“Over the last 12 months, the value of their reserves or the value of the gold in their reserves was five times the amount by which their reserves increased,” Thompson stated, emphasizing the significant shift in China’s gold holdings.
Thompson also highlighted the unique dynamics of the silver market. “We’ve seen year after year the volume of silver… being produced by the mines going down,” he explained.
Source – The Jerusalem Post
Spot gold fell 0.6% to $2,934.99 an ounce as of 09:55 a.m. (1455 GMT), after reaching $2,956.15 on Monday.
U.S. gold futures declined 0.5% to $2,948.60.
Trump said on Monday that tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports were “on time and on schedule”
“I still think that there’s enough uncertainty out there associated with tariffs (and) trade more generally… dips are going to continue to be viewed as buying opportunities,” said Peter Grant, vice president and senior metals strategist at Zaner Metals.
Spot silver shed 1.2% to $31.96 an ounce, platinum dropped 0.8% to $959.35 and palladium lost 0.8% to $932.50.
Source – Reuters
O’Shea highlights the potential impact of the Trump administration’s focus on domestic resource independence and the importance of refining capacity in the U.S. Highland Copper aims to reach a construction decision for its Copperwood asset by the end of 2025
Source – KITCO News / Video
Japan’s Mitsubishi Materials is considering scaling back copper concentrate processing at its Onahama Smelter & Refinery as falling treatment and processing charges (TC/RCs) weigh on earnings, it said on Monday.
Mitsubishi Materials said the worsening TC/RCs from miners were expected to further erode smelting margins.
“To maintain and improve profitability, we need to raise the ratio of recycled raw materials and accelerate the shift to feedstock less vulnerable to TC/RC fluctuations,” the company said in a statement.
It is now considering the possibility of a partial shutdown of production facilities and a reduction in copper concentrate processing at Onahama, after planned maintenance from October to November this year, Mitsubishi Materials said.
Source – Reuters
President Donald Trump on Wednesday said the White House was “very busy” crafting its trade policy as the clock ticks down on his self-imposed August 1 deadline. At that point, America could fundamentally reshape the way it does business around the world.
Trump signed executive actions on Wednesday imposing a 50% tariff on Brazil, a 50% tariff on certain copper products and suspending a tax perk for all countries that allowed cheap packages to fly into the US duty-free.
Trump said the agreement, if completed, would include developing Pakistan’s oil reserves with a yet-to-be-named oil company.
Source – CNN
A man has denied knowing gold he was trying to help someone sell came from a golden toilet stolen at Blenheim Palace.
Fred Doe admitted putting James Sheen, who has previously pleaded guilty to stealing the toilet, in touch with gold dealer Bora Guccuk but said he would “never in a million years” have dealt with him if he had known it was stolen.
Mr Jones, 39, from Oxford, Mr Doe, previously known as Frederick Sines, 36, from Windsor, and 41-year-old Mr Guccuk, from west London, have all pleaded not guilty to the charges they face.
Source – BBC
The trial is still ongoing. Wow! And the “jurors heard the toilet was most likely broken up and has never been recovered.” How will they prosecute these thieves? Will they get prosecuted? Do they have enough evidence? So many questions! I’ll keep this updated. – V.
Gold prices eased on Thursday, pressured by a firmer U.S. dollar, as investor worries eased temporarily after President Donald Trump said he did not plan to oust Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.
Spot gold was down 0.6% at $3,335.77 per ounce, as of 0958 GMT. U.S. gold futures fell 0.8% to $3,331.30.
“Yesterday, gold prices rose on the back of these rumours, which were unfounded. Since the rumours were quelled, prices have been falling,” said Nitesh Shah, commodities strategist at WisdomTree.
“I think if we come out of (the tariff deadline of) August 1 with much better trade deals, then that could be gold price-negative,” Shah said.
Spot silver fell 0.4% to $37.77 per ounce. Platinum lost 0.3% to $1,412.78 and palladium eased 0.6% to $1,223.03.
Source – Reuters