MINING.COM Staff Writer

Canadian manufacturer's confidence is plunging, says Export Development Canada in a survey released today. EDC’s Trade Confidence Index (TCI), a semi-annual survey of Canadian exporters and investors, declined by an overall 12 per cent since the spring of 2011.

Large miners, such as Rio Tinto and BHP, are looking to enter the potash business, or expand existing operations, as they look for increased demand from developing nations such China, India and Brazil.

Bloomberg reports that Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) has released its 2012 forecast on commodities. The document predicts commodities may rally 15 percent in the next 12 months, foresees an “overweight” recommendation on raw materials and expects Brent crude to surge to highest level since 2008. In contrast, JPMorgan Chase & Co cut commodities to “underweight” last week, quoting policy failures in the U.S. and crisis-hit Europe.