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The S&P/TSX Venture Composite Index (INDEXTSI:JX) increased 1.85 percent on the week to close at 614.26 on Friday (November 29). Meanwhile, the S&P/TSX Composite Index (INDEXTSI:OSPTX) was up 0.75 percent to 25,648.00 and the CSE Composite Index (CSE:CSECOMP) rose 2.49 percent to 141.47.

Statistics Canada released its third-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) data on Friday (November 29). The numbers show a small increase in real GDP of 0.3 percent during the three months ending in September.

On the surface, the increase seems positive, but examining the numbers reveals some cause for concern: per capita GDP actually shrank by 0.4 percent, the sixth consecutive quarterly decline. Additionally, real GDP growth was down from the 0.5 percent increase recorded in the prior two quarters of 2024.

StatsCan also released the more granular September GDP data by industry on Friday. The data for the resource sector indicated a month-over-month contraction of 1.4 percent, the third consecutive decline and the largest one since January.

The oil and gas extraction sector fell by 1.8 percent, attributed to lower output, with oil sands extraction dropping by a significant 2.3 percent. Meanwhile, mining and quarrying increased 0.1 percent, with coal mining gaining 8.7 percent and non-metallic mineral mining edging up 1.5 percent. However, these gains were offset by a 1.6 percent decline in the metal ore mining subsector.

South of the border, the US Bureau of Economic Analysis released figures for October’s personal consumption expenditures index (PCE) on Wednesday (November 27). The data showed that while the PCE remained flat on a monthly basis at 0.2 percent, it nudged up on a yearly basis to 2.3 percent compared to the 2.1 percent registered in September. Additionally, the more volatile core PCE less food and energy also nudged up 2.8 percent from the 2.7 percent increase the month before, indicating some stickiness in inflation.

The PCE is a favored indicator by the US Federal Reserve and its decision-making committee. With yearly PCE up, most analysts predict a 25 basis point cut from the central bank at its next meeting in December, but some are speculating that the Fed may pause its cuts in the new year due to the incoming administration.

On Monday, Donald Trump said he was considering imposing 25 percent tariffs on all goods entering the US from Canada and Mexico and 35 percent on goods from China. If implemented, this move could raise prices on a broad category of goods, triggering new inflationary pressure.

The price of gold lost 2.4 percent this week to US$2,650.33 per ounce on Friday at 4:00 p.m. EST, while silver sank 2.34 percent to US$30.60. Copper was unchanged, ending the week at US$4.14 per pound on the COMEX. More broadly, the S&P GSCI (INDEXSP:SPGSCI) was down 1.4 percent to close the week at 536.20.

While metals hit a road bump, equity markets posted gains this week. The S&P 500 (INDEXSP:INX) moved up 1.48 percent to end Friday at 6,032.39, the Nasdaq-100 (INDEXNASDAQ:NDX) gained 0.93 percent to 20,930.37 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:.DJI) finished the week up 2.37 percent to 44,910.66.

Find out how the five best-performing Canadian mining stocks performed against that backdrop.

Data for this article was retrieved at 3:30 p.m. EST on November 29, 2024, using TradingView’s stock screener. Only companies trading on the TSX, TSXV and CSE with market capitalizations greater than C$10 million are included. Companies within the non-energy minerals and energy minerals sectors were considered.

1. Orosur Mining (TSXV:OMI)

Company Profile

Weekly gain: 77.78 percent
Market cap: C$16.49 million
Share price: C$0.08

Orosur Mining is an exploration company focused on the development of early to advanced-stage assets in South America.

Its flagship Anzá gold project in Colombia was a 49/51 joint venture with Minera Monte Aguila (MMA), a corporation owned equally by Newmont (TSX:NGT,NYSE:NEM) and Agnico Eagle Mines (TSX:AEM,NYSE:AEM).

Exploration has revealed multiple gold deposits at the site, which is located 50 kilometers west of Medellin and sits along Colombia’s primary gold belt.

Orosur also owns several early-stage projects, the El Pantano gold-silver project in Argentina, the Lithium West project in Nigeria and the Ariquemes project in Brazil, which is prospective for tin, niobium and rare earths.

Shares in Orosur jumped significantly this week following its announcement on Thursday (November 28) that it had completed its takeover of MMA. The acquisition gives Orosur 100 percent indirect ownership of the Anzá gold project.

Under the terms of the agreement previously announced on September 9, Newmont and Agnico will each receive a 0.75 percent net smelter royalty plus a fixed royalty of US$37.5 per ounce of gold or gold equivalent of the first 200,000 ounces produced.

Additionally, the company said it completed the first three drill holes of its drill program, announced on November 21 at the site’s Pepas prospect, and samples were being sent to Medellin for testing.

2. Mkango Resources (TSXV:MKA)

Company Profile

Weekly gain: 66.67 percent
Market cap: C$51.63 million
Share price: C$0.15

Mkango Resources is a rare earths exploration and development company focused on the advancement of rare earths mining and recycling projects.

Mkango shares surged this week following a news release on Monday (November 25) stating that a feasibility study focused on its HyProMag USA project demonstrated HyProMag’s ability to establish domestic recycling or rare earth magnets for the US market.

In the announcement, Mkango reported that the plant, which would be located in Dallas Fort Worth, Texas, would have an after-tax net present value of US$262 million and an internal rate of return of 23 percent based on current market prices.

The company is projecting a 750 metric ton per year output of recycled sintered neodymium magnets and a 291 metric ton per year output of associated products over a 40-year operating life.

HyProMag is owned by Maginito, in which Mkango holds a 79.4 percent stake. The remaining 20.6 percent interest is held by CoTec Holdings (TSXV:CTH,OTCQB:CTHCF).

Additionally, the company released its Q3 results on Friday. In the release the company indicated it has a strong cash position with US$2 million at the end of September. It also said it had completed a strategic review for its Songwe Hill rare earth project in Malawi and was advancing toward commercial production at its recycling and manufacturing projects in the UK, Germany and USA.

3. CopperCorp Resources (TSXV:CPER)

Company Profile

Weekly gain: 51.5percent
Market cap: C$14.19 million
Share price: C$0.245

CopperCorp Resources is an exploration and development company working to advance projects in Western Tasmania.

Its primary work over the past several months has been exploration of the 171 square kilometer Razorback prospect. Razorback hosted a historic mining operation and is home to mineralized deposits of copper, gold and rare earth elements.

The company has identified three high-priority target zones: Jukes, Hyde and Darwin.

The share price of CopperCorp climbed this week following an announcement on Monday (November 18) in which the company reported that it encountered broad zones of visible copper from the Jukes zone.

The company is currently awaiting assay results but said it was encouraged by the results, which include 24.4 meters of visual copper sulphide from 400 meters downhole and 88.7 meters of visual copper sulphide from 463.3 meters downhole. This comes after CopperCorp reported 0.35 percent copper and 0.19 g/t gold over 132 meters from an adjacent hole on October 15.

4. Jervois Global (TSXV:JRV)

Company Profile

Weekly gain: 50 percent
Market cap: C$27.09 million
Share price: C$0.0.015

Jervois Global is working to advance a global portfolio of nickel and cobalt projects. It owns the Idaho Cobalt Operations in the US, at which it suspended mine construction in 2023 due to low cobalt prices.

According to Jervois, the Idaho Cobalt Operations host the largest US cobalt resource. A 2020 feasibility study shows that they have a measured and indicated resource of 50.1 million pounds of cobalt from 5.24 million MT grading 0.44 percent, with inferred values of 12 million pounds of cobalt from 1.57 million MT grading 0.35 percent.

The company announced in June 2023 that it had entered into a US$15 million agreement through the US Department of Defense’s Defense Production Act for exploration activities at its property.

In an announcement from the project on July 31, Jervois reported that extensional drilling at the Idaho Cobalt Operations had shown positive resource growth potential, with cobalt, gold and copper mineralization at depth. In the announcement, the company provides a highlighted result of 1.1 percent cobalt, 1.18 percent gold and 0.69 g/t gold over 1.8 meters.

Most recently, Jervois announced on Tuesday that it had secured an additional US$24.5 million in working capital through an increase to a US$7.5 million delayed draw term loan it received earlier in the year.

The increase raises the limit to a US$32 million of which the company has access to US$8 million to be used before December 14, with an additional US$16.4 million available after that, subject to certain milestones regarding the potential recapitalization of Jervois’ balance sheet.

5. Baru Gold (TSXV:BARU)

Company Profile

Weekly gain: 44.44 percent
Market cap: C$19.87 million
Share price: C$0.065

Baru Gold is a development company working to advance its Sangihe gold project in Indonesia.

The company holds a 70 percent stake in the 42,000 hectare project, with the remaining 30 percent interest being held by three Indonesian-based companies.

A mineral resource estimate contained in a 2017 technical report demonstrates an indicated resource of 114,700 ounces of gold and 1.97 million ounces of silver from 3.16 million metric tons of ore with grades of 1.13 grams per metric ton (g/t) gold and 19.4 g/t silver. The project also hosts an inferred resource of 105,000 ounces of gold and 1.06 million ounces of silver.

Shares in Baru gained in recent weeks following a series of announcements.

The first came on November 19 when the company announced it had signed a letter of intent with Indonesian company PT Arsari Tambang, which will become a strategic equity partner and investor with a 10 percent stake in Baru Gold subsidiary PT Tambang Mas Sangihe.

The initial 10 percent stake is being purchased from one of Baru’s private partners, meaning it will not affect Baru’s interest in its Sangihe project. However, PT Arsari will also be granted a five-year option for an additional 15 percent stake in the company; if exercised, Baru’s interest will lower from 70 to 59.5 percent.

Its next announcement came on November 21 when Baru Gold announced it had retained the services of a specialist advisory firm to lead fundraising operations. The move comes after Baru received several unsolicited inquiries from investors looking to invest in the Indonesian gold sector, including from companies looking for diversification opportunities.

Baru’s most recent release came on Tuesday (November 26) when it announced a non-brokered private placement for C$300,000 for 7.5 million shares at C$0.04 per unit. The financing is expected to close on or before December 13, with proceeds being used for year-end audit fees and land taxes.

FAQs for Canadian mining stocks

What is the difference between the TSX and TSXV?

The TSX, or Toronto Stock Exchange, is used by senior companies with larger market caps, and the TSXV, or TSX Venture Exchange, is used by smaller-cap companies. Companies listed on the TSXV can graduate to the senior exchange.

How many companies are listed on the TSXV?

As of June 2024, there were 1,630 companies listed on the TSXV, 925 of which were mining companies. Comparatively, the TSX was home to 1,806 companies, with 188 of those being mining companies.

Together the TSX and TSXV host around 40 percent of the world’s public mining companies.

How much does it cost to list on the TSXV?

There are a variety of different fees that companies must pay to list on the TSXV, and according to the exchange, they can vary based on the transaction’s nature and complexity. The listing fee alone will most likely cost between C$10,000 to C$70,000. Accounting and auditing fees could rack up between C$25,000 and C$100,000, while legal fees are expected to be over C$75,000 and an underwriters’ commission may hit up to 12 percent.

The exchange lists a handful of other fees and expenses companies can expect, including but not limited to security commission and transfer agency fees, investor relations costs and director and officer liability insurance.

These are all just for the initial listing, of course. There are ongoing expenses once companies are trading, such as sustaining fees and additional listing fees, plus the costs associated with filing regular reports.

How do you trade on the TSXV?

Investors can trade on the TSXV the way they would trade stocks on any exchange. This means they can use a stock broker or an individual investment account to buy and sell shares of TSXV-listed companies during the exchange’s trading hours.

Article by Dean Belder; FAQs by Lauren Kelly.

Securities Disclosure: I, Dean Belder, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

Securities Disclosure: I, Lauren Kelly, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

Ether outperformed this week as Bitcoin’s ascent paused around US$98,000.

Meanwhile, Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) became the latest of the Big Tech firms to come under scrutiny by the US Federal Trade Commission, and the Biden administration finalized its milestone deal with Intel (NASDAQ:INTC).

1. Bitcoin pulls back as Ether outperforms

Bitcoin pulled back at the start of the week following a rally toward US$100,000 last Friday (November 22). After setting a new all-time high of US$99,645, the cryptocurrency struggled to stay above US$98,000 over the weekend, eventually falling as low as US$92,058 on Monday evening. Bitcoin declined even further to US$90,911 as the markets wrapped on Tuesday, marking its lowest valuation of the week.

On Wednesday, following Fox News reports that the Trump administration would move to hand more power to crypto regulation to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Bitcoin rallied to an intraday high of US$97,360. Investor confidence also rose due to weekly inflation numbers that suggested a resilient economy and a strengthening job market, both of which typically bolster risk appetite. As markets wrapped, Bitcoin was ahead by over 6.5 percent in 24 hours.

It traded sideways on Thursday as US markets celebrated Thanksgiving, and started Friday strong with a brief surge to US$98,680 in early trading before pulling back and wrapping the day around US$97,500. As of 6:00 p.m. EST Friday, Bitcoin was down 1.9 percent for the week, trading at US$97,485.

Meanwhile, Ether showed signs of a resurgence, climbing to over US$3,500 for the first time since June on Monday. While it quickly pulled back to a weekly low of around US$3,280 on Tuesday afternoon, Ether climbed steadily Wednesday to hit a weekly high of US$3,666 as Asia’s markets opened.

Block Scholes and Bybit Analytics released a report on Thursday observing a US$8.9 billion surge in Ether open interest, estimating its price could top US$4,000 before Donald Trump takes office on January 20.

Ether traded in the range of US$3,550 and US$3,650 for the remainder of the week. As of 6:00 p.m. EST Friday, it was up 8.9 percent for the week, trading for around US$3,590.

Ether price chart. November 23, 2024, to November 29, 2024.

Chart courtesy of CoinGecko.

2. Dell, CrowdStrike fall following Q3 reports

Dell (NYSE:DELL) and Crowdstrike (NASDAQ:CRWD) are down 10.94 percent and 3.81 percent, respectively, for the week after both companies delivered quarterly reports that left shareholders dissatisfied.

Shares of Dell fell by over 12 percent on Wednesday morning after the company’s Q3 2025 results, released after the closing bell on Tuesday afternoon, revealed declining revenue for its PC business. Dell’s Client Solutions Group revenue declined by 1 percent year-over-year in Q3 to US$12.1 billion, despite the increase in demand for PCs equipped with AI anticipated by analysts.

“The PC refresh cycle is pushing into next year,” the company’s CFO Yvonne McGill said on a call with analysts after the results were released.

Meanwhile, Infrastructure Solutions Group revenue rose at an annual rate of 34 percent to US$11.4 billion. Total revenue grew 10 percent to US$24.4 billion, missing the average analyst estimate of US$24.6 billion. Adjusted earnings were US$2.15 per share, above with the average estimate of US$2.06.

Additionally, Dell’s Q4 2025 revenue outlook of US$24.5 billion fell short of analyst expectations of US$25.57 billion, leaving shareholders unimpressed despite some positive data points.

Shares of Crowdstrike opened 1.6 percent lower and fell by over 3 percent in early trading on Wednesday after a lackluster earnings report for Q3 2025.

CrowdStrike’s CFO, Burt Podber, emphasized the company’s strong quarterly performance. During an earnings call, he highlighted a growing sales pipeline and expressed optimism about finishing the year with momentum “despite expected headwinds from the July 19 incident,” referring to the global outage that temporarily crippled the cybersecurity defenses of countless organizations worldwide.

The event could explain the company’s adjusted earnings per share forecast to a range of US$0.84 to US$0.86 for Q4, slightly below the analyst expectation of US$0.87. The company’s total operating expense increased nearly 40 percent compared to the same period last year.

On a more upbeat note, CrowdStrike’s Q3 sales surpassed predictions, reaching US$1.01 billion, and its adjusted profit per share of US$0.93 exceeded estimates of US$0.81 per share.

Additionally, CrowdStrike increased its full fiscal year revenue forecast to between US$3.92 billion and US$3.93 billion, higher than the anticipated US$3.9 billion.

Dell and CrowdStrike’s share prices fell following their Q3 earnings reports.

Chart courtesy of Google Finance.

3. Microsoft latest to be investigated by FTC, Google faces lawsuit in Canada

The US Federal Trade Commission launched an antitrust investigation into Microsoft on Wednesday. According to sources for Bloomberg, who first reported the news, the FTC has been interviewing business partners and competitors for over a year, and has requested the company turn over information regarding all aspects of Microsoft’s business in a document that’s “hundreds of pages long.”

Sources familiar with the matter say that the ongoing investigation is heavily focused on Microsoft’s practice of bundling its popular office productivity and security software with its cloud products.

Microsoft opened 0.71 percent lower on Friday morning following the news but recovered by the end of the shortened trading day. Its stock is up 2.93 percent for the week.

FTC regulators will reportedly meet with Microsoft executives next week. Neither organization has issued a formal comment on the situation.

This is the fifth investigation launched by FTC Chair Lina Khan in recent years, and likely one of the last before she steps down in January. President-elect Donald Trump has not yet named Khan’s successor.

Meanwhile, Canada’s Competition Bureau announced it was suing Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL) for anti-competitive practices in the online advertising market, adding to the company’s mounting list of legal problems.

“The Competition Bureau conducted an extensive investigation that found that Google has abused its dominant position in online advertising in Canada by engaging in conduct that locks market participants into using its own ad tech tools, excluding competitors, and distorting the competitive process,” Matthew Boswell, Commissioner of Competition, said in the press release. “Google’s conduct has prevented rivals from being able to compete on the merits of what they have to offer, to the detriment of Canadian advertisers, publishers and consumers.”

4. Biden Administration finalizes US$7.9 billion CHIPS funding for Intel

The US Biden Administration has finalized its deal with Intel for nearly US$7.9 billion in federal grants for chip manufacturing in Arizona, Ohio, Oregon and New Mexico. This amount, slightly less than the initially proposed award of US$8.5 billion, will be used to boost chip manufacturing in these locations.

“The award will directly support Intel’s expected US investment of nearly US$90 billion by the end of the decade, which is part of the company’s overall US$100+ billion expansion plan,” President Joe Biden said in a statement.

The company will receive at least US$1 billion this year based on milestones it has already reached and can begin receiving additional funds as it hits negotiated benchmarks on projects.

Bloomberg reported that government officials said the reduction in the grant wasn’t a reflection of the challenges the company’s chip business has faced this year, but instead is due to a US$3 billion grant the company is eligible for to make chips for the military. Due to a change in the financing for the military grant, some of the funds were instead taken from the CHIPS Act grant.

Although the initial deal included provisions for US$11 billion in loans, Intel opted not to utilize this option. Bloomberg columnist Mackenzie Hawkins noted that makes it the third major company to turn down government loans provided by Biden’s US$75 billion in loans available through the CHIPS Act.

Shares of Intel fell by nearly 4.5 percent on Tuesday before the markets closed.

5. California proposes renewed EV rebates excluding Tesla

California Governor Gavin Newsom shared plans to create a new version of the state’s Clean Vehicle Rebate Project (CVRP) and offer state rebates for electric vehicles (EVs) if President-elect Donald Trump follows through on campaign promises and eliminates the Biden-era federal EV tax credit.

The CVRP was a state program funded through California’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund that offered rebates to residents who purchased or leased eligible new zero-emission vehicles. It ran from 2010 until it was closed on November 8, 2023, after funding was exhausted.

Governor Newsom’s office told Bloomberg on Monday that the current plan included market share proposals that could exclude models made by Tesla, but reiterated that the details of the proposal would first need to pass through the regular legislative channels.

“It’s about creating the market conditions for more of these car makers to take root,” the governor’s office told Bloomberg.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) CEO and Trump’s pick as head of the newly-announced Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, Elon Musk was quick to fire back, posting his thoughts on X: “Even though Tesla is the only company that manufactures their EVs in California! This is insane.”

Despite the bump in the road — Tesla closed down over 6 percent on Monday — the company ended the week slightly ahead by 1.26 percent.

Securities Disclosure: I, Meagen Seatter, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

The opening of a Starbucks near South Korea’s Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) highlights the intersection of global commerce and geopolitics, showcasing the brand’s ability to establish itself even in politically sensitive locations. Positioned in an observatory in Gimpo, just 1.4 km from North Korea, the café provides patrons with a rare view of the reclusive state while enjoying the familiarity of a latte. This unique location is expected to attract both domestic and international visitors, capitalizing on the DMZ’s status as an unlikely tourist destination.

While Starbucks often tailors its expansion strategies to local cultural and economic contexts, this store’s strategic placement reflects its ambition to tap into South Korea’s thriving coffee culture while offering a distinctive experience. Tourists passing through military checkpoints and viewing North Korean territory emphasize the symbolic and literal bridging of starkly different worlds—a marketing narrative that could further boost Starbucks’ appeal.

From a business perspective, this venture demonstrates Starbucks’ commitment to innovation in location strategy, leveraging geopolitical intrigue to drive foot traffic. However, given the ongoing tensions on the Korean peninsula, the store’s proximity to such a contentious border could pose operational and reputational risks. Overall, this opening underscores the brand’s global reach and ability to find opportunity in unconventional markets.

Sturbucks Stock Chart Analysis

This 15-minute chart for Starbucks Corporation (SBUX) highlights recent price action. The stock is trading at $101.51, down 0.21% for the day. The overall trend on this timeframe shows a sharp rally early in the week, followed by a pullback and consolidation.

The chart indicates a recent high of $103.33, which may act as a key resistance level. The price retreated from this level and found support near $97.11. This bounce shows potential buyer interest around the lower levels. The recovery on the 27th suggests renewed bullish momentum but is tempered by some sideways trading in the most recent sessions.

The Relative Strength Index (RSI) is at 50.37, which reflects neutral momentum. It suggests neither overbought nor oversold conditions, indicating potential indecision among market participants.

From a technical perspective, the key zones to watch include resistance at $103.33 and support at $97.11. A break above resistance could pave the way for further upside, while a drop below support might indicate renewed bearish sentiment.

Traders may look for confirmation through volume or additional indicators, as the sideways consolidation suggests a lack of strong conviction in either direction at the moment. A breakout or breakdown is likely to set the next trend.

The post Starbucks (SBUX) Stock Analysis: Key Resistance at $103.33 appeared first on FinanceBrokerage.

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has opened a broad antitrust investigation into Microsoft, including of its software licensing and cloud computing businesses, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters Wednesday.

A source confirmed the investigation to NBC News.

The investigation was approved by FTC Chair Lina Khan ahead of her likely departure in January. The election of Donald Trump as U.S. president, and the expectation he will appoint a fellow Republican with a softer approach toward business, leaves the outcome of the investigation up in the air.

The FTC is examining allegations the software giant is potentially abusing its market power in productivity software by imposing punitive licensing terms to prevent customers from moving their data from its Azure cloud service to other competitive platforms, sources confirmed earlier this month.

The FTC is also looking at practices related to cybersecurity and artificial intelligence products, the source said on Wednesday.

Microsoft declined to comment on Wednesday.

Competitors have criticized Microsoft’s practices they say keep customers locked into its cloud offering, Azure. The FTC fielded such complaints last year as it examined the cloud computing market.

NetChoice, a lobbying group that represents online companies including Amazon and Google, which compete with Microsoft in cloud computing, criticized Microsoft’s licensing policies, and its integration of AI tools into its Office and Outlook.

“Given that Microsoft is the world’s largest software company, dominating in productivity and operating systems software, the scale and consequences of its licensing decisions are extraordinary,” the group said.

Google in September complained to the European Commission about Microsoft’s practices, saying it made customers pay a 400% mark-up to keep running Windows Server on rival cloud computing operators, and gave them later and more limited security updates.

The FTC has demanded a broad range of detailed information from Microsoft, Bloomberg reported earlier on Wednesday.

The agency had already claimed jurisdiction over probes into Microsoft and OpenAI over competition in artificial intelligence, and started looking into Microsoft’s $650 million deal with AI startup Inflection AI.

Microsoft has been somewhat of an exception to U.S. antitrust regulators’ recent campaign against allegedly anticompetitive practices at Big Tech companies.

Facebook owner Meta Platforms, Apple and Amazon.com Inc. have all been accused by the U.S. of unlawfully maintaining monopolies.

Alphabet’s Google is facing two lawsuits, including one where a judge found it unlawfully thwarted competition among online search engines.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella testified at Google’s trial, saying the search giant was using exclusive deals with publishers to lock up content used to train artificial intelligence.

It is unclear whether Trump will ease up on Big Tech, whose first administration launched several Big Tech probes. JD Vance, the incoming vice president, has expressed concern about the power the companies wield over public discourse.

Still, Microsoft has benefited from Trump policies in the past.

In 2019, the Pentagon awarded it a $10 billion cloud computing contract that Amazon had widely been expected to win. Amazon later alleged that Trump exerted improper pressure on military officials to steer the contract away from its Amazon Web Services unit.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS

In this video from StockCharts TV, Julius takes a deep dive into US sector rotation, breaking it down into offensive, defensive and cyclical sectors. He first looks at the relative rotations that are shaping up inside the group, assessing each sector’s price chart in combination with the rotation on the Relative Rotation Graph to get a complete picture. This all culminates with the chart of SPY, which is showing a lot of strength recently. Going forward, the crucial question will be whether SPY can rally further without the participation of technology, the most important sector in the universe.

This video was originally published on November 27, 2024. Click anywhere on the icon above to view on our dedicated page for Julius.

Past videos from Julius can be found here.

#StayAlert, -Julius

Description

The securities of C29 Metals Limited (‘C29’) will be placed in trading halt at the request of C29, pending it releasing an announcement. Unless ASX decides otherwise, the securities will remain in trading halt until the earlier of the commencement of normal trading on Tuesday, 3 December 2024 or when the announcement is released to the market.

Issued by

ASX Compliance

Click here for the full ASX Release

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Gold prices in 2024 have gained close to 30 percent since the beginning of the year, making it one of the best-performing assets for investors.

Several factors contributed to gold’s momentum, including increased central bank gold purchases, interest rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve in September and November and geopolitical tensions that sent investors to the safety of the precious metal.

What does this mean for junior gold companies? Although there has been some lag in translating higher prices into share price gains, several companies have seen outsized increases in 2024. The five companies below are the best performers so far this year

Data for this article was retrieved on November 26, 2024, using TradingView’s stock screener, and only companies with market capitalizations greater than C$10 million are included.

1. Adyton Resources (TSXV:ADY)

Company Profile

Year-to-date gain: 1,600 percent
Market cap: C$40.29 million
Share price: C$0.17

Adyton Resources is working to advance the Feni Island and Fergusson Island gold projects in Papua New Guinea.

The Feni Island site has seen historic exploration, with 212 holes drilled over 18,813 meters. While limited work has been conducted by Adyton, a 2021 resource estimate shows an inferred resource of 1.46 million ounces of gold. The company has been working to expand its gold resource and explore for copper at greater depths than previous exploration.

Shares of Adyton saw a sizable 1,450 percent gain in the first four months of the year. The company’s largest single-day jump of 244 percent came after the late April news that it had closed a C$1.5 million financing and restarted exploration at Feni Island. The company said the initial focus would be to reprocess and reinterpret historical data with modern geophysical algorithms in order to provide optimized locations for detailed follow-up programs.

While Feni Island has been its primary focus, Adyton has also been working to raise capital for its Fergusson Island project.

The project consists of two advanced exploration licenses for the Wapolu and Gameta targets, which host a combined indicated resource of 173,000 ounces of gold and an inferred resource of 540,000 ounces of gold.

The latest news from Feni Island came in a pair of news releases at the end of October. First, on October 24, the company reported that it had completed the Wardens hearings for Fergusson and Feni Island. The hearings are a required process for renewing exploration licenses and allow local landowners and stakeholders to provide input into the projects’ development.

This was followed on October 31 by news that Adyton had mobilized a drone team to Feni Island to commence magnetic imagery and topographic surveys of the site. The company said high-resolution data will assist in identifying magnetic anomalies and structures.

Adyton’s share price reached a year-to-date high of C$0.205 on November 10.

2. Black Mammoth Metals (TSXV:BMM)

Company Profile

Year-to-date gain: 970.59 percent
Market cap: C$31.24 million
Share price: C$0.91

Black Mammoth Metals is a gold explorer working to advance its US properties in Nevada, Idaho and California.

Its Happy Cat gold property is located in the Ravenswood Mining District in Ladner County, Nevada. The site covers about 1,213 hectares and hosts an approximately 4 square kilometer area where the company has identified a potential alteration zone.

The company also owns the Blanco Creek gold property in the Elk Creek Mining District in Central Idaho. The site hosts three historic mines along 3,550 meters of strike length. Additionally, in January, Black Mammoth acquired the America Mine property as part of its acquisition of IDA Mining. The site hosts a historic open-pit heap-leach gold and silver mine and is located in San Bernardino, California.

In 2024, Black Mammoth has expanded its property holdings in Nevada significantly. On March 28, the company announced that its subsidiary, Antelope Creek, had entered into an option agreement with Gold Royalty (NYSE:GROY) subsidiary Nevada Select Royalty, which will option the Quito gold property in Nevada to Antelope Creek in exchange for payments totaling US$900,000 over four years.

On September 10, Black Mammoth said Antelope Creek had signed a letter of intent with an arm’s length vendor to acquire the Raven property in Nevada, extending the company’s land holdings in the Ravenswood Mining District to 2,650 hectares.

Additionally, Black Mammoth signed an agreement to acquire the vendor’s Callaghan property, and signed an option agreement with Nevada Select to earn a 100 percent interest in the neighboring Charlie property, which will bring Black Mammoth’s position at Callaghan to 1,604 hectares. Black Mammoth announced the completion of the deals on September 24.

Shares of Black Mammoth reached a year-to-date high of C$1.25 on June 12.

3. Montage Gold (TSXV:MAU)

Company Profile

Year-to-date gain: 206.26 percent
Market cap: C$793.5 million
Share price: C$2.24

Montage Gold is a development and exploration company working to advance the Koné gold project in Cote d’Ivoire towards construction.

The project consists of six exploration permits and two applications over 2,259 square kilometers. In July, Montage was awarded mining permits covering 357 square kilometers, including the Koné and Gbongogo deposits.

On January 16, 2024, Montage published an updated feasibility study outlining the project’s development potential. The report demonstrated total probable reserves of 4.01 million ounces of gold. Based on a gold spot price of US$2,050 per ounce, the study’s financials outlined an after-tax NPV of US$1.46 billion, an internal rate of return of 39 percent and a payback period of 2.6 years.

Since then, Montage has been working on financing the project and has raised nearly C$1 billion through debt issuance, private placements and strategic partnerships.

The most recent came on October 23, when the company announced it had secured US$825 million in combined financing from partners Wheaton Precious Metals (TSX:WPM,NYSE:WPM) and Zijin Mining (OTC Pink:ZIJMF,SHA:601899). The company said the proceeds will be used for mining development at Koné.

Montage’s share price has steadily risen throughout 2024 and reached a year-to-date high of C$2.57 on October 30.

4. GoldQuest Mining (TSXV:GQC)

Press ReleasesCompany Profile

Year-to-date gain: 205.26 percent
Market cap: C$75.24 million
Share price: C$0.29

GoldQuest is a mineral exploration and development company focused on its assets in the San Juan province of the Dominican Republic.

Its flagship asset is its Romero gold-copper project, which includes the Romero North and South deposits in the central portion of GoldQuest’s larger Tireo project. Mineral reserve estimates from its 2016 pre-feasibility study indicate mine reserves of 840,000 ounces of gold, 980,000 ounces of silver and 62,000 metric tons of copper. The company has been working towards gaining an exploitation license for the project since March 2022.

Shares in GoldQuest have tracked the price of gold since the start of 2024 but had a significant boost following a pair of news releases in November.

First, on November 12, the company announced the Dominican Republic had made changes to its environmental regulations, which should allow GoldQuest to engage directly with the Ministry of Environment and advance the feasibility study and environmental and social impact assessments for Romero.

Then, on November 21, GoldQuest announced it had completed a C$8.7 million non-brokered private placement, which it intends to use to advance exploration and permitting at Romero.

Shares in GoldQuest reached a year-to-date high of C$0.29 on November 25.

5. Falco Resources (TSXV:FPC)

Company Profile

Year-to-date gain: 204.17 percent
Market cap: C$100.85 million
Share price: C$0.365

Falco Resources is an exploration and development company operating within the Abitibi Greenstone Belt in Québec, Canada. Its flagship asset is the Horne 5 polymetallic gold project, which consists of 67,000 hectares of land in the Noranda mining camp, and includes 13 historic gold and base metals mining sites, including the Horne mine.

A 2021 feasibility study estimates that the project’s measured and indicated resources stand at 4.89 million ounces of gold, 48.63 million ounces of silver, 176,982 metric tons of copper and 839,937 metric tons of zinc.

Shares of Falco saw gains early in the year following a news release on January 24, when the company announced it had executed an operating license and indemnity agreement with Glencore (LSE:GLEN,OTC Pink:GLCNF). Under the terms of the deal, Falco will gain access to a portion of land that it will use to advance Horne 5.

The deal will also establish a technical committee to ensure that operations at Horne 5 do not interfere with Glencore’s Horne smelter. Additionally, Glencore will gain the right to require remediation, suspension or risk mitigation in order to protect its Horne smelter. Glencore will also have the right to a seat on Falco’s board of directors.

On March 27, Falco confirmed the admissibility of an environmental impact assessment from the Ministry of the Environment, the Fight Against Climate Change, Wildlife and Parks. It said it would be able to move forward with a public hearing process for the asset.

Falco reported the completion of the public hearing process on October 4. In the announcement, the company said that more than 90 briefs were filed with the Commission of Inquiry and noted that the proceedings were respectful and constructive. Falco said the next steps will be to review and address concerns raised in the hearings, adding that it will meet with the advisory committee to identify possible solutions and make improvements to the project. The final report is due to be sent to the ministry by December 26, with publication set for mid-January 2025.

On October 28, Falco reported that it was continuing to file documentation ahead of the December 26 deadline. Additionally, it said it was working on updating a 2021 feasibility study to account for higher prices in the gold and copper prices.

Shares in Falco reached a year-to-date high of C$0.46 on May 13.

Securities Disclosure: I, Dean Belder, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

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The ongoing disputes between the Malian government and international mining companies continue to intensify as Barrick Gold (NYSE:GOLD,TSX:ABX) recently confirmed four Malian employees from its Loulo-Gounkoto mining complex had been arrested.

Barrick reported on November 26 that the employees had again been detained and charged pending trial. The company stated it refutes the charges, and said it remains committed to engaging with the government to reach a resolution that ensures the long-term viability of its operations in Mali.

This marks the latest development in a series of confrontations centered around Mali’s lucrative gold mining sector.

The new arrests come just weeks after Mali demanded US$162 million in back taxes from Resolute Mining (ASX:RSG,LSE:RSG) and detained its CEO, Terence Holohan, along with two senior executives, on November 8.

The detentions were linked to a sector-wide audit conducted by the government. Resolute denied the claims and stated that it had followed all official processes in response to the audit. However, the company ultimately agreed to the payments, and the government released the executives on November 21.

As of November 28, Resolute has paid US$130 million to the government, and plans to pay the rest by the end of the year.

As for the conflict between Barrick and Malian authorities, it has been ongoing since late September, when the same four employees were detained for the first time. Barrick and the government reached a preliminary agreement on September 30 to establish a framework for resolving disputes and increasing the state’s share of benefits from the Loulo-Gounkoto complex, resulting in the employees’ release.

However, on October 8, the Malian government announced it wanted at least US$512 million from the company, claiming outstanding taxes and dividends. Then, in late October, the Malian government accused the company of breaching commitments under an agreement designed to ensure a fairer distribution of mining revenues.

Barrick disputed these claims and emphasized that it had made a US$85 million payment to the government as part of its efforts to resolve outstanding issues.

However, negotiations have stalled in recent weeks, culminating in the new detentions.

Mali government’s efforts to restructure mining agreements

Mali’s military-led government has been pushing for greater control over the mining sector since it revised its mining code. It seized power in the country through a coup in 2020.

The updated framework requires foreign companies to cede more financial benefits to the state, which heavily relies on gold mining as a primary source of revenue.

The detentions of employees from Barrick and Resolute reflect the government’s changed stance in asserting its authority over the sector. Officials argue that increased revenue from mining is essential for national development, but the confrontational approach has raised concerns among international investors.

Resolute and Barrick are among the largest mining operators in Mali, and their disputes with the government could have far-reaching implications for Mali’s mining sector, which accounts for a significant portion of the country’s GDP and export revenue.

The heightened tensions are creating instability in the sector, and industry observers warn that the government’s actions risk alienating foreign investors, potentially affecting production levels and slowing future investment.

Barrick has highlighted its 30 year history of cooperation with successive Malian governments, and its president and CEO, Mark Bristow, is calling for continued dialogue to resolve the current impasse.

“Our attempts to find a mutually acceptable resolution have so far been unsuccessful, but we remain committed to engage with the government in order to resolve all the claims levied against the company and its employees and secure the early release of our unjustly imprisoned colleagues,” Bristowe said in the company’s most recent update.

Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

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