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Copper outputs up amid tariffs

BHP warned Thursday that a tariff war could slow the global economy and disrupt world trade, as the world’s biggest miner reported a slight decline in quarterly iron ore production and a 10% rise in copper output due to higher volumes from the giant Escondida mine in Chile.

“Despite the limited direct impact of tariffs on BHP, the implication of slower economic growth and a fragmented trading environment could be more significant,” CEO Mike Henry said. “China’s ability to shift toward a consumption-led economy and for trade flows to adapt to the new environment will be key to sustaining the global outlook.”

Source – Seeking Alpha

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    Chile in a “wait and see” mode

    Chile’s place at the low-end of U.S. tariffs announced last week could be favorable for the world’s leading copper-producing country if U.S. President Donald Trump decides to slap tariffs on copper, Chile Mining Minister Aurora Williams said on Wednesday.

    Chile is in “wait-and-see” mode until the investigation concludes, Williams told Reuters, but sees potential for a positive outcome even if the U.S. imposes tariffs on copper.

    “If we assume that Chile is within the lowest tariff range, the application of a potential 10% tariff is lower than the tariffs we have seen for other copper-producing countries and therefore also generates a better price position,” Williams said

    Source – Reuters

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    SPDR Gold Shares was rallying a sharp 1.6%

    “Gold bars are bought as a hedge” against tariff-related downside risks to stocks as well as U.S. and global economic growth, commodity analysts at Citigroup said in a research note on Friday after the U.S. stock market’s close. “In precious metals, we see gold moving higher very near term” to $3,000 per ounce, they wrote.

    “Gold has soared to another record high today amid a further ratcheting up in trade tensions,”  said Joe Maher, assistant economist at Capital Economics, in a note Monday. “Concerns that gold may get caught in the trade-war crossfire may also have led U.S. investors to buy up gold in order to get ahead of any future tariffs that might affect U.S. gold imports.”

    Source – Market Watch

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    President Trump wants to see Fort Knox gold for himself

    “We have found hundreds of billions of dollars of fraud so far. And we’ve just started. We’re actually going to Fort Knox to see if the gold is there, because maybe somebody stole the gold. Tons of gold,” Trump said.

    “I think the gold is probably there. It’s probably almost certainly there,” David Sacks, Trump’s crypto czar, told Fox News last week, though he still agreed with the president’s calls to investigate the matter.

    “Nobody thinks this is a crazy idea to go check because we don’t know,” Sacks added, arguing that “we cannot fully trust that our gold is still in Fort Knox” because of the “corruption” in Washington.

    Source – ABC News

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    Mining firm Freeport-McMoRan jumps 4%

    “American industries depend on copper, and it should be made in America, no exemptions, no exceptions,” Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said. “It’s time for copper to come home.”

    But while the tariffs could be positive for the domestic metals sector, implemented copper tariffs could amplify costs across several segments of the economy. Copper has a broad range of uses, and its cost is an input in the price of everything from electronics to construction materials.

    Trump’s tariff probe sparked a surge in copper futures, which rose 1.76% Wednesday morning.

    Source – Markets Insider

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    Barrick Mining maybe under provisional administration

    A Malian court has adjourned to Thursday a hearing on whether to put Barrick Mining’s Loulo-Gounkoto gold complex under provisional administration, the court’s registry office and one of the lawyers involved told Reuters on Monday.

    Granting the request would represent a major escalation of a dispute between the West African country and the Canadian miner after operations at the complex were suspended in January in a dispute over taxes and ownership.

    Barrick has said it can only resume operations when the Malian government removes restrictions on gold exports.

    The government has renegotiated agreements with other multinational miners under the new mining law. Four Barrick employees have been detained since November 2024 and an arrest warrant was issued for Chief Executive Mark Bristow in December 2024.

    Source – Reuters