Legendary mining entrepreneur and gold bug Rob McEwen has never made his prediction secret: he thinks gold will go to US$5,000 an ounce, and probably a lot higher.
But in the meantime, he thinks investors aren’t paying full attention to the fact that gold is on a pretty outstanding run right now. The issue, simply put, is currency.
“People have just been so blinded by the fact that the price is quoted in U.S. dollars,” the executive chairman of McEwen Mining Inc. said at a luncheon presentation.
He noted that gold isn’t far from its all-time highs in Canadian dollars and numerous other currencies. He thinks mining equities, including his own, should benefit as more investors recognize that reality.
“If you can’t make money mining gold in Canada at these prices, you’ve got problems,” he said.
McEwen also spoke about the longstanding trend in the industry of host governments demanding more and more from mining companies. He said industry player need to work together to push back against this practice or it won’t stop.
However, he noted that new Argentinian President Mauricio Macri, who has removed currency controls as well as export taxes on minerals, has been very positive for the mining sector. McEwen Mining has a 49 per cent stake in the San Jose mine in Argentina’s Santa Cruz province.
