The South African strike

Stiking South Africa Miners Set To "Bring The Mining Companies To Their Knees", Call For National Strike

The situation in South Africa, already very bad, is about to get much worse

Zero Hedge,

13 September, 2012

As if Bernanke promising to print, print, print until such time as the Fed's flawed policy brings unemployment lower, which by definition will not happen when the US is now suffering not from a structural unemployment "part-time new normal" problem, was not sufficient to send gold and other hard assets higher, today we get the double whammy announcement that the situation in South Africa, already very bad, is about to get much worse. Earlier today, South Africa's striking miners, already set on belligerent courtesy with their employers and authorities, prepare to go on general strike on Sunday, in effect shutting down all precious metal production in a world that is about to demand hard asset more than ever. "On Sunday, we are starting with a general strike here in Rustenburg," demonstration leader Mametlwe Sebei told several thousand workers at a soccer stadium in the heart of the platinum belt near Rustenburg, 100 km (60 miles) northwest of Johannesburg. The action was designed to "bring the mining companies to their knees",he said, to mild applause from the crowd, which was armed with sticks and machetes."

Apparently the weapons were merely for optical, jawboning purposes: "Despite the weapons, the strikers insisted their push for a sharp hike in wages was peaceful - even after the August 16 police shooting of 34 protesters at Lonmin's nearby Marikana platinum mine." It remains to be determined just how "peaceful" the corporate response will be if and when they realize that dreams of surging profit margins are long gone. Probably not much. But in the meantime, miner EPS will suffer even more. And, as always, the ultimate beneficiary will be the actual metals, not those who extract it, as the third largest producer of gold in the world is about to go offline indefinitely.

From Reuters:

"There should be no blood," one placard read.

The wave of labor unrest rocking Africa's biggest economy kicked off with a violent strike at rival Impala Platinum in January and has since spiraled beyond the control of the government and unions into a grass-roots rebellion by blacks who have seen little improvement in their lives since apartheid ended 18 years ago.

Most men at the soccer stadium said they worked for top producer Anglo American Platinum, commonly known as Amplats, which had to suspend operations its four Rustenburg mines on Wednesday after they were blockaded by chanting marchers.

They also insisted they would not return to work until top management - including Cynthia Carroll, chief executive of Amplats parent company Anglo American - came to listen to their gripes and introduced a basic pay hike to 12,500 rand ($1,500) a month, more than double their current salary.

Shares in Anglo American Platinum, fell as much 1.8 percent in early trade on top of a 4 percent decline the previous day. Platinum held steady near the 5-month high it hit following Wednesday's Amplats shut-downs.

We continue to expect the South African "example" to go airborne, and move east. If and when Indonesia, Peru, and or, heaven forbid, the world's largest producer of gold China, get a whiff of just how much leverage miners actually do have in the world, watch out.

South African miners call for general strike

A leader of South Africa's striking platinum miners has called for a general strike to "bring mining companies to their knees".

BBC,

13 September, 2012

The call came at a mass rally for the miners, who have been on strike for weeks to press for higher pay.

Mametlwe Sebei said the general strike would start in Rustenburg, the centre of platinum production, on Sunday.

The strikes have been marked by violent clashes, including the shooting of 34 miners by police.

A wildcat strike at a mine owned by the London-listed Lonmin on 16 August saw 10 people killed before the police started shooting.

Since then, mines have been closed by leading companies, including Anglo American, resulting in production suspensions and tens of thousands of miners unable to work.

At Thursday's meeting, protest leader Mametlwe Sebei told several thousand miners: "On Sunday, we are starting with a general strike here in Rustenburg."

His call echoed that of the firebrand politician Julius Malema, who called for a national strike when he addressed disgruntled soldiers in the Johannesburg area on Wednesday.

That led to the South African government placing its military on high alert, the first such move since democracy came to the country in 1994.

Political wrangling

The government is concerned that the miners' protests are being used as a focal point for opponents of South African President Jacob Zuma.

Mr Malema, who was expelled from the ruling ANC party, is viewed as trying to resuscitate his political career and force President Zuma from office at its national conference in December.

Joseph Mathunjwa, the leader of the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU), has called for Mr Zuma to take a lead in resolving the situation.

Mining accounts for about 20% of South Africa's national output and the country is home to 80% of known reserves of platinum.

The price of the element, which has a wide range of industrial and medical uses, has gained nearly 20% since the police shootings at Lonmin's Marikana mine.

Shares in both Anglo American and Lonmin