The precious metals all soared in 2025, and while a continued monetary expansion and geopolitical risk could still drive gains especially for gold in 2026, a pullback in silver, platinum and palladium is possible after recent partly speculative surges.Read More

The AOCE and WB have moderate overall forecasts for the metals in 2025 inline with IMF forecasts for a decline in economic growth and inflation, although we see the probability of a stagflationary scenario as still reasonably high.Read More

The past year was a difficult one overall for the metals, with the main standouts to the upside being a geopolitical risk-driven gain in gold, a China-driven rise in iron ore and a surge in uranium on broadening global support for nuclear power (Figure 1). A jump in global interest rates to near two-decade highs saw recession fears persist all year, and while one still did not actually eru...Read More

This year the post-global health crisis boom was brought to an end by a surge in inflation to forty-year highs, a major rise in global interest rates in an attempt to curb the rising prices and surging geopolitical risk after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. While precious metals held up reasonably well as markets turned to them as a risk hedge, by Q2/22 the higher interest rates put an end t...Read More

Chile is the world leader in copper production, at 28.5% of the total in 2020, and this looks set to continue, with the country having the largest global reserves, at 23.0% of total. It is also the global leader for molybdenum, which is often found along with copper, and is a major lithium player, holding 51.1% of global reserves. Read More

Newfoundland has become a gold exploration hotspot over the past few years, with the sector seeing some of its strongest activity ever. While the province remains a small contributor to Canadian gold production, it has a substantial mineral industry well supported by the government, focused on iron ore, copper and nickel, and the surge in exploration suggests that gold output from the...Read More

Nevada is the core of the U.S. gold output, accounting for by far the majority, at 75.4% on average for the past year. The state looks set to remain a dominant player in U.S. gold, as it accounts for 49% of total U.S. reserves, with Alaska slightly ahead with 51% of reserves, but just 8.6% of current production. The U.S. accounts for 6.1% of global gold output, making Nevada one of the largest gol...Read More

The Golden Triangle in northwestern British Columbia has historically been a major site of Canadian gold production, beginning as early as the mid 1800s. There was a wave of production in the 1990s which cooled as the gold price declined, but larger scale production resumed in 2017, and the area has seen surging exploration interest over the past year, given that the region has some of the largest...Read More

In this report we outline the Quebec gold mining industry, including its major producers, and a survey of many of the junior miners focused on the province. Quebec accounts for 34% of Canadian gold production (second to Ontario, with 44%) and remains a major focus for both producers and junior miners.Read More

Red Lake has been one of the most prolific gold mining districts in Canada and the world, with exploration having started in the 1920s, and production, which began in the 1930s, continuing to the present day. The district is known for the high grade of its gold, its infrastructure, and strong institutional support, given the long history of mining in the area.Read More

The shares have muscled above their YTD breakeven markUnitedHealth Group Inc (NYSE:UNH) shares hit a year-to-date low near $208 on April 17, as concerns over potential policy changes sent the broader healthcare sector spiraling. The Dow stock has since recovered, last seen trading at $249.84 -- just a hair above its Dec. 31 close at $249.12.Another close above here would mark the equity's second s...Read More

Both equities sport attractively priced optionsIt's high time we check in on two commodity stocks that have struggled mightily the last 12 months. In fact, aluminum concern Alcoa Corp (NYSE:AA) and energy name Carrizo Oil & Gas Inc (NASDAQ:CRZO) have landedon Schaeffer's Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White's list of stocks with a -50% year-over-year return.At last check, Alcoa stock was down...Read More

Twitter call options are popular todayThe Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) is lower today, as negative trade headlines and a retail sector sell-off weigh. On the trade front, Wall Street is reacting to reports that the U.S. could place Huawei-like restrictions on a handful of Chinese video surveillance firms, including Hikvision. Meanwhile, there willbe the afternoon release of the Fed's minutes...Read More

When Signet jewelers' (NYSE: SIG) e-commerce subsidiary James Allen began offering man-made diamonds in May, the company added an additional search tab to the site: "Earth-created diamonds" or "Lab-created Diamonds." Up until this point, websites offering both products typically defaulted to natural diamonds or simply "diamonds" providing a further filter required to search for the man-made variet...Read More

Gold miners must focus on maximising returns and more mergers to attract investors seeking to diversify after years of under-investing in mines, Barrick Gold's chief executive said on Wednesday."The industry is in decline and we have put ourselves in a very a tight spot because we haven't invested in exploration and our future," said Mark Bristow, who took the helm in January at Barrick after its...Read More

Gold miners must focus on maximising returns and more mergers to attract investors seeking to diversify after years of under-investing in mines, Barrick Gold's chief executive said on Wednesday."The industry is in decline and we have put ourselves in a very a tight spot because we haven't invested in exploration and our future," said Mark Bristow, who took the helm in January at Barrick after its...Read More

British Steel, the country's second largest steel producer, has collapsed and put 25,000 jobs at risk after failing to secure emergency government funding, Britain's Official Receiver said on Wednesday.The High Court ordered the compulsory liquidation of the company, although staff will remain employed for now as the liquidator oversees the operation of the main site in Scunthorpe, northern Englan...Read More

Zimbabwe's mining sector was subdued in the first quarter due to a severe dollar crunch that affected production, with gold the most hit, the mining chamber said, adding some bullion miners had experienced recently introduced power cuts.Mining generates most of the export earnings for the southern African nation, which faces a severe shortage of dollars that has led to a scarcity of fuel and medic...Read More

Puts are trading at more than 41 times the expected intraday ratePure Storage Inc (NYSE:PSTG) stock is down 21% at $16.28 -- sinking back toward its late-December lows, and pacing toward its worst day ever. Last night, the data storage name reported a wider-than-anticipated adjusted first-quarter loss of 11 cents per share on $326.7 million in revenue, less than analysts were expecting. PSTG also...Read More

While iron ore prices have surged to a five-year high above $100 a tonne, not all producers of the steel-making ingredient are sharing in the bounty.It's no surprise that Brazil's Vale is struggling. After all, it is largely the reason for iron ore's stellar run, with the spot price of 62% ore delivered to China, as assessed by Argus Media, ending at $100.65 a tonne on Tuesday, up 38.1% this year....Read More

Target stock closed just shy of a key trendline yesterdayDespite the retail sector seeing earnings-related weakness this week, shares of Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) have already gapped 7% higher, to trade at $76.68. Target this morning reported a first-quarter earnings and same-store sales beat, citing same-day fulfillment services for its digital strength especially. The company also shared pl...Read More

A federal judge ruled Qualcomm's practices as a violation of antitrust lawThis morning, U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh in San Jose, California, ruled that Qualcomm, Inc. (NASDAQ:QCOM) has violated antitrust law. More specifically, Koh accused the Apple supplier of marginalizing competition for cellphone chips by exacting steep licensing fees. In her own words, "Qualcomm's licensing practices have s...Read More

The company reported weakening sales growth for its first-quarter The shares of Urban Outfitters, Inc. (NASDAQ:URBN) are slipping today, after the retailer reported slower growth for its first quarter. Specifically, the firm posted per-share earnings that beat analysts' estimates, but came in 7 cents lower than last year's results, as well as weakening sales and shrinking gross margins -- mostly d...Read More

The Philippines has passed a law exempting gold sales by small-scale miners to the central bank from excise and income taxes to beef up the country's foreign exchange reserves and prevent smuggling, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said on Wednesday.Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte signed the law into effect on March 29, the central bank said in a statement.By law, all gold produced by small mi...Read More

Weekly options traders targeted HD's post-earnings actionLowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) is set for a large sell-off after the company reported quarterly earnings that were below analysts' expectations. On top of that, the retailer lowered its full-year profit forecast. Shortly before the open, LOW shares were down 8.5%, which would put them at $101.68, back below the 200-day moving average. The...Read More

China must prepare for difficult times as the international situation is increasingly complex, President Xi Jinping said in comments carried by state media on Wednesday, as the country faces increased tariffs in a bitter trade war with Washington.The two countries are locked in tit-for-tat tariff increases on each other's imports, after talks broke down to resolve their dispute.Acrimony has intens...Read More

The FOMC meeting minutes are set for release later todayFutures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) are trading below fair value, with a busy day already taking off for investors. Retail stocks are weighing heavy after a slew of disappointing earnings reports, while chip stock Qualcomm (QCOM) is down 10% in electronic trading, after U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh ruled the tech firm used antic...Read More

Aurubis, Europe's biggest copper smelter, said on Wednesday it had agreed to buy Belgian-Spanish recycling company Metallo Group for 380 million euros ($424 million) as part of an acquisition-led shift into other metals."Due to megatrends such as smart homes, e-mobility, digitalisation and renewable energies, both the quantity and the complexity of secondary raw materials will increase significant...Read More

Aurubis, Europe's biggest copper smelter, said on Wednesday it had agreed to buy Belgian-Spanish recycling company Metallo Group for 380 million euros ($424 million) as part of an acquisition-led shift into other metals."Due to megatrends such as smart homes, e-mobility, digitalisation and renewable energies, both the quantity and the complexity of secondary raw materials will increase significant...Read More

Chinese miner MMG Ltd's operations at its Las Bambas mine, one of Peru's largest copper producers, have not been disrupted and talks with an indigenous Peruvian community are ongoing, the miner said on Wednesday.The Fuerabamba community had imposed a new road blockade on the mine after talks with the company over compensation broke down, Americo Contreras, a representative of the public ombudsman...Read More