Bull market for metals signals a spate of mining deals

 This year the world's biggest mining convention could turn into a bonanza for dealmakers as eager mining companies look for ways to take advantage of a raging bull market for metals.

The event, organized by the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC), brings together nearly everyone who is anyone in the world of mining -- and it gives miners an unparalleled opportunity to talk shop and strike deals.

The dealmaking that PDAC could stir up this year may very well shift into overdrive, according to many of those who will attend, as the industry responds to a number of powerful, intersecting trends.

Prices of base metals are near record highs, while surging demand is only expected to accelerate, fueled by the building booms of China, India and Latin America. At the same time, major producers are expecting their production to contract unless replacements can be found.

Gold and silver miners are benefiting from one of the biggest sustained rallies in modern history, driven by inflation concerns, political turmoil, an uneven U.S. economic recovery and the European sovereign debt crisis.