Indonesia’s government may allow Freeport McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) to export ~1M tons of copper concentrate, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Bahlil Lahadalia said Friday.
Freeport Indonesia (FCX) has been seeking permission to export copper concentrate after it was forced to stop copper cathode production at its new smelter in Gresik after a fire broke out at its gas cleaning unit in October.
Source – Seeking Alpha
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent offered support for Jerome Powell amid regular attacks from President Donald Trump, saying he sees no reason for the Federal Reserve chair to step down. Trump has maintained his criticism of the Fed chief and stressed his belief that the central bank’s benchmark rate should be 3 percentage points lower.
Political interference and a potential attempt to oust of Powell before his term ends is throwing the Fed’s independence into question. That’s negative for the dollar, and is helping boost haven demand for gold.
“The USD is losing its store of value function” and bullion is exceptionally well-placed to benefit, TD Securities senior commodity strategist Dan Ghali said in a note.
Spot gold was up nearly 1% to $3,430.05 an ounce at 2:16 p.m. in New York. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.4%. Silver and palladium advanced while platinum slipped.
Source – Bloomberg
Australia-based Kaiser Reef has entered into a definitive agreement with Catalyst Metals to acquire the Henty gold mine and associated exploration tenements in north-western Tasmania in a deal valued at A$31.6m.
Under the deal, Kaiser will make an upfront payment of A$15m and issue A$16.6m in shares, offering Catalyst a 19.99% stake in the company.
Following the acquisition, Kaiser’s enterprise value will reach A$67m, encompassing three gold mines, including one under care and maintenance and two gold processing plants.
“Kaiser will continue to re-invest into Henty and build on what Catalyst has already achieved. We are very pleased to have Catalyst’s continued involvement and exposure to the upside at Henty, both as Kaiser’s major shareholder and through their board representation.”
Source – Yahoo! Finance
Silver gained as much as 1.2%, rising for a third day. A guage of the dollar hit the lowest in about three months, as the euro strengthened amid Germany’s plan to boost spending and loosen borrowing restrictions.
The “tidal wave” of silver risks pushing freely available silver in the London spot market below a critical threshold needed for the market to function, Daniel Ghali, a senior commodity strategist at TD Securities, recently wrote in a note.
Spot silver rose 0.9% to $32.262 an ounce as of 11:41 a.m. in London. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.4%. Gold and palladium were little changed, while platinum advanced.
Source – Mining.com
While silver does look extraordinarily resilient at the moment, the reality is that it may not be that easy to get to the $32.35 level.
Source – FXEMPIRE
They have been working flat out to do what the Bank describes as “digging out” gold bars for delivery to traders who’ve seized on a rare arbitrage opportunity thrown up by speculation that Donald Trump will impose tariffs on the precious metal, alongside a raft of other imported goods.
The Bank’s vault keepers are busier than they’ve been in years, logistics companies are working overtime, and refineries are booked out for months with orders to recast gold bars from London into a form that can be delivered into the US futures market.
“What’s happening in the London market is a short term logistical thing, but it’s having real consequences,” said John Reade, senior market strategist at the World Gold Council, the industry lobby group. “There’s not as much gold in London as normal, but again, there’s still lots there. And once it can get out from behind the Bank of England, then everything should calm down.”
Source – Bloomberg
Ghana has banned all foreigners from trading in its local gold market as part of efforts to boost national revenue and streamline the country’s mining sector.
It follows the enactment of a new law earlier this month that grants exclusive authority of gold mining to a new state body, the Ghana Gold Board
“All foreigners are hereby notified to exit the local gold trading market not later than 30th April, 2025,” said GoldBod spokesperson Prince Kwame Minkah in a statement.
However, foreigners are allowed to apply to buy or off-take gold directly from the GoldBod but can no longer operate within the local gold value chain.
“It sends a strong message to foreign actors – especially Chinese operatives – who have circumvented local laws for years,” Nana Asante Krobea, a mining governance consultant
Source – BBC
