U.S. And China Strengthening, Gold To Average $1,700 In 2013: Freeport McMoran

A volatile year for the global economy that included a marked slowdown in China has taken a toll on global miners, causing substantiual stock drops over the past 12 months. That hasn?t stopped Freeport McMoran from delivering solid fourth quarter earnings on Monday, beating bottom-line estimates on better than expected copper sales and sensible cost control. Management noted improvement in the China and the U.S., and continued weakness in Europe. While gold sales were slightly disappointing this...