Canadians back critical minerals push, but demand stronger enviro safeguards

View: Source Canada’s first Social Acceptability Barometer for the mining sector shows strong national support for developing critical minerals, but the public expects tighter environmental oversight, better consultation and more transparent governance. Released by Transfert Environnement et Société, in collaboration with Australian research firm Voconiq, the survey canvassed more than 4 800 Canadians across all provinces and territories. The findings come as the federal government …

Continue Reading

China’s Secretive Gold Purchases Signals a New Era for Bullion

View: Source Gold isn’t trading like a commodity anymore. It’s trading like a confession — the closest thing markets have to a whispered admission that the old reserve architecture is buckling under the weight of a new geopolitical cycle. And the FT just confirmed the part everyone suspected but couldn’t publicly say: China isn’t buying a little more gold than it reports …

Continue Reading

EU’s EIB to work with Australian government on critical raw materials

View: Source The EU’s European Investment Bank and the Australian government said in a joint statement on Monday they would deepen cooperation on critical raw materials, as Western powers scramble to cut their reliance on China. With the exception of Japan, Group of Seven countries and the EU are heavily or exclusively reliant on China for a range of materials from …

Continue Reading

How America fell behind in the rare-earth race—and how it hopes to come back

View: Source The United States has known for years that its economy runs on materials that it can’t control. The rare-earth metals that power F-35 fighter jets, electric vehicles, and iPhones mostly comes from one place: China. Now, after years of warnings, that dependence has turned from an abstract vulnerability into a central fault line in global trade. An agreement between President Donald Trump …

Continue Reading

Yttrium is Latest Rare Earth Concern as Global Supplies Fall

View: Source Traders report a ‘scramble’ for yttrium, used in chips and jet engines; prices have soared 4,400% this year and China has sent no yttrium to the US since April. Another rare earth crisis may be looming as global supplies of the element yttrium have sunk due to China’s export restrictions. The price of yttrium has shot up by 4,400% …

Continue Reading

China and Germany agree to seek closer commercial ties, end trade tensions

View: Source China’s Vice Premier He Lifeng and German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil agreed on Monday that the two countries should strengthen commercial ties and bring an end to months of trade tensions between the world’s second- and third-largest economies. Klingbeil met He in Beijing on the first visit to China by a minister from Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s government. Ties between …

Continue Reading

Canada’s Carney sends three new critical minerals projects to Major Projects Office

View: Source Three new critical minerals projects will advance to the recently created Major Projects Office (MPO), Prime Minister Mark Carney announced on Thursday, unveiling the second tranche of nation-building initiatives aimed at accelerating infrastructure and resource development across the country. The new referrals to the MPO  – a fast-track approvals body established under the Building Canada Act – include electricity infrastructure, liquefied natural gas (LNG) and three critical minerals projects. Earlier this month, as part of the federal Critical …

Continue Reading

China reports largest gold discovery in more than seven decades

View: Source China has announced the discovery of the largest gold deposit found in the country since 1949, with an estimated 1,444 tonnes of reserves in Liaoning province. The find, completed in just 15 months, comes as gold prices hit record highs. China’s Ministry of Natural Resources confirmed the discovery of the Dadonggou deposit on Friday. This is the largest single …

Continue Reading

PGM rally pushes SA’s mining output higher

View: Source September’s production up 1.2% from a year ago, with the sector in expansionary territory in the third quarter. SA’s mining production rose 1.2% in September compared with a year prior, outperforming consensus expectations and pushing the mining sector into expansionary territory in the third quarter. After a 5.1% gain in July and a flat reading in August, mining production …

Continue Reading

Gold Extends Rally as Economic Uncertainty and Central Bank Buying Lift Prices

View: Source Gold rises above $4,200 as weak US data and central bank buying bolster demand. Gold prices climbed on Thursday, extending a week-long rally as investors continued to hedge against uncertainty over the US economy, even after lawmakers moved to end the government shutdown. Spot gold was trading at $4,234.63 an ounce by 09:25 GMT. The yellow metal has seen …

Continue Reading