Chris Lau, Kapitall: Cliffs is cutting costs to keep up with falling ore prices, but is that enough to keep other mining stocks at bay?
Iron ore producer Cliffs Natural Resources (CLF) is up over $7 from the $20 lows seen in October. Cost cutting and better metal prices supported respectable quarterly results.
While a large debt load and China's economic slow down once prompted a bearish outlook for the raw materials provider, investors will want to pay attention as to whether Cliffs will continue to turn around its business, or whether its debt will make it easier for its major competitors to dig in to the company's market share.
As the chart below illustrates, Cliffs has had a noticeably robust month, even though raw materials have had a strong fall as a whole.
Click on the interactive chart to see data for these mining companies over time.
