industrial use.

Deadweight

A measurement in metric tons of a vessel's capacity by weight, including stores, equipment, cargo, water, and fuel.

Length Over All (LOA)

The total overall length of a ship.

Beam

The breadth or width of a ship.

Draft

The depth of a ship immersed in water.

Handysize

A bulk carrier vessel size category spanning 20,000 MT to 40,000 MT Deadweight.

Supramax / Ultramax

A bulk carrier vessel size category spanning 50,000 MT to 66,000 MT Deadweight.

Panamax / Kamsarmax

A bulk carrier vessel size category spanning 65,000 MT to 83,000 MT Deadweight.

Post-Panamax

A bulk carrier vessel size category spanning 85,000 MT to 120,000 MT Deadweight.

Capesize / Very Large Ore Carriers (VLOC)

A bulk carrier vessel size category spanning 120,000 MT to 400,000 MT Deadweight.

Charterer

The party responsible for negotiating and agreeing terms for freight contracts to secure vessel transport fitting specific cargo requirements.

Ship Broker

An intermediary between ship owners and charterers responsible for conducting negotiations and bringing counterparties to an agreement.

Ship Owner

The party that provides the vessel to carry cargo in return for a fee and retains responsibility for the vessel's care, maintenance, and operation.

Freight Operations

The post-fixture role responsible for managing the vessel's entire voyage from start to end in coordination with supply chain teams.

Force Majeure

A specifically worded contractual provision covering unforeseeable, uncontrollable events that disrupt contractual obligations.

Carbon Intensity Indicator (CII)

An IMO environmental rating scheme from A to E for ships, requiring corrective plans for vessels rated D for 3 consecutive years or E in a single year.