December’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) will serve as the latest test of whether an inflation resurgence is a risk to the US economy as investors debate if and when the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates in 2025.
The report, set for release at 8:30 a.m. ET on Wednesday, is expected to show headline inflation of 2.9%, an uptick from November’s 2.7% annual gain in prices. Consumer prices are expected to have risen 0.4% over the prior month, also ahead of the 0.3% monthly increase seen in November.
Seasonal factors like higher fuel costs and continued stickiness in food inflation are widely expected to keep the headline figures elevated.
On a “core” basis, which strips out the more volatile costs of food and gas, prices in December are expected to have risen 3.3% over last year for the fifth consecutive month. Economists expect monthly core price increases to also match the prior month’s reading of 0.3%, according to Bloomberg data.
“Inflation appears to have stalled moderately above the Fed’s target,” Bank of America economists Stephen Juneau and Jeseo Park wrote in a preview of the report.
Core inflation has remained stubbornly elevated due to higher costs for shelter and services like insurance and medical care. Core services are expected to be little changed in December after airfares and lodging away from home both surprised to the upside in the previous print.
“These categories should moderate in December,” BofA’s Juneau and Park noted. “Shelter prices have cooled relative to earlier in 2024, but there is still room for improvement.”
The team expects rental prices to once again increase 0.2% month over month, while owners’ equivalent rent (OER), or the hypothetical rent a homeowner would pay for the same property, should increase slightly to 0.3%.
Fed’s next challenge: A new administration
Although inflation has been slowing, it has remained above the Federal Reserve’s 2% target on an annual basis.
Trump’s proposed policies, such as high tariffs on imported goods, tax cuts for corporations, and curbs on immigration, are seen as inflationary. And those policies could further complicate the central bank’s path forward for interest rates.
US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell gestures as he speaks at a press conference after the Monetary Policy Committee meeting in Washington, DC, on December 18, 2024. The US Federal Reserve cut interest rates by a quarter point December 18 and signaled a slower pace of cuts ahead, amid uncertainty about inflation and US President-elect Donald Trump’s economic plans. (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP via Getty Images) · ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS via Getty Images
On top of political uncertainties, recent inflation prints have run hot heading into the new year, although producer prices did show some relief in data released on Monday.
“Odds are the December consumer price index won’t sit well with the Federal Reserve,” Oxford Economics chief US economist Ryan Sweet wrote on Friday. The economist said December’s strong labor report further cemented an interest rate pause later this month, especially as central bank leaders have indicated they will take a more gradual easing approach.
“Our forecast is the Fed lowers rates three times this year, but the [jobs] report increases the risk that there will be fewer cuts and that the Fed won’t lower rates as early as March, which is currently our baseline,” Sweet wrote in a separate report on Friday. The economist said he needs more evidence of labor market improvements before adjusting his forecast.
Bank of America, meanwhile, revised its outlook to zero rate cuts this year — and warned a hike could also be on the table.
“Inflation is stuck above target, with risks skewed to the upside, activity is strong, and the labor market now appears to have stabilized,” Juneau and Park said.
“Our base case has the Fed on an extended hold, but we think the risks for the next move are skewed toward a hike. In our view, hikes will be in play if year over year core PCE inflation exceeds 3% and long-term inflation expectations become unanchored.”
Alexandra Canal is a Senior Reporter at Yahoo Finance. Follow her on X @allie_canal, LinkedIn, and email her at alexandra.canal@yahoofinance.com.
FILE – Barrick Gold Corporation President and CEO Mark Bristow visits the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange after ringing the opening bell, Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2019. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File) · Associated Press Finance · ASSOCIATED PRESS
DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — Mali’s military government has started seizing gold stocks of the Canadian mining company Barrick as part of a legal battle over the share of revenue owed to the West African state, according to an internal Barrick letter seen by The Associated Press.
The letter from CEO Mark Bristow to the Malian Mining Minister, dated Monday, says Barrick is “awaiting official confirmation of the proper receipt by the Malian Solidarity Bank,” a government entity.
The seizure follows a warning letter to Barrick earlier this month from Mali’s senior investigating judge, Boubacar Moussa Diarra, saying three tons of gold would be seized.
On Monday, a senior Barrick manager confirmed that three tons had been seized by the military government and placed in the capital, Bamako. The manager spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.
According to the senior manager, the gold was taken from a mine near Kayes in the west and transported by plane and truck to the capital late Saturday.
The Malian authorities did not immediately respond for comment.
Valued at around $180 million, the gold seizure is part of the dispute over revenues owed to the state.
In December, Mali issued an arrest warrant for Bristow for charges of money laundering, without giving evidence, and ordered the seizure of Barrick’s gold reserves. The company has offered to pay $370 million.
Mali’s military government previously arrested four senior executives of the Canadian mining company as part of the dispute. They are still being held.
Mali is one of Africa’s leading gold producers, but it has struggled for years with jihadi violence and high levels of poverty and hunger. The military seized power in 2020, and the government has placed foreign mining companies under growing pressure as it seeks to shore up revenues.
Edmonton, Alberta–(Newsfile Corp. – January 9, 2025) – Emperor Metals Inc. (CSE: AUOZ) (the “Company” or “Emperor Metals“) – is pleased to announce that, further to its announcement on January 7, 2025 regarding the acquisition of the undersurface rights and interests to the Lac Pelletier Property (the “Lac Pelletier Property” or the “Property“) from Maritime Resources Corp., it has now entered into a binding agreement of purchase and sale dated January 9, 2024 (the “Purchase and Sale Agreement“) with a wholly owned subsidiary of Eldorado Gold Corporation (“Eldorado Gold“) to acquire Eldorado’s surface rights to the Lac Pelletier Property. The primary consideration for the acquisition is the assumption of all the liabilities of Eldorado Gold in connection with the rehabilitation and restoration plan related to the Property, including a cash bond and a surety bond in the aggregate amount of $305,349, and the release of Eldorado Gold’s financial guarantee from the Quebec Minister of Natural Resources and Forests. The closing of the Purchase and Sale Agreement is subject to certain conditions customary for transactions of this nature, including no objection from the Canadian Securities Exchange. It is expected that the transaction will close before April 15, 2025.
The surface rights to the Lac Pelletier Property are comprised of 5 lots which are located approximately 4 km southwest of the city of Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec. These rights include a mining lease with a 1,000 tonnes/day mine permit.
The Property is subject to a one percent (1.0%) net smelter returns royalty reserved to Metalla Royalty & Streaming Ltd. pursuant to an underlying royalty agreement.
For further details regarding the Lac Pelletier Property, please refer to the Company’s press release of January 7, 2025, which is available on SEDAR+ as well as the Company’s website at www.emperormetals.com.
About Emperor Metals Inc.
Emperor Metals Inc. is a mineral exploration company focused mineral exploration in Canada, and on proving the potential of the Pine Grove and other early-stage gold projects located near the Hemlo Gold Mine within the western portion of the prolific Wawa-Abitibi Gold Belt of Ontario, Canada.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
s/ “John Florek” John Florek, Chief Executive Officer
CERTAIN STATEMENTS MADE AND INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN MAY CONSTITUTE “FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION” AND “FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS” WITHIN THE MEANING OF APPLICABLE CANADIAN AND UNITED STATES SECURITIES LEGISLATION. THESE STATEMENTS AND INFORMATION ARE BASED ON FACTS CURRENTLY AVAILABLE TO THE COMPANY AND THERE IS NO ASSURANCE THAT ACTUAL RESULTS WILL MEET MANAGEMENT’S EXPECTATIONS. FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS AND INFORMATION MAY BE IDENTIFIED BY SUCH TERMS AS “ANTICIPATES”, “BELIEVES”, “TARGETS”, “ESTIMATES”, “PLANS”, “EXPECTS”, “MAY”, “WILL”, “COULD” OR “WOULD”.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS AND INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN ARE BASED ON CERTAIN FACTORS AND ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING, AMONG OTHER THINGS, THE ESTIMATION OF MINERAL RESOURCES AND RESERVES, THE REALIZATION OF RESOURCE AND RESERVE ESTIMATES, METAL PRICES, TAXATION, THE ESTIMATION, TIMING AND AMOUNT OF FUTURE EXPLORATION AND DEVELOPMENT, CAPITAL AND OPERATING COSTS, THE AVAILABILITY OF FINANCING, THE RECEIPT OF REGULATORY APPROVALS, ENVIRONMENTAL RISKS, TITLE DISPUTES AND OTHER MATTERS. WHILE THE COMPANY CONSIDERS ITS ASSUMPTIONS TO BE REASONABLE AS OF THE DATE HEREOF, FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS AND INFORMATION ARE NOT GUARANTEES OF FUTURE PERFORMANCE AND READERS SHOULD NOT PLACE UNDUE IMPORTANCE ON SUCH STATEMENTS AS ACTUAL EVENTS AND RESULTS MAY DIFFER MATERIALLY FROM THOSE DESCRIBED HEREIN. THE COMPANY DOES NOT UNDERTAKE TO UPDATE ANY FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS OR INFORMATION EXCEPT AS MAY BE REQUIRED BY APPLICABLE SECURITIES LAWS.
Vancouver, British Columbia–(Newsfile Corp. – January 9, 2025) – EMX Royalty Corporation (NYSE American: EMX) (TSXV: EMX) (the “Company” or “EMX“) is pleased to announce that the Company ended the year with approximately $27 million in cash and cash equivalents and $35 million in long term debt that matures in July 2029 under an agreement with Franco Nevada Corporation. The Company’s balance sheet was strengthened because of several transactions closing before the end of the December quarter as discussed below.
Sale of Shares in Ensero Holdings Inc (“Ensero”) – Ensero repurchased all our common and preferred share holdings in Ensero for approximately $5.6 million. The Company invested approximately $3.8 million in Ensero in 2020, and since making the investment has earned approximately $1.0 million in dividends. The Company has sold all its holdings in Ensero as of December 31, 2024.
Early Property Payment at Berenguela Royalty Property in Peru – The Company received an early property payment from Aftermath Silver Ltd (“Aftermath”) totaling $2.9 million. Aftermath has one final payment totaling $3.25 million which is due in November 2026. The Company has a sliding-scale net smelter return (NSR) Royalty on all mineral production from the Project for the life of mine commencing at the declaration of commercial production, and includes a 1.0% NSR royalty on all mineral production when the silver market price is up to and including US$25 per ounce, and a 1.25% NSR royalty on all mineral production when the silver market price is over US$25 per ounce and when the copper market price is above US$2 per pound.
Royalty buy-down Completed at Park Salyer Property in Arizona – The Company has received $500,000 from Arizona Sonoran Copper Company Inc. (“Arizona Sonoran”) from the buyback of 1.0% NSR royalty covering the Park Salyer Property which is part of the Arizona Sonoran’s Cactus Property. The buy-down by Arizona Sonoran reduces the Company’s NSR royalty on Park Salyer from 1.5% to 0.5% which is not capped and cannot be reduced.
About EMX – EMX is a precious, and base metals royalty company. EMX’s investors are provided with discovery, development, and commodity price optionality, while limiting exposure to risks inherent to operating companies. The Company’s common shares are listed on the NYSE American Exchange and TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol “EMX”. Please see www.EMXroyalty.com for more information.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may contain “forward looking statements” that reflect the Company’s current expectations and projections about its future results. These forward-looking statements may include statements regarding perceived merit of properties, exploration results and budgets, mineral reserves and resource estimates, work programs, capital expenditures, timelines, strategic plans, market prices for precious and base metal, or other statements that are not statements of fact. When used in this news release, words such as “estimate,” “intend,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “will”, “believe”, “potential” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which, by their very nature, are not guarantees of the Company’s future operational or financial performance, and are subject to risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause the Company’s actual results, performance, prospects or opportunities to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and factors may include, but are not limited to unavailability of financing, failure to identify commercially viable mineral reserves, fluctuations in the market valuation for commodities, difficulties in obtaining required approvals for the development of a mineral project, increased regulatory compliance costs, expectations of project funding by joint venture partners and other factors.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this news release or as of the date otherwise specifically indicated herein. Due to risks and uncertainties, including the risks and uncertainties identified in this news release, and other risk factors and forward-looking statements listed in the Company’s MD&A for the quarter ended September 30, 2024 (the “MD&A”), and the most recently filed Annual Information Form (“AIF”) for the year ended December 31, 2023, actual events may differ materially from current expectations. More information about the Company, including the MD&A, the AIF and financial statements of the Company, is available on SEDAR at www.sedarplus.ca and on the SEC’s EDGAR website at www.sec.gov.
Vancouver, British Columbia–(Newsfile Corp. – January 8, 2025) – EMX Royalty Corporation (NYSE American: EMX) (TSXV: EMX) (the “Company” or “EMX”) is pleased to announce it has completed its existing Normal Course Issuer Bid (“NCIB”) program announced on February 7, 2024. Under the NCIB, the Company was allowed to purchase for cancellation up to 5,000,000 common shares over a twelve-month period representing approximately 4.45% of the issued and outstanding shares prior to commencement. EMX has purchased for cancellation the full 5,000,000 common shares at an average price of US$1.65 per share totaling approximately US$8.3M including a recently purchased 1,375,600 shares in a block trade from an undisclosed seller at a price of approximately US$1.64 (C$2.35) per share.
About EMX. EMX is a precious and base metals royalty company. EMX’s investors are provided with discovery, development, and commodity price optionality, while limiting exposure to risks inherent to operating companies. The Company’s common shares are listed on the NYSE American Exchange and TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol “EMX”. Please see www.EMXroyalty.com for more information.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may contain “forward-looking statements” that reflect the Company’s current expectations and projections about its future results. These forward-looking statements may include statements regarding perceived merit of properties, exploration results and budgets, mineral reserves and resource estimates, work programs, capital expenditures, timelines, strategic plans, market prices for precious and base metal, or other statements that are not statements of fact. When used in this news release, words such as “estimate,” “intend,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “will”, “believe”, “potential” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which, by their very nature, are not guarantees of the Company’s future operational or financial performance, and are subject to risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause the Company’s actual results, performance, prospects or opportunities to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and factors may include, but are not limited to unavailability of financing, failure to identify commercially viable mineral reserves, fluctuations in the market valuation for commodities, difficulties in obtaining required approvals for the development of a mineral project, increased regulatory compliance costs, expectations of project funding by joint venture partners and other factors.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this news release or as of the date otherwise specifically indicated herein. Due to risks and uncertainties, including the risks and uncertainties identified in this news release, and other risk factors and forward-looking statements listed in the Company’s MD&A for the quarter ended September 30, 2024 (the “MD&A”), and the most recently filed Annual Information Form (“AIF”) for the year ended December 31, 2023, actual events may differ materially from current expectations. More information about the Company, including the MD&A, the AIF and financial statements of the Company, is available on SEDAR at www.sedarplus.ca and on the SEC’s EDGAR website at www.sec.gov.
Almost all Federal Reserve officials agreed in their last meeting that “upside risks to the inflation outlook had increased” due in part to the “likely effects” of expected changes in trade and immigration policies, according to meeting minutes released Wednesday.
Fed officials approved a 25 basis point interest rate cut at that December meeting, but it was clear from the minutes that many who signed off on those cuts still had concerns about the path of inflation in the near future.
They noted “the likelihood that elevated inflation could be more persistent had increased,” according to the minutes, even though they still expected the Fed to bring inflation down to its 2% goal “over the next few years.”
“As reasons for this judgment, participants cited recent stronger-than expected readings on inflation and the likely effects of potential changes in trade and immigration policy” — a likely reference to plans already floated by President-elect Donald Trump.
Some economists expect Trump’s policies, which could include steep tariffs and deportations of undocumented immigrants, to put upward pressure on inflation and make any future rate cuts less likely.
The Marriner S. Eccles Federal Reserve Board building in Washington. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File) · ASSOCIATED PRESS
Fed officials in December reduced their estimate of 2025 rate cuts to two from a previous estimate of four, based in part on elevated inflation concerns.
Several of the participants in that Dec. 18-19 meeting even “observed that the disinflationary process may have stalled temporarily or noted the risk that it could.”
One official, Cleveland Fed president Beth Hammack, objected to the rate cut “in light of uneven progress in returning inflation to 2 percent” and argued for holding it steady.
Trump heaped more pressure on the Fed Tuesday during a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida.
“Inflation is still raging, and interest rates are far too high,” Trump said, arguing that “we are inheriting a difficult situation from the outgoing administration.”
“I believe that inflation will continue to make progress toward our 2% goal over the medium term and that further reductions will be appropriate,” Waller said during a speech in Paris.
Federal Reserve Board of Governors member Christopher Waller. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File) · ASSOCIATED PRESS
While Waller underscored that tariff proposals raise the possibility of a “new source of upward pressure on inflation,” he noted projections of their economic impact vary widely.
“If, as I expect, tariffs do not have a significant or persistent effect on inflation, they are unlikely to affect my view of appropriate monetary policy,” Waller said.
Powell said in December that there are still too many unknowns for the Fed to game out how tariffs could impact setting rates. However, he did say that some Fed officials have begun to factor Trump’s proposed policies into their policy assumptions.
“We don’t know how big they’ll be, we don’t know their timing and their duration, we don’t know what goods will be tariffed, we don’t know what countries’ goods will be tariffed, we don’t know how that will play into prices,” Powell said in December in New York.
“That’s a partial list of the things we don’t know.”
The Fed minutes released Wednesday noted that all participants of the meeting in December “judged that uncertainty about the scope, timing, and economic effects of potential changes in policies affecting foreign trade and immigration was elevated.”
Fed officials “took varied approaches in accounting for these effects, with “a number of participants” indicating they “incorporated placeholder assumptions to one degree or another into their projections.”
“Other participants indicated that they did not incorporate such assumptions, and a few participants did not indicate whether they incorporated such assumptions.”
Central bank officials will be paying close attention to new inflation data as they prepare for their next meeting on Jan. 28-29 following the inauguration of Trump as president on Jan. 20.
The last reading of the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge — the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index — showed an easing to 2.4% in November. That is down considerably from a peak of 7.2% in June 2022 but still above the Fed’s 2% goal.
When excluding volatile food and energy costs, the so-called core PCE was down to 2.8% in November — compared with a peak of 5.6% in September 2022.
Waller on Wednesday underscored that two-thirds of prices that comprise the core-PCE index have increased on average less than 2% over the past 12 months through November.
He also said the higher readings on inflation in the first quarter of 2024 will begin to drop out, meaning inflation numbers should start to look significantly better starting in March of 2025.
“If the outlook evolves as I have described here, I will support continuing to cut our policy rate in 2025,” Waller said.
Some of Waller’s other Fed colleagues struck a cautious tone in their comments earlier this week.
Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook said Monday it makes sense to lower interest rates more gradually given resilience in the job market and stickier-than-expected inflation.
Over the weekend, Fed governor Adriana Kugler and San Francisco Fed president Mary Daly both said that the Fed has more work to do to bring inflation down but that they don’t want to weaken the job market further as they focus on that task.
(Bloomberg) — China expanded its support for the beleaguered yuan with a plan to issue a record amount of bills in the Hong Kong market to mop up excess liquidity.
The People’s Bank of China will auction 60 billion yuan ($8.2 billion) of six-month bills in the city on Jan. 15, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority said in a statement. The issuance will effectively increase demand for the yuan in offshore markets, making it more costly to borrow and short the currency.
The issuance is set to be the largest on record since the central bank started bill auctions in Hong Kong regularly in 2018, according to Bloomberg-compiled data.
The yuan’s tumble in recent months, spurred by a sluggish Chinese economy and potential US tariff hikes, has traders pondering the PBOC’s commitment to defend the currency. The central bank has so far remained firmly supportive of stability, as it propped up the yuan with its daily fixings while also pledging to prevent an overshoot in exchange rates.
“We cannot rule out policymakers deploying even higher funding squeeze in the short term,” said Christopher Wong, a strategist at Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp. “At this point, the combination of fixing pattern and offshore funding squeeze are intended to guide for a stable yuan.”
The additional bill issuance in Hong Kong is a tactic that the PBOC deployed multiple times before and it was last used in 2023. Offering broader choices of yuan assets in the city also serves Beijing’s long-term ambition to globalize the currency.
Jitters over tighter liquidity pushed up gauges of the yuan’s borrowing costs in Hong Kong to levels unseen in years earlier this week, before they eased. The offshore yuan’s overnight Hibor fell after rising to 8.1% on Tuesday, the highest since June 2021.
This is the first time that the PBOC is issuing offshore bills in months without maturities, which shows its clear purpose to defy further yuan depreciation in the near term, said Becky Liu, head of China macro strategy at Standard Chartered Bank in Hong Kong. “Offshore yuan liquidity condition will likely to stay tight for an extended period post Donald Trump’s inauguration or even post Lunar New Year till early February.”
The PBOC had been mainly using its daily reference rate to support the yuan, particularly as the dollar soared following Trump’s victory in the US election. The central bank again set the so-called fixing, which limits the currency’s moves by 2% on either side in onshore trading, at a level that was significantly stronger than forecast on Thursday.
That’s because Beijing fears disorderly capital outflows can trigger a panic selloff in yuan-denominated assets and derail an already lackluster recovery. Analysts still expect the currency to weaken this year due to factors including a yawning interest-rate discount to the US.
However, the PBOC’s strategy to prioritize yuan stability carries a cost, as it opens up the prospect of trading glitches or thin liquidity the closer the currency comes to its permitted limit. On Wednesday, the yuan weakened to trade close to the policy no-go area.
“The mopping up of liquidity is likely to keep offshore yuan funding relatively tight in the near-term,” said Wee Khoon Chong, senior APAC market strategist at BNY. However, “elevated dollar and the on-going tariff uncertainties is likely to exert downside pressure on the yuan in the near-term.”
The offshore yuan gained 0.1% to 7.3486 per dollar on Thursday, following the announcement of central bank bill sales. In the onshore market, the currency was little changed at 7.3315, close to the weak end of its trading range at 7.3323 as defined by the day’s fixing.
As of Jan. 9, the central bank has 140 billion yuan locked up through previously-sold offshore yuan bills that expire later this year, data compiled by Bloomberg show. The settlement date for the bills to be issued next week will be on Jan. 17.
(Kitco News) – Gold will rally in the second half of the year as the Fed resumes its rate cuts, but the real story right now is the massive impact that President-elect Donald Trump’s tariff threats are having on global silver stocks, according to TD Securities’ Senior Commodity Strategist Daniel Ghali.
In a Jan. 7 interview, Ghali said that investors need to take notice of an unprecedented situation that’s unfolding in the silver market right now.
“It’s hard to see it in flat prices, but over the last month there’s been a huge disruption in precious metals markets where the threat of universal tariffs on metals is leading traders around the world to bring metal in from London and other global venues into the U.S., only to hedge against the risk that tariffs will be implemented on precious metals,” he said. “Historically they haven’t – precious metals have been considered money in effect – but if they were to be subject to tariffs, then traders holding short positions against metal that they actually hold somewhere else in the world would be subject to substantial losses.”
“In order to hedge against that risk, they’re bringing metal into the U.S.”
Ghali clarified that he’s not talking about contracts or other financial instruments, but actual, physical metal that is being brought en masse into the United States, and the implications are profound.
“This could inadvertently lead to a stock-out in the world’s largest metal vaulting system for silver in London,” he said. “This is the biggest story in commodity markets right now. Silver markets seem to be just completely sleepwalking into a potential stock-out.”
“A stock-out is a moment in time where the inventories of the metal cross a critical threshold below which the [market] structure is challenged,” Ghali explained. “If you think about how the world trades physical precious metals, the global venue for that is sitting in London but most people actually use U.S.-based contracts to hedge price risks. So the challenge here is that the threat of universal tariffs is leading metal to go from the world’s largest venue into the U.S., depleting that inventory buffer that traders use for over-the-counter transactions every day.”
“And mind you, we are now in a fourth consecutive year of very substantial deficits in silver,” he added. “This trend of depleting inventories was already set up, and this is simply something that’s accelerating that process.”
Galley agreed that this scenario could only be very price-positive for silver.
“I think there is the potential for explosive price action in silver if we do meet that critical threshold,” he said. “We’ve seen glimpses of this in other commodities over the last few years. Copper last year had a very substantial rally on a similar theme, and in previous years, palladium was a really good example of a market with a similar setup. Silver markets today just appear to be completely sleepwalking into this setup.”
Ghali acknowledged that current silver prices in no way reflect the seriousness of the situation. “I also think it’s a very under-covered story,” he said. “This is something that could potentially be very significant, but macro investors are just completely flat in silver markets, and nobody’s really paying attention to this.”
For investors who do want to stay on top of the situation, Ghali said there is credible information on silver stocks, but the data won’t tell you exactly how quickly the buffer is being depleted.
“The LBMA, which are the custodians of the metal, publish some data on their vaults on a monthly basis, so you can certainly follow that,” he said, but warned that “a lot of work has to be put in in order to estimate how much of that metal is actually freely available for purchase.”
“There might be a billion ounces sitting in the London vaults, but only 300 million of that is actually freely available for purchase, according to our estimates.”
Asked where TD sees silver prices going in response to this scenario, Ghali was very bullish. “We think that silver is going to end your closer to $40 an ounce, so a substantial gain from today’s prices,” he said.
Turning to gold, Ghali said the situation with the yellow metal is also interesting, as some key support is returning to the market.
“We thought there were some signs of exuberance heading into U.S. elections,” he said. “If you think about the setup back then, you had central bank buying activity substantially slowing,” he noted. “Macro funds – who buy gold to trade the Fed outlook, the global economy and so on – were holding extreme long position sizes. At the same time, the physical market had ground to a complete halt, there was a complete buyer’s strike.”
But today, he’s seeing signs that the buyers strike has finally ended. “We think there’s a strong correlation between currency depreciation pressures in Asia and the strength of the physical market,” Ghali said. “Clearly, the threat of tariffs on China has led to some currency depreciation pressures there, and there are signs that the physical market is finally reigniting again. That could lead to more central bank buying activity, but also institutional and retail buying out of Asia, which has been one of the big missing pieces for gold prices to continue making gains.”
Asked if he expects to see a decoupling of the gold and silver price due to the two metals being driven by very different macro and market factors, he said the opposite is more likely to occur.
“Investment flows which are correlated between gold and silver tend to drive the overwhelming variation in the supply-demand balance for silver,” Ghali said. “Silver is overwhelmingly an industrial metal, solar has been a bigger contributor to total demand growth over the last few years in a very significant way, and so there is a decoupling that’s happening behind the scenes. But I actually would argue this is going to be a recoupling, in the sense that silver is trading extremely cheaply relative to gold, so from a long-term perspective, there’s a long way to go for silver only to catch up to gold’s price performance.”
Ghali is also optimistic about the gold rally resuming in 2025, though he expects this will only happen in the second half.
“We think gold is going to be fairly range-bound,” he said. “There’s going to be opportunities to trade it both ways throughout the course of the year, but we are expecting the Fed to remain on a prolonged pause in the first half of the year, and that could constrain some of these macro fund positions, which have subsided since the U.S. election but still remain bloated.”
“But towards the latter half of the year, we think the Fed is going to resume its cutting cycle more aggressively than is currently priced into markets, and so there could be some opportunities to buy gold throughout the year.”
Gold prices saw a strong run-up on Tuesday, with spot gold spiking as high as $ 2,670.15 per ounce shortly before noon EST before pulling all the way back to $2,650 per ounce.
Spot gold last traded at $2,655.66 per ounce for a gain of 0.27% on the session.
Silver has encountered firm resistance at $30.30 over the last few days, and after failing once again to breach that level shortly after the North American market open, it slid to a session low of $29.789 around 12:40 pm EST.
Spot silver last traded at $29.933 for a loss of 0.31% on the daily chart.
Ernest Hoffman is a Crypto and Market Reporter for Kitco News. He has over 15 years of experience as a writer, editor, broadcaster and producer for media, educational and cultural organizations. Ernest began working in market news in 2007, establishing the broadcast division of CEP News in Montreal, Canada, where he developed the fastest web-based audio news service in the world and produced economic news videos in partnership with MSN and the TMX. He has a Bachelor’s degree Specialization in Journalism from Concordia University. You can reach Ernest at 1-514-670-1339.
Vancouver, British Columbia–(Newsfile Corp. – January 8, 2025) – EMX Royalty Corporation (NYSE American: EMX) (TSXV: EMX) (the “Company” or “EMX”) is pleased to announce that it has executed four separate option agreements (the “Agreements”), all dated January 7, 2025, with Pacific Ridge Exploration Ltd. (TSXV: PEX) (“Pacific Ridge” or “PEX”) for the Ripsey West, Royston, Red Star, and Mineral Hill projects (the “Projects” or individually a “Project”) located in Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming, respectively. The Agreements provide EMX with cash payments, an equity stake in PEX, and required work commitments on the Projects during the earn-in period. Additionally, upon earn-in for a given Project, a 3% net smelter return (“NSR”) royalty, annual advance royalty (“AAR”) payments, and milestone payments provide a strong foundation for future upside as the Projects advance.
The Ripsey West Project is a shallow copper porphyry target in central Arizona’s Laramide copper province with exploration potential for both supergene and hypogene mineralization. The Royston Project in western Nevada targets a late Triassic-early Jurassic copper porphyry system. Of note, porphyries of this age have not traditionally been explored for in the region, even though this age of magmatic activity generally displays a stronger gold affinity than Laramide systems. The Red Star Project is a copper porphyry target adjacent to the historical Star mining district in Utah, and has added potential for skarn, manto, and carbonate-replacement deposit (CRD) styles of mineralization. The Mineral Hill Project in eastern Wyoming is centered on an alkaline intrusive complex, which displays both epithermal and copper-gold porphyry exploration potential.
EMX acquired the Projects through the staking of open ground after recognizing overlooked opportunities in districts with historical exploration. EMX’s track record of organically generating new targets in historical mining districts underscores the strength of the Company’s project generation business model.
Commercial Terms Overview (all dollar amounts in USD). Under the terms of the Agreements, subject to the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange, Pacific Ridge can earn 100% interest in each Project over a five-year option period by satisfying the following terms on a per-Project basis: a) upon receipt of regulatory approval, Pacific Ridge will pay $60,000 in cash and issue 200,000 Pacific Ridge shares (on a post 10:1 consolidation basis), and b) Pacific Ridge will also make option payments totaling $180,000, issue 1,175,000 additional shares, and complete $2,250,000 in exploration expenditures over the five-year term of the option agreement.
Upon option exercise by Pacific Ridge, EMX will retain a 3% NSR royalty on each applicable Project; 1% of the royalty may be bought back by first completing an initial 0.5% royalty buyback for a payment of $1,000,000 to the Company prior to the eighth anniversary of the Effective Date of the Agreement. If the first buyback is completed, then the remaining 0.5% of the royalty buyback can be purchased any time prior to production for $3,000,000. Pacific Ridge will also make AAR payments of $25,000 per Project, which will increase by $10,000 per year until reaching a cap of $75,000 per year. In addition, Pacific Ridge will make Project milestone payments consisting of: a) $500,000 upon completion of a Preliminary Economic Assessment, b) $1,000,000 upon completion of a Pre-Feasibility study, and c) $2,000,000 upon completion of a Feasibility Study.
Project Overviews
Ripsey West: The Ripsey West Project spans over 2,161 hectares and consists of 36 unpatented mining claims and eight state exploration leases in central Arizona’s prolific Laramide copper province. Historical exploration by Conoco, Bear Creek, Noranda, BHP, Freeport-McMoRan, and others concentrated on altered and mineralized outcrops adjacent to EMX’s primary target area. These outcrops display distal chlorite-epidote and sericitic alteration over a broad footprint measuring approximately four by six kilometers, with a central zone of moderate sericitic alteration. Locally, structurally controlled zones exhibit strong sericitic alteration and variable copper mineralization. Through a detailed compilation of historical drilling and an iterative structural study, EMX determined that the district has undergone significant tilting of approximately 90 degrees. The historically explored area represents distal alteration and mineralization, along the paleo-eastern margin of the tilted and dismembered porphyry copper system, whereas EMX’s Ripsey West Project targets the core of the system several kilometers to the west. Exploration by a previous partner included two drill holes totaling 649 meters which primarily tested the depth to bedrock. Beneath the post-mineral alluvium, the alteration in the drill holes matches well with the predictive interpretation of the system, but left the target and the core of the porphyry system untested at depth.
Red Star: The Red Star Project covers 3,005 hectares and consists of unpatented mining claims adjacent to the historical Star mining district in Beaver County, Utah. Geologic observations indicate that the source of polymetallic fissure veins and replacements in the Star mining district may be a concealed porphyry copper system. Although historical workers explored for the source porphyry, they misunderstood the timing relationships between the exposed mineralization and intrusive rocks in the area as well as erroneously mapped normal faults as thrust faults. Structural reinterpretation and geochemical zonation patterns in outcropping stratigraphy indicate a westward vector towards a down-faulted block, or blocks, within the Red Star Project. The strongest copper and pathfinder geochemical anomalies occur at the western side of the exposed Paleozoic sedimentary package, coincident with the highest abundance of prospects in the Star district. Recent geophysical datasets, including drone magnetics, induced polarization (IP), and magnetotelluric (MT) surveys, are supportive of a target in the same area independently predicted by geological and geochemical vectors. The abundance of Paleozoic carbonate rocks in the host stratigraphy indicates potential for skarn, manto, and CRD-style mineralization at the Red Star Project, in addition to the target Cu-Mo porphyry.
Royston: The Royston Project spans over 1,830 hectares and consists of 227 unpatented mining claims northwest of Tonopah, Nevada. The Royston Project represents a compelling porphyry prospect within a belt of Jurassic to late Triassic intrusive rocks in the western US, which are underexplored with respect to copper mineralization. Surface exposures and historical drilling reveal a significant zone of quartz-pyrite-sericite “QSP” style alteration in porphyry dikes and surrounding host rocks. Subsequent geological, geochemical, and geophysical work advanced EMX’s understanding of the system and led to the identification of strong vectors based on system-scale zoning of alteration and mineralization. A reconnaissance reverse-circulation (“RC”) drilling campaign was recently conducted which further validated the target concept and outlined a robust porphyry system which has undergone significant post-mineral tilting. Two of the RC drill holes were cased for re-entry with a core rig due to the shallow intersections of intense QSP (-clay) alteration with increasing base metal mineralization downhole. Follow-up core drilling will target the high temperature core of the porphyry system, which has not previously been intersected in drilling.
Mineral Hill: The Mineral Hill Project in eastern Wyoming spans over 600 hectares across 77 unpatented and 19 patented mining claims. The Project is centered on a zoned Eocene-age alkaline intrusive complex with an outer ring, interior intrusive zones, and a central breccia. Historical mining in the late 19th and early 20th centuries produced gold from alluvial deposits, gold and silver from the Treadwell Mine, and gold and copper from the Interocean Mine. EMX and previous partners recognized that the gold and silver mineralization at the Treadwell Mine is associated with lower-temperature adularia-bearing potassic alteration and is consistent with epithermal-style mineralization. In contrast, the gold and copper mineralization at the Interocean Mine is associated with higher-temperature potassic alteration mineral assemblages (including potassium feldspar and biotite), consistent with a porphyry system. Reconnaissance drill programs with previous partners confirmed these two distinct mineralization styles, but never followed up on initial drill results. Mineral Hill’s proximity to significant historical producers, such as the Homestake and Wharf mines, highlights the potential for additional discoveries in this productive belt.
EMX and Pacific Ridge look forward to commencing work on the Projects.
This transaction is another example of the execution of EMX’s business model in providing turn-key and drill ready exploration projects to its partner companies in exchange for royalty interests.
Comments on Adjacent or nearby Districts, Mines, and Deposits. The districts, mines and deposits discussed in this news release provide context for EMX’s projects, which occur in similar geologic settings, but this is not necessarily indicative that the Company’s projects host similar tonnages or grades of mineralization.
Michael P. Sheehan, CPG, a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and employee of the Company, has reviewed, verified and approved the disclosure of the technical information contained in this news release.
About EMX. EMX is a precious and base metals royalty company. EMX’s investors are provided with discovery, development, and commodity price optionality, while limiting exposure to risks inherent to operating companies. The Company’s common shares are listed on the NYSE American Exchange and TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol “EMX”. Please see www.EMXroyalty.com for more information. For further information contact:
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may contain “forward-looking statements” that reflect the Company’s current expectations and projections about its future results. These forward-looking statements may include statements regarding perceived merit of properties, exploration results and budgets, mineral reserves and resource estimates, work programs, capital expenditures, timelines, strategic plans, market prices for precious and base metal, or other statements that are not statements of fact. When used in this news release, words such as “estimate,” “intend,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “will”, “believe”, “potential” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which, by their very nature, are not guarantees of the Company’s future operational or financial performance, and are subject to risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause the Company’s actual results, performance, prospects or opportunities to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and factors may include, but are not limited to unavailability of financing, failure to identify commercially viable mineral reserves, fluctuations in the market valuation for commodities, difficulties in obtaining required approvals for the development of a mineral project, increased regulatory compliance costs, expectations of project funding by joint venture partners and other factors.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this news release or as of the date otherwise specifically indicated herein. Due to risks and uncertainties, including the risks and uncertainties identified in this news release, and other risk factors and forward-looking statements listed in the Company’s MD&A for the quarter ended September 30, 2024 (the “MD&A”), and the most recently filed Annual Information Form (“AIF”) for the year ended December 31, 2023, actual events may differ materially from current expectations. More information about the Company, including the MD&A, the AIF and financial statements of the Company, is available on SEDAR at www.sedarplus.ca and on the SEC’s EDGAR website at www.sec.gov.
Vancouver, British Columbia–(Newsfile Corp. – January 8, 2025) – Emperor Metals Inc. (CSE: AUOZ) (OTCQB: EMAUF) (FSE: 9NH) (“Emperor“) is pleased to share additional results from its 2024 drilling program. The program included 8,166 meters of drilling across 19 new drill holes, and assays of approximately 8,000 meters of historical core. To date, 70% of the new drilling assays have been reported, but only 35% of the total assays for the 2024 season (combined 2024 drilling and historical core resampling). All assays should be finalized by mid-February.
CEO John Florek commented: “The intersection of broad zones of multi-gram gold (Au) mineralization with visible gold within theconceptual open-pit model is highly encouraging for future open-pit mining economics. These results highlight significant opportunities in poorly drilled areas within the defined conceptual open-pit model. This reinforces the potential to optimize and expand the currently understood boundaries of potentially viable mining for this deposit. This additional high-grade mineralization, once fully defined, will be vital to increasing our open-pit head grade for potential future mining and our upcoming Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) expected in Q1 of 2025.”
Highlights:
DQ24-11 intersects 24.8 meters (m) of 1.8 g/t Au and 56.1 m of 0.5 g/t Au which expands on the low-grade bulk tonnage in the Conceptual Open Pit.
DQ24-12 intersected 21.7 m of 7.2 g/t Au within a broader interval of 38.3 m of 4.1 g/t Au within an area of limited drilling in Emperor’s conceptual open pit model.
DQ24-12 intersects 23.5 m of 1.2 g/t Au (within a broader interval of 68.3 m of 0.6 g/t Au) (see Figure 1 and 2).
Full results for DQ24-10 to DQ24-11 and partial results for DQ24-12 have been released from SGS Laboratories (see Table 1 intercept highlights). These results continue to identify significant potential for resource expansion within and along strike of the open pit concept through previously unidentified low grade bulk tonnage zones and discoveries of high-grade lenses containing visible gold within the conceptual open-pit model (Figure 1 and 2).
Emperor is targeting a multi-million-ounce resource in a combination of conceptual open pit and underground mining scenarios. The Property hosts a historical inferred mineral resource estimate of 727,000 ounces of gold at a grade of 5.42 g/t Au.1,2 Emperor is committed to delivering a new Mineral Resource Estimate in Q1 of 2025.
The 2024 drilling continues to validate low-grade bulk-tonnage and high-grade mineralization inside and external to the conceptual open-pit concept.
DQ24-11
Emperor is encouraged by the intersection of multiple mineralized zones in DQ24-11, highlighting significant expansion potential. Notably, Drillhole DQ24-11, located within the conceptual open-pit concept area, revealed a broad interval of 56.1 meters grading 0.5 g/t Au in the hanging wall mafic volcanics, which host previously identified high-grade gold lenses. This zone exhibited moderate to strong shearing and pervasive alteration with carbonate and silica, accompanied by 2-5% pyrite throughout the interval.
Below the conceptual open-pit, Drillhole DQ24-11 intersected a broad zone of interlayered mafic, ultramafic, and quartz-feldspar porphyries within the footwall of the deposit. This interval included 24.8 meters grading 1.8 g/t Au, hosted in highly altered, mineralized mafic volcanics with 1-3% pyrite mineralization. The zone exhibits significant shearing and structural weakness, characterized by mineralized, brecciated mafic volcanic flows, altered and sheared fuchsite-bearing ultramafic rocks, and intrusions of altered quartz-feldspar porphyries. These features underscore the expansion potential of this zone and the robust, well-endowed mineralization identified along its 2.8 km strike length to date.
DQ24-12
Drillhole DQ24-12 intersected multiple zones of continuous low-grade, bulk-tonnage gold mineralization. Most notably, within the conceptual open-pit environment, it encountered 68.3 meters grading 0.6 g/t Au, including a higher-grade interval of 23.5 meters at 1.2 g/t Au. This mineralization, hosted in altered and locally brecciated quartz-feldspar porphyries containing 1-3% pyrite, represents incremental bulk-tonnage gold that will contribute significantly to the upcoming Q1 mineral resource model.
An exciting discovery within the conceptual open-pit environment revealed a 38.3-meter zone grading 4.1 g/t Au, including a high-grade interval of 21.7 meters at 7.2 g/t Au, in an area previously modeled as lower-grade mineralization. This zone contained visible gold, with an exceptional interval reporting 2.5 meters at 57.8 g/t Au (see Figure 3). The presence of visible gold not only validates previously reported positive metallurgical results (Press Release dated November 19, 2024) but also highlights the potential to significantly enhance the deposit’s grade through closer drill spacing. This improvement is expected to positively impact the project’s overall economics.
These findings are expected to make a significant contribution to the upcoming Q1 mineral resource estimate. A total of 35% of the assays for the 2024 season has been reported to date. By focusing on near-surface drilling for open-pit mining, Emperor aims to economically expand its resource base at lower grades compared to underground mining by targeting near-surface drilling.
Deposits in the region with currently active open pits have been economic at grades equal 0.30 g/t Au (see Agnico Eagles press release dated Feb 15, 2024 – Detour Lake Deposit cut-off grade, pg. 52.)
Strategic Plan
The 2024 drilling campaign at Emperor’s Duquesne West Gold Project in Quebec continues to identify extensive low-grade bulk tonnage zones surrounding the previously known high grade areas. These latest results further solidify the project’s immense potential and underscore the company’s commitment to unlocking substantial value for its shareholders.
The 2024 season leverages advanced exploration techniques to test several scenarios to add ounces and/or expand the footprint:
1) Explore Lower Grade Discoveries: Target additional discoveries within the host rock containing high-grade gold lenses, focusing on the conceptual open-pit model.
2) Increase the Thickness of the High-Grade Lenses: Incorporate previously unaccounted lower-grade gold from the margins of high-grade lenses to enhance their overall thickness.
3) Expand Mineralized Zones: Extend the lateral footprint of mineralized zones along strike and dip.
4) Discover New Zones: Explore potential new zones not yet included in the conceptual open-pit model, with a particular focus on eastward expansion.
These latest results continue to build on the strong momentum generated by last year’s drilling program and confirm the presences of extensive low grade bulk tonnage zones surrounding the known high-grade regions.
Table 1 – Intercept Highlights- Host Structures are interpreted to be steeply dipping and true widths are generally estimated to 90%.
Hole No.
From (m)
To (m)
Interval (m)
Au (g/t Au)
DQ24-101
92.3
94.3
2
0.13
94.3
95.9
1.6
0.53
Wt. Avg.
3.6
0.3
DQ24-101
104.1
105.5
1.4
0.49
105.5
106.9
1.4
0.12
Wt. Avg.
2.8
0.3
Hole No.
From (m)
To (m)
Interval (m)
Au (g/t Au)
DQ24-111
162.1
163.1
1
0.81
163.1
164.45
1.35
0.17
164.45
165.8
1.35
0.48
165.8
168
2.2
0.5
168
170.2
2.2
0.24
170.2
171.2
1
2.25
171.2
172.2
1
0.13
Note2
172.2
173.2
1
0.005
173.2
174.2
1
0.51
174.2
175.2
1
1.04
175.2
176.2
1
0.27
176.2
177.2
1
0.89
177.2
178.2
1
0.03
178.2
179.2
1
0.03
179.2
180.2
1
0.93
180.2
181.2
1
1.67
181.2
182.2
1
0.39
182.2
183.2
1
1.18
183.2
184.2
1
0.91
184.2
185.2
1
0.68
185.2
186.2
1
0.08
186.2
187.2
1
1.11
187.2
188.2
1
1.17
188.2
189.2
1
0.09
189.2
190.2
1
0.07
190.2
191.2
1
0.05
191.2
192.2
1
0.19
192.2
193.2
1
0.9
193.2
194.2
1
0.26
Note2
194.2
195.2
1
0.005
Note2
195.2
196.2
1
0.005
Note2
196.2
197.2
1
0.005
Note2
197.2
198.2
1
0.005
Note2
198.2
199.2
1
0.005
Note2
199.2
200.2
1
0.005
Note2
200.2
201.2
1
0.005
201.2
202.2
1
0.1
202.2
203.2
1
0.01
203.2
204.2
1
0.06
Note2
204.2
205.2
1
0.005
205.2
206.2
1
0.01
206.2
207.2
1
0.005
Note2
207.2
208.2
1
0.005
208.2
209.2
1
0.01
209.2
210.2
1
0.23
210.2
211.2
1
0.005
211.2
212.2
1
1.05
212.2
213.2
1
4.33
213.2
214.2
1
0.07
214.2
215.2
1
0.04
215.2
216.2
1
0.6
216.2
217.2
1
0.62
217.2
218.2
1
2.14
Wt. Avg.
56.1
0.5
Including (170.2 to188.2 m)
18
0.7
Including (179.2 to188.2 m)
9
0.9
Including (179.2 to188.2 m)
7
1.3
DQ24-111
233.2
234.2
1
0.21
234.2
235.2
1
0.28
235.2
236.2
1
0.54
236.2
237.2
1
0.46
Wt. Avg.
4
0.4
DQ24-111
349.3
350.3
1
0.75
350.3
351.3
1
0.02
Note2
351.3
352.3
1
0.005
Note2
352.3
353.3
1
0.005
353.3
354.3
1
0.06
354.3
355.3
1
0.81
355.3
356.3
1
1.47
356.3
357.3
1
0.73
357.3
358.3
1
0.25
358.3
359.3
1
0.11
359.3
360.3
1
0.03
360.3
361.3
1
0.06
361.3
362.3
1
0.11
362.3
363.3
1
0.06
363.3
364.3
1
0.03
Note2
364.3
365.3
1
0.005
365.3
366.3
1
0.02
366.3
367.3
1
0.03
367.3
368.3
1
0.23
368.3
369.3
1
0.55
369.3
370.3
1
0.04
370.3
371.3
1
0.06
371.3
372.3
1
0.02
372.3
373.3
1
0.05
373.3
374.3
1
0.15
374.3
375.3
1
0.63
375.3
376.3
1
0.65
376.3
377.3
1
1.37
377.3
378.3
1
0.02
378.3
379.3
1
0.14
379.3
380.3
1
0.41
380.3
381.3
1
0.04
381.3
382.3
1
0.3
382.3
383.3
1
0.28
Wt. Avg.
34
0.3
Including (349.3 to358.3 m)
9
0.5
Including (374.3 to383.3 m)
9
0.4
Including (354.3 to358..3 m)
4
0.8
Including (354.3 to357..3 m)
3
1.0
DQ24-111
432.6
433.6
1
0.51
433.6
434.6
1
5.52
434.6
435.6
1
3.71
435.6
436.6
1
0.89
436.6
437.6
1
0.31
437.6
438.6
1
2.21
Wt. Avg.
6
2.2
DQ24-111
466.3
467.3
1
0.39
467.3
468.3
1
1.53
468.3
469.3
1
0.33
469.3
470.3
1
0.25
470.3
471.3
1
0.15
471.3
472.3
1
0.1
472.3
473.3
1
0.18
Wt. Avg.
7
0.4
DQ24-111
510.5
513
2.5
0.24
513
515.5
2.5
3.23
Wt. Avg.
5
1.7
DQ24-111
580.2
581.65
1.45
0.49
Note2
581.65
583.3
1.65
0.005
583.3
585.2
1.9
0.31
Wt. Avg.
5
0.3
DQ24-111
614.5
615.5
1
0.21
615.5
616.5
1
0.2
616.5
617.5
1
0.06
617.5
618.5
1
0.74
618.5
619.7
1.2
0.26
619.7
621.1
1.4
0.17
621.1
622.5
1.4
0.02
622.5
623.5
1
0.005
623.5
624.5
1
0.21
624.5
625.5
1
0.1
Note2
625.5
626.5
1
0.005
626.5
627.5
1
0.03
627.5
628.5
1
2.41
628.5
629.5
1
26.63
629.5
630.5
1
11.82
630.5
631.5
1
0.02
631.5
632.5
1
0.05
632.5
633.5
1
0.12
633.5
635.3
1.8
0.04
635.3
636.3
1
0.5
636.3
637.3
1
0.62
637.3
638.3
1
0.31
638.3
639.3
1
0.21
Wt. Avg.
24.8
1.8
Including (617.5 to 638.5 m)
20.8
2.1
Including (617.5 to 638.5 m)
10.8
3.9
Including (627.5 to 630.5 m)
3
13.6
DQ24-111
729.6
730.6
1
0.54
730.6
731.6
1
0.61
731.6
732.9
1.3
0.15
Wt. Avg.
3.3
0.4
Hole No.
From (m)
To (m)
Interval (m)
Au (g/t Au)
DQ24-121
155.5
156.5
1
4.65
156.5
157.5
1
8
157.5
158.6
1.1
1.13
158.6
161.1
2.5
1.34
161.1
163.6
2.5
0.01
163.6
166.1
2.5
0.04
Note2
166.1
168.3
2.2
0.005
168.3
170.6
2.3
1.97
170.6
173.1
2.5
1.09
173.1
174.55
1.45
0.78
174.55
176
1.45
0.49
176
177
1
0.18
177
178
1
0.49
178
179
1
0.75
179
180
1
0.03
180
181.8
1.8
0.06
Note2
181.8
183.6
1.8
0.005
183.6
184.6
1
0.1
184.6
185.6
1
0.81
185.6
186.6
1
0.04
186.6
187.6
1
0.11
187.6
188.6
1
0.05
188.6
189.6
1
0.06
189.6
190.6
1
0.09
190.6
191.6
1
0.04
191.6
192.6
1
0.02
192.6
193.6
1
0.02
193.6
194.6
1
1.88
194.6
195.6
1
0.1
195.6
196.6
1
0.18
196.6
197.6
1
0.01
197.6
198.6
1
0.05
198.6
199.6
1
0.03
199.6
200.6
1
0.05
200.6
201.6
1
0.21
201.6
202.6
1
0.52
202.6
203.6
1
0.84
203.6
204.6
1
0.59
204.6
205.6
1
0.43
205.6
206.6
1
0.04
206.6
207.6
1
0.05
207.6
208.6
1
0.07
208.6
209.6
1
0.02
209.6
210.6
1
0.03
210.6
211.6
1
0.02
211.6
212.6
1
0.01
212.6
213.6
1
0.05
213.6
214.6
1
2.13
214.6
215.6
1
0.02
215.6
216.6
1
0.04
216.6
217.6
1
0.005
217.6
218.8
1.2
0.06
218.8
221.3
2.5
0.03
221.3
223.8
2.5
1.23
Wt. Avg.
68.3
0.6
Including (155.5 to 179 m)
23.5
1.2
Including (155.5 to 161.1 m)
5.6
3.1
DQ24-121
258.8
261.3
2.5
0.39
261.3
263.8
2.5
0.13
263.8
266.3
2.5
0.02
Note2
266.3
268.8
2.5
0.005
268.8
271.3
2.5
0.01
Note2
271.3
273.8
2.5
0.005
273.8
275.4
1.6
0.02
275.4
276.4
1
6.77
276.4
277.4
1
1.65
277.4
278.4
1
0.09
278.4
279.4
1
0.06
279.4
280.4
1
0.02
280.4
281.7
1.3
0.02
281.7
283.05
1.35
1.47
283.05
284.4
1.35
0.07
284.4
286.9
2.5
0.01
286.9
289.4
2.5
57.8
289.4
291.9
2.5
0.005
291.9
294.1
2.2
0.13
294.1
295.1
1
0.13
295.1
296.1
1
0.09
296.1
297.1
1
0.21
Wt. Avg.
38.3
4.1
Including (275.4 to 297.1 m)
21.7
7.2
Including (275.4 to 289.4 m)
14
11.1
DQ24-121
346.4
347.4
1
0.4
347.4
348.4
1
0.13
348.4
349.4
1
0.06
349.4
350.4
1
0.28
350.4
351.4
1
0.02
351.4
352.6
1.2
1.1
352.6
354.9
2.3
0.13
354.9
355.9
1
0.09
355.9
356.9
1
0.56
356.9
357.9
1
0.23
357.9
360.4
2.5
0.32
360.4
361.9
1.5
0.05
361.9
362.9
1
1.14
362.9
363.9
1
0.32
363.9
364.9
1
1.22
364.9
365.9
1
0.74
Note2
365.9
366.9
1
0.005
366.9
368.1
1.2
0.29
Wt. Avg.
21.7
0.4
Including (351.4-365.9 m)
14.5
0.5
Including (193.6-365.9 m)
4
0.9
1Host Structures are interpreted to be steeply dipping and true widths are generally estimated to 90%.
2Value reported below detection limit of <0.01. Value was numerically halved to assign a real number.
Quality Assurance and Control
The Quality Assurance and Quality Control (QAQC) was conducted by Technominex, a geological contractor hired by Emperor Metals, which adheres to CIM Best Practices Guidelines for exploration related activities conducted at its facility in Rouyn Noranda, Quebec. The QA/QC procedures are overseen by a Qualified Person on site.
Emperor Metals QA/QC protocols are maintained through the insertion of certified reference material (standards), blanks and lab duplicates within the sample stream totaling approximately one QA/QC sample per 7 samples. Drill core is cut in-half with a diamond saw, with one-half placed in sealed bags with appropriate tags and shipped to the SGS Sudbury laboratory and the other half retained on site in the original core box. A dispatch list consists of 88 or 176 samples along with their corresponding QA/QC samples for a single batch. This allows complete batches (88 samples) for fire assay. A file for sample tracking records tags used and weights of sample bags shipped to the SGS Lakefield. Shipment is done by Manitoulin Transport and coordination by Technominex staff in Rouyn-Noranda
The third-party laboratory, SGS prep laboratory in Sudbury Ontario, processes the shipment of samples using standard sample preparation (code PRP91) and produces pulps from the specified samples. The pulps are then sent off to SGS Burnaby for analysis. Chain of custody is maintained from the drill to the submittal into the laboratory preparation facility all the way to analysis at the SGS Burnaby B.C. laboratory.
Analytical testing is performed by SGS laboratories in Burnaby, British Columbia. The entire sample is crushed to 75% passing 2mm, with a split of 500g pulverized to 85% passing 75 microns. Samples are then analyzed using Au – ore grade 50g Fire Assay, ICP-AES with reporting limits of 0.01 -100 part per million (ppm). High grade gold analysis based on the presence of visible gold or a fire assay result exceeding 100 ppm, are analyzed by Au – metallic screening, 1kg screened to 106μm, 50g fire assay, gravimetric, AAS or ICP-AES of entire plus fraction and duplicate analysis of minus fraction. Reporting limit 0.01ppm.
About the Duquesne West Gold Project
The Duquesne West Gold Property is located 32 km northwest of the city of Rouyn-Noranda and 10 km east of the town of Duparquet, Quebec, Canada. The property lies within the historic Duparquet gold mining camp in the southern portion of the Abitibi Greenstone Belt in the Superior Province.
Under an Option Agreement, Emperor agreed to acquire a 100% interest in a mineral claim package comprising 38 claims covering approximately 1,389 ha, located in the Duparquet Township of Quebec (the “Duquesne West Property”) from Duparquet Assets Ltd., a 50% owned subsidiary of Globex Mining Enterprises Inc. (GMX-TSX). For further information on the Duquesne West Property and Option Agreement, see Emperor’s press release dated Oct. 12, 2022, available on SEDAR.
The Property hosts a historical inferred mineral resource estimate of 727,000 ounces of gold at a grade of 5.42 g/t Au.1,2 The mineral resource estimate predates modern Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (CIM) guidelines and a Qualified Person on behalf of Emperor has not reviewed or verified the mineral resource estimate, therefore it is considered historical in nature and is reported solely to provide an indication of the magnitude of mineralization that could be present on the property. The gold system remains open for resource identification and expansion.
A reinterpretation of the existing geological model was created using AI and Machine Learning. This model shows the opportunity for additional discovery of ounces by revealing gold trends unknown to previous workers and the potential to expand the resource along significant gold- endowed structural zones.
Multiple scenarios exist to expand additional resources which include:
1 Watts, Griffis, and McOuat Consulting Geologists and Engineers, Oct. 20, 2011, Technical Report and Mineral Resource Estimate Update for the Duquesne-Ottoman Property, Quebec, Canada, for XMet Inc.
2 Power-Fardy and Breede, 2011. The Mineral Resource Estimate (MRE) constructed in 2011 is considered historical in nature as it was constructed prior to the most recent CIM standards (2014) and guidelines (2019) for mineral resources. In addition, the economic factors used to demonstrate reasonable prospects of eventual economic extraction for the MRE have changed since 2011. A qualified person has not done sufficient work to consider the MRE as a current MRE. Emperor is not treating the historical MRE as a current mineral resource. The reader is cautioned not to treat it, or any part of it, as a current mineral resource.
QP Disclosure
The technical content for the Duquesne West Project in this news release has been reviewed and approved by John Florek, M.Sc., P.Geol., a Qualified Person pursuant to CIM guidelines.
About Emperor Metals Inc.
Emperor Metals Inc. is an innovative Canadian mineral exploration company focused on developing high-quality gold properties situated in the Canadian Shield. For more information, please refer to SEDAR (www.sedar.com), under the Company’s profile.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
s/ “John Florek”
John Florek, M.Sc., P.Geol President, CEO and Director Emperor Metals Inc.
Certain statements made and information contained herein may constitute “forward-looking information” and “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of applicable Canadian and United States securities legislation. These statements and information are based on facts currently available to the company and there is no assurance that the actual results will meet management’s expectations. Forward-looking statements and information may be identified by such terms as “anticipates,” “believes,” “targets,” “estimates,” “plans,” “expects,” “may,” “will,” “could” or “would.”
Forward-looking statements and information contained herein are based on certain factors and assumptions regarding, among other things, the estimation of mineral resources and reserves, the realization of resource and reserve estimates, metal prices, taxation, the estimation, timing and amount of future exploration and development, capital and operating costs, the availability of financing, the receipt of regulatory approvals, environmental risks, title disputes and other matters. While the company considers its assumptions to be reasonable as of the date hereof, forward-looking statements and information are not guarantees of future performance and readers should not place undue importance on such statements as actual events and results may differ materially from those described herein. The company does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements or information except as may be required by applicable securities laws.
