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Critical Metals CEO expects Greenland deals to be closed in Q1 of 2026.
Critical Metals' top boss said that the company expects to complete the remaining 25% of "offtake agreements" for its Tanbreez project in Greenland by early 2026. It will also be open to investment from Washington. Tony Sage, CEO of Rare Earths, said that the Middle East's interest, which includes potential partners in Saudi Arabia and other energy-rich countries such as Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, is a reflection of the efforts made by states with high energy costs to develop a processing capacity for rare earths, supported by lower electricity costs and quicker permits than the U.S. And Europe. Sage says that the company has pre-sold 75 percent of its planned production, divided between Europe and the U.S., in order to diversify supply to reduce geopolitical risks. Trump's administration is intensifying efforts to secure U.S. mineral supply chains, and has shifted some federal funding from grants to direct equity stakes. Washington wants to reduce its reliance on the market leader China. Trump stated last week that Greenland is vital to U.S. national security, and that an envoy that he appointed for the island will "lead" the charge. Four people with knowledge of the matter said in October that Trump administration officials had discussed taking a stake on Critical Metals. We would welcome it even though we did not ask for it. Sage stated that they had asked for a grant through the Defence Production Act. The report said that the Trump administration had considered converting this grant into equity if it were to be awarded. The White House has not responded to a request for comment. Sage stated that Critical Metals will begin mining in 2027 and first production is expected to start by mid-2028. Greenland's capital costs will likely total $500 million, while downstream processing facilities could cost up to $1 billion. Sage also said that the Austrian project for lithium remained on hold until the price of the battery metal recovered. Arunima Kumra in Mumbai, Ernest Scheyder for additional reporting; Veronica Brown and Anil d'Silva for editing.
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The blue-chip FTSE100 stalls at a record high and seals the strongest annual run since 16 years
The UK's FTSE 100 Index paused at record levels on Thursday in the final stretch to 2025, wrapping up its biggest annual gain in sixteen years in a shortened session. The blue-chip FTSE 100 closed 0.2% lower than the previous day, when it had reached a new record. The domestically-focused FTSE 250 midcaps index?declined 0.4%. Markets closed early on January 1 to avoid the New Year's holiday. The FTSE 100, Britain's blue chip index, outperformed major global markets by 2025. This was boosted?by the expectation of more Bank of England rate reductions, its strength in financials,?miners, and its appeal as a relatively inexpensive diversifier during periods of global volatility. The index increased by more than 21% in the past year. This is its best performance since 2009 and a fifth consecutive annual gain. Comparatively, the pan-European STOXX 600 rose 16.6% while the U.S. S&P 500 gained 17.2%. In a close vote earlier in December, the BoE announced its fourth 25 basis-point reduction of the year, and indicated that the pace of easing, which was already slow, could be slowed further. Resources-heavy FTSE 100 gained support from mining companies Fresnillo and Endeavour?Mining, as well as Antofagasta, who benefited from surging prices for gold, silver, and copper this year. Diageo, the world's leading spirits producer, and Bunzl, the largest business supplies distributor, both fell by around 37%. Other record highs were out of reach. The midcap index rose 9% in 2025, but remained almost 8% below the peak of 2021. Meanwhile, the FTSE Small Cap Index rose 10% and closed just 1.5% shy of its 2021 record.
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Copper prices fall at the end of the year after 2025's record high.
The dollar strengthened on Wednesday, and some investors took advantage of thin liquidity to profit. A year-end rally had pushed the metal up to a new record this week. It was now on track for its largest annual gain in sixteen years. The benchmark three-month copper price on the London Metal Exchange fell 1% by 1055 GMT to $12,425 per metric ton, after hitting a record high of $12,960 Monday. "We have seen a reaction in the last few days to what happened on 2025. The dollar has strengthened after?this years weakness, and copper is retreating from its recent highs," stated Dan Smith, managing Director at Commodity Market Analytics. Copper, which is used for power and construction, jumped 42% this year as mine disruptions fueled concerns over a tightening supply. The rally was also driven by a weaker dollar, which makes dollar-denominated goods cheaper for holders of foreign currencies. Speculators who anticipated a surge in demand due to the AI boom and the energy transition bought commodities. SHORT-TERM SESSIONAL SUPPORT Smith stated that seasonality would provide short-term support to copper in the physical market. The first quarter is usually supportive of the industrial cycle, with stock builds ups before summer. The demand for metals in China, which is the world's largest metal consumer, continues to be higher than expected. He added that imports between January and November are only down 3% on a year-on-year basis. Yangshan Copper Premium The price of copper in China, which is a measure of Chinese demand for imported copper, has ended the year at $51 per ton after reaching a three-month peak of $55 last weekend. The outlook for copper in the year 2026 is dependent on the policies of U.S. president Donald Trump, as U.S. Tariffs are driving the CME Premium to the LME. The premium on the metal has led to a tightening of availability in traditional consumption centres. "I anticipate that the inflows will continue in the short term. Smith stated that he does not expect a sudden reversal of these flows, since they are largely driven by arbitrage, and still subject to U.S. policies, which can be difficult to predict. Other LME metals saw aluminium rise 0.2% to $ 2,984.50 per ton. Zinc fell 0.8% at $3,099.50. Lead gained 0.4% at $2,018.50. Tin dropped 2.0% to $41,140. Nickel lost 0.6% at $16,715.
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The London blue-chip FTSE 100 is on course to end the strongest year since 16
The UK's FTSE 100 Index paused at record levels on Thursday in the final stretch to 2025, hoping to close out its biggest annual gain in sixteen years in a shortened session. Blue-chip FTSE 100 remained flat at 0902 GMT, after having closed on a record high a day earlier. The midcap index, which is primarily focused on the domestic market, fell 0.3%. The trading activity was low, with the markets expected to close at half-past noon on January 1, ahead of New Year's Day. After years of underperformance the blue-chip FTSE 100 will 'outpace major global markets? in 2025. This is due to expectations of more Bank of England rate reductions, strength in financials, miners, and its appeal as a cheap diversifier in times of global volatility. The index has risen by more than 21% in the past year. It is on track to achieve its best performance since 2009, and a fifth consecutive annual gain. Comparatively, the pan-European STOXX 600 rose 16.6% while the U.S. S&P 500 gained 17.2%. In a vote that was narrowly won, the BoE announced its fourth 25-basis point cut of the year, and signaled the pace of easing, which had already been gradual, could slow down further. The FTSE 100, which is a resource-heavy index, benefited from the'surging gold, copper and silver prices in this year. Bunzl, Diageo, and other business supplies distributors fell by around 37%, making them the index's worst laggards. (Reporting and editing by Nivedita Battacharjee in Bengaluru.)
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Iron ore gains in an annual recovery fueled by steel exports
Iron ore futures were traded in a narrow band on Wednesday but defied fears of a decline in the first quarter of 2025 on?the back of resilient demand from China, a top consumer of iron ore. The May contract for iron ore on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange closed the daytime trading 0.57% lower, at 789.5 Yuan ($112.97) per metric ton. However, it posted an annual increase of 1.3%. As of 0736 GMT the benchmark February iron ore traded on?the Singapore Exchange had risen 0.2% to $105.55 per ton. This represents a 5.1% annual gain. Prices for the main steelmaking ingredient were under pressure earlier this year due to expectations of a glut of supply and forecasts that demand would be weakened in China. Iron ore prices are still supported by China's consumption, even though the?crude-steel output is expected to drop below 1 billion tonnes this year. Cost competitiveness of blast furnace-based steelmaking kept operating rates high, boosting iron ore demand, although the cleaner electric-arc-furnace-based steelmakers had to scale down output when margins were squeezed by dwindling local demand and resilient ore prices. Steel exports are expected to reach a record in 2025, despite the increasing protectionist measures around the world. This will offset sagging Chinese property demand. Ore prices will be supported in the short term by a rush of steelmakers restocking ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays in February. The upside potential will be limited by a combination of sluggish demand for steel and rising?portside stocks. On Wednesday, the DCE showed mixed results for other steelmaking components. Coking coal was up 0.45% while?coke was down 1.25%. The benchmarks for steel on the Shanghai Futures Exchange have been moving sideways. Rebar fell by 0.48%. Hot-rolled coils dropped 0.52%. Wire rods gained 5.66%. Stainless steel firmed up 0.57%. $1 = 6.9883 Chinese Yuan (Reporting and editing by Sonia Cheema, Subhranshu Sahu and Ruth Chai)
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Sources say that China has set import quotas on naphtha for 2026.
Three trade sources said that China had allocated naphtha import allowances to the 'key importers' in the first batch for 2026. The volumes should remain essentially the same from this year onwards. According to two people, the state-owned Sinopec (22,4 million barrels) as well as CNOOC (2.11 million metric tonnes) were each allocated 2.52 million metrictons. One of the sources said that Ningbo Zhongjin Petrochemical owned by Rongsheng Petrochemical was allocated 750,000 tons. Sources declined to name themselves as they were not authorized to speak in public. Requests for comments from the Ministry of Commerce, Sinopec CNOOC, and Rongsheng Petrochemical were not immediately answered. Beijing controls the imports of naphtha (as a feedstock important for petrochemical production) via a quota-based system similar to that used in its crude and refined product exports. Sources said that Exxon Mobil, BASF and other foreign cracker companies would also receive significant quantities in the first batch. However, the exact volumes are not yet known. BASF announced on November 5 that it is in the process to start up its new 1 million-ton per annum?crackers and derivatives units in Zhanjiang in southern Guangdong Province. China imported 15.44 million tons in the first 11 months of this year. The 2025 quota is about 24 million tons. The 2025 quota had not been fully used. One of the sources stated that Beijing will release the second batch 2026 import quotas for naphtha in the middle next year. (Reporting and editing by Florence Tan, Thomas Derpinghaus and Siyi Liu; Reporting by Trixie YAP, Siyi Liu, and Sam Li)
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Copper to have biggest annual increase in 16 years and be the best performing base metal
The copper price was on track to make its largest annual gain since 2009. This makes it the best performing base metal. Supply concerns and the?prospects for surging demand due to the AI boom and the energy transition fueled a blistering rise. Red metal is a material that's widely used in construction and power sectors. It's gaining a lot of?investor? interest due to its role in energy transformation technologies, and the expanding infrastructure for artificial Intelligence and data centres. The benchmark three-month price of copper on the London Metal Exchange dipped by 0.49% at $12,497 a metric ton as of 0700 GMT. However, the LME was still set to finish the year with more than a 42% increase. The Shanghai Futures Exchange's most traded copper contract ended the day with a gain of 0.84%, or $14,057.78 per ton. This is a 33.27% increase this year. The rally in copper was fueled by mine?disruptions such as the suspension of Freeport’s flagship Grasberg Mine in Indonesia. The London benchmark hit a new record high of $12960 this week. Meanwhile, the Shanghai contract reached a new record of 10,2660 Yuan last week. As a result of the CME premium over the LME, which is largely driven by U.S. Tariffs, LME inventories have been depleted and copper stocks have been shifted to COMEX sheds. Copper stocks in COMEX warehouses According to the Tuesday exchange, the number of tons traded has risen to an all-time high, 490,722 tonnes, a 426.75% increase so far this year. The LME reported on warrant copper Volume at 149 475 tons, a decline of 44,91% on Monday. Supply concerns were also raised by China's plan for regulating its ever-expanding capacity to smelt copper and the top Chinese smelters plan to reduce output in 2026. Tin was on track to be the second biggest gainer among base metals. Benchmark LME three-month tin fell by 1.67% but was expected to end the year in a nearly 42% increase. Shanghai's most active tin posted a daily decline of 0.45% but ended the year with a gain of 30.42%. Tin gained as a result of supply disruptions from?Myanmar & Indonesia, which tightened flow into China's top consumer. Aluminium also won in 2025 due to China's cap on smelting. The London benchmark rose 0.44% and was on track for an annual gain of more than 17%, while the Shanghai contract ended the day up 2.25, bringing the year to a 14.65% increase. Nickel is also expected to have its first annual gain since 2023 as the Indonesian Government's plan of reducing 2026 mining quotas to support prices fueled a dramatic rally. London nickel fell 1.35% to $16,600 per ton on Wednesday, but is still on track to finish the year with a gain of more than 8%. Shanghai nickel closed the daytime trade up 2.44%, at 132.850 yuan per ton. This represents a 4.93% annual gain. Zinc fell 0.24%, while lead rose 0.22%. Lead fell 0.66% and zinc 0.06% among the SHFE base metals.
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Robex, a Canadian company, has approved a $1.45 billion merger between Predictive Discover and Robex in Australia
Predictive Discovery, an Australian company, said that shareholders of Canada’s Robex Resources had approved a merger worth A$2,17 billion ($1,45 billion), paving the path to creating a mid-tier gold producer in West Africa. Around 94.54% of the votes cast at Robex's meeting special backed the agreement under which Predictive acquired the Canadian gold mining company, with Robex shareholders getting 7.862 fully-paid ordinary shares in Predictive per Robex share. After the merger, Robex shareholders would own approximately 46% of combined entity. The tie-up will create a "more diversified" gold producer in West Africa. Combining Predictive's Bankan Project with Robex Kiniero Mine, which recently began commissioning activities. The assets are located only 30? These assets, located just 30? Synergies According to LSEG, the merged entity's market capitalization would be around $2.4 billion. The company's shares fell as much as 5.2% in the morning session, before closing the day down 3.9%. Investors are not influenced by headlines, but rather uncertainty. Greg Boland is a market strategy consultant with Moomoo Australia. He said that the fall in share prices reflects dilution, integration and execution risk, as well as profit-taking following a strong rise in gold. Predictive Mining, based in Western Australia was once the center of a possible bidding war with Perseus Mining, another miner, also circling around the firm. Perseus, the gold miner, had made a bid for Predictive in December that valued it at A$2.1billion, which was higher than Robex’s A$1.32billion offer from earlier in October. On December 11, Perseus ceased its pursuit of Predictive when Robex, a rival bidder, increased his offer to A$2,17 billion. The deal is made?during a period of surging gold price, which has repeatedly reached record highs. The gold bullion gained more than 60% this year, and was on track to have its best year ever.
US farmers shun buyers, hold on to unsold corn as costs depression
South Dakota farmer Eric Kroupa got a flurry of calls from grain dealerships and ethanol plants asking to purchase the corn locked away in his bins when prices neared 41/2month peaks last month.
He offered some, however is waiting for purchasers to up their bids to sell more. Prices have actually considering that reduced and are hovering simply above three-year lows published in February.
There's a great deal of corn out there however it's sitting in the farmers' bins and not the end-users' hands, Kroupa stated.
After stockpiling crops for much of this season due to low rates, numerous farmers in the world's biggest corn-producing nation continue to shun purchasers regardless of couple of signs that prices will improve. Grain products are sufficient and early rankings of summertime crops are the best in years.
A larger-than-normal volume of grain stays unsold, according to interviews with 15 grain farmers across the U.S. Midwest. By September 2025, U.S. corn inventories are anticipated to reach a six-year high, according to the U.S. Agriculture Department.
Uncertainty around if and when farmers will liquidate their. stocks could produce choppy grain rates, both in money and. futures markets.
Farmers danger waiting too long to sell as a flood of freshly. harvested grain is most likely to drag down rates this October and. November. Buyers, aware the harvest is coming, still require enough. products to keep processing plants running and exports streaming. this summertime.
An economic stare-down in between growers and grain purchasers is. taking shape, stated Angie Setzer, a partner at Michigan-based. Consus Ag.
I've never ever seen anything like it in my life. No one's. engaged, not the farmer and not the consumer, Setzer said.
Many growers offered simply enough this spring to cover. short-term cash-flow needs, Setzer stated. Some are relying on. unfavorable weather this summer season to set off cost rallies, though. absolutely nothing is ensured.
Three farmers informed they persuaded seed and chemical. suppliers to minimize late costs, allowing them to hang on to their. crop. Others, including Kroupa, use the futures market to hedge. the risk of additional rate declines.
On the other hand, commercial buyers are banking on lower prices. this summer due to the grain glut, analysts said.
USDA will use an update of just how much corn sits on farms in. a quarterly stocks report on June 28.
U.S. corn products stored at the farm level stood at simply. over 5 billion bushels as of March 1, the second-highest on-farm. stocks on record for that date, according to USDA. On-farm. stocks represented 60.85% of the entire U.S. corn supply, the. biggest share considering that 2005.
Some purchasers are trying to pry grain far from farmers by. providing premiums for instant products to fill near-term. requirements, but are decreasing prices as soon as those orders are filled.
Archer-Daniels-Midland on Friday used farmers a. 7-cent-per-bushel premium for corn provided to its Decatur,. Illinois, processing plant by Sunday versus later in the month. At ADM's Cedar Rapids, Iowa, plant, that premium is 15 cents.
Such deals of a few additional cents per bushel can amount to. thousands of dollars per grain deal.
Indiana crop and cattle producer Samuel Ebenkamp cleared one. corn bin with sales throughout an early-May rally, but chose to hold. the rest. He'll sell more if prices rally again, but he's. holding tight to ensure his cattle feed needs are covered up until. the fall harvest.
His neighbors are making similar financial estimations, he. said.
There is a crazy quantity of on-farm storage here,. Ebenkamp said. It doesn't appear anybody's in a rush to offer.
Farmers are still holding a larger-than-normal amount of. their last harvest while need for corn has actually been fairly strong,. analysts stated.
Ethanol margins are still fairly excellent. Feed margins are. great. So there is need out there. And as you look at the. export sector, it's going to be improving, said Dan Basse,. president of Chicago-based consultancy AgResource Co.
. How they fill that demand this summer is unclear, Basse. said. They are short-bought and the farmer is still long. Who. is going to blink first?.
(source: Reuters)