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Gold prices rise as the markets prepare for Fed guidance regarding easing path
Investors were preparing for the?expected Federal Reserve rate reduction in December and looking for'signs' that policymakers would outline a more accommodative path at their two-day conference, which begins later on Tuesday. By 1130 GMT, spot gold had risen 0.36%. U.S. Gold Futures for February Delivery rose 0.4% to $4232.9 an ounce. The path of least opposition for gold is to the 'upside', said ActivTrades Analyst Ricardo Evangelista. Evangelista said that gold prices could return to $4,300 in the near term if the Fed confirms dovish 'expectations. According to CME's FedWatch Tool the markets now give a 89.4% probability of a rate?cut of 25 basis points when the Fed's policy meeting concludes on Wednesday. But the focus will be any signals regarding the future. Gold is a non-yielding asset that tends to be favoured by lower interest rates. Data released last week showed that the U.S. The Fed's preferred inflation indicator, Personal Consumption Spending Price Index, was in line with expectations. Consumer sentiment also improved in December. The private payrolls in November showed the sharpest decline since more than two-and-a half years. However, jobless claims dropped to a three year low during the week ending November 28. Silver rose by 0.74%, to $58.56 an ounce. Analysts cite tight physical supply, depleted inventories, and supportive macro conditions as the primary drivers of this rally. They are also aided by expectations of Fed rate reductions and a favorable macro environment. Dat Tong is a senior financial markets analyst at Exness. He said that silver prices may consolidate into a broad range of $55-$60 by year's end, depending on the monetary policy expectations. Platinum rose 0.07%, to $1.643.43, while palladium increased 0.4%, to $1.471.06. Reporting by Arunima Kumar, Pablo Sinha, and Ishaan Arora from Bengaluru, Editing by Sherry Jacobi-Phillips (Louise Heavens), Sharon Singleton, and Sharon Singleton
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Greenland grants mining permit to EU-backed graphite mine for 30 years
Greenland issued a 30 year exploitation license to London-listed GreenRoc Mining Plc, for the 'Amitsoq graphite deposits. This is the third permit that the Arctic island government has granted this year due to the increased global demand for essential minerals. Greenland has been slow in developing its mining industry despite having a wealth of natural resources. This is due to the regulatory obstacles and lack of financing. Greenland's mining sector has seen an increase in activity this year due to the increased interest of the U.S. under?the Trump Administration. The European Raw Materials Alliance is backing the project. It aims to produce graphite - a mineral that's deemed crucial for the energy shift and widely used in batteries for electric cars and defence technology. Amitsoq, a mine in southern Greenland that was last in production in 1922, is one of?the world's highest grade graphite deposits. It will produce 80,000 tonnes per year of graphite from the ore. The mining operations will tap flake-graphite that is high in crystallinity and suitable for anodes of lithium-ion batteries. Mineral Resources Minister Naaja Naaja-Nathielsen stated that the exploitation license was the result of a focused political effort to make Greenland a more attractive place for investments while taking seriously the concerns of the people and the environment. The European Union has granted GreenRoc Amitsoq's project Strategic Project Status under the Critical Raw Materials Act. The EU and NATO have both designated graphite a critical raw materials, especially since China, the dominant supplier of graphite, tightened its export controls on the mineral in the last month. Stefan Bernstein, CEO of GreenRoc, said: "Graphite is a raw material that Europe needs to secure its access to." The permit was issued on Monday. Reporting by Jacob GronholtPedersen, Editing by Ali Williams
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FT reports that China will restrict access to Nvidia H200 chips despite Trump's export approval.
Beijing will limit access to Nvidia H200 advanced chips, despite the?U.S. The Financial Times reported Tuesday that President Donald Trump had decided to allow exports of the technology to China. According to a report, regulators in Beijing are discussing ways to allow limited access to Nvidia H200 chips, the second-best generation artificial intelligence chip from Nvidia. This would be a major obstacle for Nvidia, and other leading?U.S. After Trump's announcement on Monday, chipmakers are now able to target the China market. Nvidia's shares, which were up as much as 2 percent in premarket trade, retreated after the report, and ended with a gain of 0.6%. The company did not respond immediately to a request for a comment about the report. Beijing is retaliating against American restrictions by pushing back on the use of U.S. technologies, particularly Nvidia chips. Nvidia has been unable to grow in one of the largest markets for AI chips, China. Trump stated in a Monday post on?Truth Social that the export of H200 chips would be allowed?with a 25 percent fee on such sales. Ipek Ozkardeskaya is a senior analyst with Swissquote Bank. She said that the approval may only have 'limited impact' on Nvidia’s business in China, unless they are allowed to export other chip lines, such as Blackwell and Rubin. In premarket trading, shares of AMD and Intel also saw their gains halved and were last up 0.3%. Nvidia's gains this year are nearly 40% higher than the 16.4% increase in the S&P 500 index. (Reporting from Kanchana Chkravarty, Bengaluru. Additional reporting by Arsheeya Bajiwa. Editing by Arun K. Koyyur.)
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Workers and Chilean regulators flagged the risk of Teck's Quebrada Blanca Dam
Documents reviewed by the. Five complaints were filed between July 28 and august 8 about the cracks and leaks. Teck has cut the production guidance for Quebrada Blanca because of a tailings embankment problem that's been occurring since 2024. Teck responded to questions by saying that the tailings dam was stable and safe and construction is progressing. Teck said that there was no risk to the employees or the facility's safety. The documents obtained through a request for public records from Sernageomin also show Teck's response to the regulator, stating that the problems had been resolved and that the workers were no longer at risk. Initial concerns of workers were a result of a leak in late July. Sernageomin received a letter from a worker on July 28 stating that the dam wall was leaking. Sernageomin said that the inspection of August 1 was partly prompted by this complaint as well as a second complaint about lack of personal protective equipment. Workers continued to complain in the days that followed, including starting on August 3 about a large crack along the top wall. One complaint stated that the information provided by the company was not clear. Sernageomin received a letter from another person: "Teck employees ignore all that is happening and don't want stop producing." I beg you to come to work." Sernageomin inspections conducted on August 1 and 2 identified a horizontal crack that ran 240 meters (790 feet) across the top of the main wall. This left an 18-centimeter hole. The inspection also discovered pools of water near the base of the dam wall and criticised Teck for failing to report the problems quickly. In a signed inspection report by Sernageomin representatives and Teck representatives, the company stated that it must notify the service immediately of any incidents. In a report of follow-up dated 5 August, Sernageomin stated: "This Service is concerned with what was observed on the field in regards to operational findings on deposit wall. Specifically the water seepage on the crest." According to documents reviewed by, Teck began sending weekly monitoring reports to Sernageomin in early August. Teck stated in its reports, letters, and presentations to Sernageomin as well as the minutes of weekly meetings held with representatives of regulators that it had conducted drills for scenarios of structural collapse and was preparing a root cause analysis of the leaks and cracks. Teck said the cracks which appeared at the end of July were normal for this type dam construction. They were repaired quickly. It also fixed a leaky pipeline that "resulted" in water discharge around that time. Teck stated that "work is proceeding as planned to allow full ramp-up for QB." Analysts believe that the problems at Quebrada blanca are a major reason why Teck sought a merger between Anglo American and Teck, which would allow them to share operations with the nearby Collahuasi Mine. Anglo American said that it supported Teck's Quebrada Blanca strategy and had experience with similar tailings problems at its Quellaveco Mine in Peru. Teck shareholders will vote on the transaction on Tuesday. Analysts say that if the combined company fails to achieve its output targets in the next two years, it could affect the valuation of the new company. Teck did not mention the Sernageomin Inspection, the crack, or leaks in its financial disclosures. Teck has addressed the reasons why the miner had to cut back on production and spend $420 million next year to fix certain core issues at the tailings pond. After the collapse of the Brumadinho tailings in Brazil, which killed 270 people in 2019, safety standards for tailings are being scrutinized worldwide. According to tailings experts, cracks and leaks are red flags that indicate a dam's stability. They require constant monitoring and the identification of its root cause. They are similar to symptoms in the doctor's clinic. Rennie Kaunda is a professor of mining engineering at Colorado School of Mines. He said that they may be signs of a major illness or disease. (Reporting and editing by Veronica Brown, Rosalba o'Brien and Veronica Brown; Additional reporting by Fabian Cambero and Divyarajagopal from Toronto and Santiago)
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Copper prices drop from record highs; Market awaits Fed policy
Prices of copper fell on Tuesday due to profit-taking after a 'rallying' rally, concerns about a possible slowdown in U.S. interest rate cuts and concern over Chinese demand. Benchmark three-month Copper on the London?Metal Exchange?was 1% lower at $11,523.50 a metric tonne by 1015 GMT. It had reached a record high of $11,771 a metric tonne on Monday. LME copper prices have risen 31% this year. About 10% of the increase has occurred in the past few weeks. Ole Hansen is the head of commodity strategy for Saxo Bank, a Copenhagen-based bank. The U.S. has seen a surge in metal flows as people expect tariffs to be imposed. The copper?inventory in U.S. Comex Warehouses has more than doubled during the last?six month, reaching?439 510 short tons (398 717 metric tonnes). Hansen stated that "a bit of caution has emerged ahead of tomorrow's (Federal Open Market Committee meeting), which could be the reason behind the profit-taking today." Metals and other financial markets, such as stocks, have eased ahead of a Federal Reserve rate cut expected this week. The focus will be on future rates cuts. Markets are predicting that there will be fewer rate reductions in 2026 due to lingering concerns about inflation and the resilience of?the U.S. economic. Shanghai copper has gained 25% this year. Shanghai copper is up 25% this year. Some investors in China, the world's largest metals consumer, have lowered their expectations of near-term stimuli measures after a meeting with top Chinese leaders. Other metals include LME aluminium, which fell 1% to $2858.50 per ton. Zinc also declined 0.4%, to $3107.50. Lead, too, lost 0.4%, to $1991.50. Tin dropped 0.3%, to $39755, while nickel rose 0.2%, to $14,870. ($1 = 7.0702 Chinese Yuan Renminbi)
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The global government bond market is stable after the recent selloff. A major Fed meeting looms.
On Tuesday, the global bond sale paused a bit and stocks began to drift as traders focused on the Federal Reserve meeting that was to be held next week. They also considered the potential implications of the U.S. permitting Nvidia’s second-best chip to be exported to China. The Reserve Bank of Australia also?held? rates steady on Tuesday as expected, but it was more notable that they ruled out any further policy easing, and warned that the next step could be upwards if inflation pressures are stubborn. The Australian dollar was just a few cents shy of its near three-month peak. Bank of Canada, Swiss National Bank and both are expected to keep rates unchanged when they meet respectively on Wednesday and Thursday. However, comments made by Isabel Schnabel, a member of the European Central Bank's board of directors, have caused a stir, despite ECB not deciding policy until next Monday. She warned that if rates are left unchanged too long, it could lead to a passive easing in monetary policy. These remarks caused yields for German government bonds of all maturities to rise on Monday by the most in recent months. They also increased yields for U.S. Treasury Bonds. The 10-year German benchmark rate was around a 9-month high at 2.84%. Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury Rate fell by a similar amount to 4.15%. Stocks also appeared to be?fairly calm. European and U.S. stock futures both rose a little bit on the day. Asian stocks, however, fell. FED IN FOCUS The Fed's meeting on Wednesday will be interesting because of the impact that worries about Japan's fiscal situation have had on Japanese government bond rates. Investors should be aware of more than just the 25 basis point rate reduction. "I think the markets could be shocked by the Fed chair Powell's tone and the summary of the economic projections," said Erica Camilleri, senior macro global analyst at Manulife Investment Management. They will also reveal whether the next Fed chairman will be a nervous body about future rate cuts or happy to follow President Trump's wish for looser policies. Kevin Hassett, White House Economic Advisor and top candidate for the Fed chair role, stated in an interview that interest rates should be continued to fall. This raises questions about the Fed's future operations. What happens when we consider 2027 and '2028? Does this Federal Reserve raise rates when we see an acceleration in growth? Is this a Federal Reserve with an easing bias? "Even if we have a reacceleration of growth and inflation, they will stay at the same rate?" said Camilleri. NVIDIA RISES ON CHINA SALES NEWS Investors also tried to understand the implications of U.S. president Donald Trump's statement that Washington would?allow Nvidia H200 processors, Nvidia’s second-best artificial Intelligence chips, to export to China, and collect a 25 percent fee on sales. Nvidia shares rose around 2% during premarket trading, but Chinese tech stocks fell both onshore and in Hong Kong. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Tech Index lost almost 2%. The currencies were also fairly stable. The euro was last worth $1.1649 and little has changed. Higher European yields are being matched by higher U.S. yields, while sterling is 0.22% higher, at $1.3347. The yen remained flat at $156.1 per dollar, after initially weakening in the aftermath of a powerful earthquake which rocked Japan. Oil prices in commodities stabilized after a 2% drop in the previous session, as participants in the market kept an eye on talks to end Russia’s war in Ukraine. Brent crude futures fell 0.2% to $62.3 per barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude was down 0.3% at $58.69. Reporting by Ankur banerjee from Singapore and Alun john in London. Editing by Shri Navaratnam, Saad Sayeed
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Nvidia gains as Trump permits some AI chip sales in China
Nvidia's shares increased 1.7% on Tuesday in premarket trading after President Donald Trump announced that he would?allow the sales of its H200 chip to approved Chinese customers, alleviating concerns about access to one of Nvidia's biggest?markets. Trump's decision seems to have settled the debate about whether Nvidia, and its competitors should maintain their global leadership by selling their AI chip to China or not. After Beijing told companies to stop using U.S. tech, it is not clear if the move will lead to new sales. Nvidia has been hampered by the restrictions that prevent it from selling?advanced AI processing units to China despite a strong global market. Morningstar analysts stated in a 'note' that the U.S. had?gone backwards and forwards on restrictions and could do so in the future. But now, we?see at least a pathway to meaningful AI revenue in future from?China. Trump announced in a Monday post on Truth Social that the export of H200 chips - the second-tier AI chip from the company - will be allowed with a 25% surcharge. Ipek Ozkardeskaya is a senior analyst with Swissquote Bank. She said that the approval may have a limited impact on Nvidia’s business in China, unless they are allowed to export any other chip lines, such as Rubin or Blackwell. Trump said that the U.S. Commerce Department was finalizing details. The same approach would also apply to other AI chip companies such as Advanced Micro Devices, Intel and Advanced Micro Devices. AMD and Intel?rose respectively 1.3% and 0.8% in early premarket trading. China is also increasing its chip manufacturing capability to reduce dependence on Nvidia. Morningstar said that there is "no assurance" the H200 will be widely used by Chinese parts compared to domestic ones. Nvidia's stock has increased by nearly 40% this year compared to the S&P 500 index, which rose 16.4% in the same time period. (Reporting from Kanchana in Bengaluru, Editing by Tasim Zaid)
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Simandou iron ore project begins supply
Iron ore prices continued to fall on Tuesday as the 'Simandou' project in Guinea in West Africa shipped its first ore. This boosted the prospects of more supplies at a time when?demand for the top consumer China will decline due to falling steel production. The daytime closing price of the most traded iron ore contract at China's Dalian Commodity Exchange was 757.5 yuan (US$107.22). The session began with a?750 yuan low, the lowest since 10 July. It was headed to a fifth consecutive session of losses. As of 0940 GMT the benchmark January iron ore price on the Singapore Exchange was down for a third straight?session. It fell by 0.35%, to $101.7 per ton. This is its lowest level since November 12. Rio Tinto, the largest iron ore supplier in the world, announced on its WeChat page on Monday that the first shipment from the Simandou Project has left Guinea. The mine will have a production capacity of 120,000,000 tons per year, making it the largest iron ore mine in the world. China imports 80% of its iron ore from Australia and Brazil. Analysts say that the share of Guinean supply will likely decrease with increased production. Analysts at Xinhu Futures wrote in a report that the near-month contract 'will continue to be under pressure due to high supply, swollen inventory, and a decreasing demand. This year, crude steel production in China will be the lowest in six years. Coking coal and other steelmaking ingredients, coke and coke, also fell, by 2.21% and 2.7% respectively. This was due to lingering concern over an?increasing availability. The Shanghai Futures Exchange saw a decline in most steel benchmarks. Rebar fell 1.57%, while hot-rolled coils dropped 1.42%. Stainless steel also declined 0.32%. Wire rod rose 0.38%. ($1 = 7.0651 Chinese Yuan Renminbi)
TotalEnergies accused of war crimes in Mozambique by a rights group
TotalEnergies was accused by a European human rights organization of complicity with war crimes, torture, and enforced disappearances in Mozambique. The complaint was filed to the French prosecutor's office on Tuesday. Four years after an Islamist militant attack that halted construction, the French oil giant, together with its project partners lifted force majeure for their $20 billion Mozambique gas project. The complaint seeks a link between Total and alleged mozambican torture on its evacuated site of the gas project from July to September 2020, after the oil firm exfiltrated their employees and gave the land to government on the basis that TotalEnergies paid soldiers' salaries in a security agreement with the state.
TotalEnergies didn't immediately respond to email or telephone requests for comments. It claimed last year that it was unaware of any allegations of torture at the evacuated site and that employees had left in April 2021. They did not return to their jobs until November 2021.
In a statement, the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights, which filed the criminal complaint said that companies and their executives were not neutral actors in conflict zones. If they enabled or fuelled crimes, then they could be complicit and held accountable, the ECCHR stated.
The French prosecutor for anti-terrorism (PNAT) investigated both domestic and international crimes. The PNAT did not respond to a request for comment.
Since then, the Mozambican Government has opened an investigation. TotalEnergies, meanwhile, is still being investigated by French prosecutors over alleged failures to help people in danger when the 2021 islamist attack occurred and they evacuated. Total has not yet filed any charges and Total denies wrongdoing. The oil giant is planning to restart Mozambican Liquefied Natural Gas in "containment" mode, with only security-related workers being allowed to enter the site by air or water. It expects that project to be operational in 2029. (Reporting and editing by Alessandro Parodi)
(source: Reuters)