Five trapped mine workers found dead in Chilean Codelco mine

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• Codelco Chile says it is still searching for missing workers at El Teniente Mine

  Andres Musik, El Teniente’s general manager, said that Codelco had not yet contacted five workers who were missing at the Andesita Unit of El Teniente following a seismic event which killed one person. He said that Codelco expected the aftershocks to subside in the next twelve hours, which would allow it to start efforts to contact the workers. Music stated in a recent press conference that "the event we recorded yesterday was one of, if not the biggest event" the El Teniente Mine has ever experienced. He noted that the incident was a magnitude 4.2 earthquake. Andesita was one of Codelco’s newest projects, located at the El Teniente complex. It was scheduled to start production in the second half of this year. Music didn't address how the incident will affect Codelco’s output in the producing areas of mine. Codelco will report its financial results on Friday as originally scheduled. Codelco is investigating the cause of the accident, according to music. He said that although explosives or drilling did not cause the incident, mining activities can sometimes trigger seismic events in El Teniente. Chile is also prone regularly to earthquakes with varying magnitudes.

• Trump imposes scaled-back copper tariff, US prices plunge

  Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that the United States would impose a tariff of 50% on copper pipes, wires, and other copper products. However, the details of this levy were not as comprehensive as expected, and did not include copper input materials like ores, concentrates, and cathodes. U.S. Comex Copper Futures fell 19.5% following the announcement. This quickly unwinded a premium that had been growing over the London benchmark in recent weeks, as traders assumed U.S. mines would benefit financially from the tariff. Trump teased his tariff for the first time in early July. He implied that the tariff would be applied to all types red metals, from cathodes made by mines and factories to wire and other products. In a proclamation issued by the White House however, the administration stated that the tariff would only apply to semi-finished products of copper and other products for which copper is used heavily, beginning on Friday. Trump's proclamation stated that "Copper imports into the United States are being made in such quantities and in such conditions as to threaten the national security of the United States." Copper concentrates, mattes cathodes anodes will be excluded from the tariffs. These are some of the most important products produced by copper mines and smelters. This move will essentially boost Chile and Peru, the two largest copper-mining countries in the world. Gracelin Baskaran is the director of the Center for Strategic and International Studies' critical minerals security program. She said that the newly announced copper tariffs were far from the universal tariffs about which the markets were worried. It's not as punitive as the markets originally expected. Trump had ordered an investigation by the U.S. under Section 232 in February. According to the proclamation, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick delivered the report to the White House in June. Trump has said that he could still impose additional tariffs and asked Lutnick for an update of the domestic copper market before June 2026. Trump will then decide whether to impose an import duty of 15% on refined copper starting in 2027 and 30% starting 2028. The order also calls for measures to support the U.S. copper industry. This includes requiring that 25% of the high-quality scrap produced within the U.S. be sold in the U.S. Freeport-McMoRan is the biggest copper producer in the United States. It said that it would make a comment once it had thoroughly reviewed Trump's orders. Codelco in Chile, the largest copper producer in the world, has hailed the decision to exclude cathodes from the copper production process as a positive step for both the company and Chile, the country that is the leading supplier of refined copper for the U.S. BHP, the company that operates the largest copper mine in the world, and Antofagasta - which exports copper from Chile to America and wants to construct a U.S. mine - did not respond to comments immediately. (Reporting from Daina Beth Solon in Santiago, Ernest Scheyder, in Houston, Divyarajagopal, in Toronto, Pratima Deai, and Polina devitt in London, with additional reporting by Ismail Shakil, in Ottawa. Writing by Ernest Scheyder, editing by Veronica Brown and Marguerita Choy.

• Southern Copper warns of a possible short-term impact on copper from the U.S.-China Trade War

  Raul Jacob, CFO of Grupo Mexico’s Southern Copper, said that the U.S. - China trade war would affect the global economy and the copper sector. He made this statement on a conference call with analysts to discuss the company’s quarterly results on Wednesday. He said: "We think that an intense trade war between the U.S.A. and China could affect economic growth around the world." Jacob, the Chief Financial Officer, said that he expects the industry to remain resilient over the long term. He said, "We continue to maintain a positive outlook for the long-term future of copper." Jacob said that the huge price differential between the U.S. Comex and London Metal Exchange (LME), indicated "a strong possibility" for U.S. Tariffs on Copper Imports. The Trump administration announced that it would implement a tariff of 50% starting Friday. Southern Copper is Peru's third largest copper producer. Peru is also the world's third biggest producer of red metal. Peru is one of the largest suppliers of refined copper in the United States. However, the majority of its exports go to China. Jacob stated that there is still uncertainty about the tariffs or their impact on the company. He also noted the fluctuation of U.S. tariff levels on goods from other countries and goods. He declined to comment about the impact of the price differential between Comex and LME. In a recent statement, Grupo Mexico's Chairman German Larrea said that the company is monitoring the impact of tariffs on the business. However, Southern Copper has a strong position to deal with the uncertainty.

• US: Rwanda and Congo agree on outline of economic integration framework in peace deal

  According to the U.S. State Department the U.S. State Department reported that the U.S. State Department and the U.S. State Department announced on Friday an outline of the regional economic integration frame work. The two countries are taking steps towards implementing the peace agreement signed last month in Washington. The framework includes elements on energy, infrastructures, mineral supply chains and national parks, as well as public health. In June, Rwanda and Congo signed an agreement in Washington, DC, at the talks hosted by President Donald Trump. The deal aims to end fighting that has claimed thousands of lives and to attract Western investment worth billions of dollars to a region with tantalum and gold deposits, as well as copper, lithium, and cobalt. The agreement stated that Kinshasa, Kigali and the other parties to the agreement agreed to launch an economic integration framework for the region within 90 days. Sources familiar with the issue said that a draft framework had been approved and now there will be a period of input to gather feedback from the civil society and private sector before the final version is released. The White House is planning to sign the framework at a summit of head of state. The source stated that no date had been set for the meeting. According to a copy of the statement seen by, Rwanda and Congo stated that each country had "full sovereign control" of the exploitation and processing of their natural resources, and acknowledged the importance of developing the mineral processing and transformation capability within each country. Kinshasa sees the looting of its mineral resources as the key factor in the conflict between their forces and the Rwanda-backed M23 M23 rebels of eastern Congo. In May, it was reported that Congolese minerals, such as tungsten tantalum, and tin which Kinshasa accuses the neighbouring Rwanda for illegally exploiting. exported legitimately Sources claim that the U.S. is negotiating a deal to send the shipments to Rwanda to be processed. According to the joint statement, the two countries have committed themselves to making sure that the minerals trade does not provide funding for armed groups, to creating a world class industrial mining sector in this region and to improving cross-border interoperability of mineral supply chains. The two countries also agreed to link new infrastructure with the U.S.-backed Lobito Corridor to demonstrate Washington's desire to gain greater access to resources and counter China. The Ruzizi hydropower project, and the Lake Kivu methane extraction were the only projects specifically mentioned in the U.S. statement despite the emphasis placed by the U.S. on critical minerals. The countries stated that they would prioritize funding for Ruzizi, and work together in order to sustainably exploit methane gas.

• US construction spending extends decline in June

  U.S. Construction Spending dropped even further in June, mainly due to a sharp drop in expenditures on single-family homes projects as a result of rising mortgage rates and a growing inventory. Census Bureau of the Commerce Department reported on Friday that construction expenditures fell by 0.4% following a 0.4% decline in May. The economists polled had predicted that construction spending would remain unchanged following a 0.3% decline in May. In June, spending fell 2.9% year-over-year. The amount spent on private construction projects fell by 0.5%. Residential construction investment fell by 0.7%. Outlays for new single-family housing projects dropped 1.8%. The latest government data released this week shows that residential investment has contracted at the fastest rate since the fourth quarter 2022. The Federal Reserve has paused its rate-cutting cycle due to the uncertainty created by tariffs on imported products. The new housing inventory has reached levels not seen since late 2007. In June, the expenditures on multi-family housing units remained unchanged. Investments in non-residential private structures such as offices and factories decreased by 0.3%. The second consecutive quarter saw a decline in spending on non-residential buildings. The spending on public construction projects increased by 0.1%. State and local government spending on construction increased by 0.5% while federal government expenditures dropped by 4.4%. Reporting by Lucia Mutikani, Editing by Chizu nomiyama

• Gold gains nearly 2% after US payrolls data boosts hopes of rate cuts

  Gold prices rose by almost 2% on Friday, reaching a new high. Weaker-than-expected U.S. employment data increased expectations of lowered Federal Reserve rates, while fresh tariff announcements sparked demand for safe-haven assets. As of 0931 am, spot gold rose 1.9%, to $3,351.61 an ounce. ET (13.31 GMT), achieving its highest level since the 25th of July. Bullion has gained 0.3% this week. U.S. Gold Futures increased 1.7% to $3405.20. "Payrolls came in below expectations but slightly higher than what the market had projected. This gives a higher probability that the Federal Reserve (rates will be cut) later this year, said Bart Melek. "We have a situation in which we continue to face inflationary pressures from wages and tariffs, but the job numbers are still disappointing." In that case, if (rates) are cut by the Fed, it will have a material positive impact on gold. In a low interest rate environment, gold, which is a non-yielding investment, performs well. The Bureau of Labor Statistics of the Labor Department reported that U.S. employment growth was slower than expected in July. Nonfarm payrolls increased by 73,000 last month after increasing by 14,000 jobs in June. The market participants now expect two rate reductions by the end of the year, starting in September. Fed Chair Jerome Powell said it was too early to predict whether the central banks interest rate target will be cut in September. Trump's latest tariffs on dozens of countries, including Canada and Brazil, have sent the global markets into a tailspin as nations pushed to negotiate better deals. Gold is a safe-haven during times of economic and geopolitical uncertainty. Silver spot was up by 1.1% at $37.14 an ounce. Platinum rose 0.6% to 1,296.58 while palladium rose 2.3% to $1,217.91. (Reporting by Sarah Qureshi in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore)

• Gold to suffer third weekly loss due to stronger dollar and reduced Fed rate cuts

  Gold prices were stable on Friday but are on track for a third successive weekly loss, due to a stronger dollar, and lowered expectations of U.S. interest rate cuts. Meanwhile, uncertainty over U.S. tariffs against trading partners provided support. As of 0733 GMT, spot gold was unchanged at $3,288.89 an ounce. Bullion has fallen 1.4% this week. U.S. Gold Futures declined 0.3% to $3339.90. Gold is now more expensive to other currency holders due to the dollar index reaching its highest level since 29 May. Gold remains weighed down by lower bets on Fed rate cuts through 2025. The U.S. weekly jobless claims and PCE data this week also reinforced the Fed's unwillingness to commit to a cut in rates," said Han Tan. Fed kept rates at 4.25% to 4.50% on Wednesday, dampening expectations of a rate cut in September. U.S. president Donald Trump slapped tariffs on exports of dozens of trading partner countries, including Canada. Brazil, India, and Taiwan. He is pressing forward with his plans to reorder global economy before a Friday deadline for trade deals. Tan stated that "the precious metals should be supported despite the uncertainty of the impact of U.S. Tariffs on global growth." Inflation in the United States increased in June, as tariffs on imported goods began to increase the price of certain goods. Investors will now be assessing the Federal Reserve’s policy direction as they await the U.S. employment data due on Friday. July job growth is expected to have slowed, and the unemployment rate is projected to increase to 4.2%. In an environment of low interest rates, gold, which is often viewed as a safe haven during times of economic uncertainty, performs well. The physical gold demand on key Asian markets has improved this week, as the price drop has sparked a renewed interest in buying. However, volatility is keeping some buyers cautious. Silver spot fell by 0.7%, to $36.50 an ounce. Platinum dropped 0.8% to $1,278.40, and palladium was off 0.2% at $1188.28. All three metals are headed to weekly losses. (Reporting and editing by Harikrishnan Nair in Bengaluru, Anmol Choubey)

• Nippon Steel warns about a full-year loss after $1.3 Billion Q1 shortfall

  Nippon Steel revised its forecast on Friday for the full fiscal to a loss of 40 billion yen (266 million dollars) from a profit of 200 billion yen previously. This was partly due to costs associated with its acquisition by U.S. Steel. After 18 months of trying to get the U.S. Government to approve the deal due to concerns about national security, Nippon Steel closed its $14.9billion acquisition of U.S. Steel in June. Nippon Steel announced that its full-year results would be affected by a special loss related to the U.S. Steel transaction, namely a loss of 231.5 bn yen relating to the transfer of 50% of the joint venture AM/NS Calvert, to partner ArcelorMittal. Nippon Steel reported a loss of 195.83 Billion Yen for the three-month period ending June 30. This was higher than expected by analysts. Analysts surveyed by LSEG had predicted Nippon Steel would post quarterly losses of 25.7 billion yen. It reported a quarterly net profit of 157.56 billion yen a year ago. Nippon Steel also decided to split its stock at a ratio five shares per one share, effective October 1. S&P, the global rating agency, downgraded Nippon Steel last month to 'BBB+,' from a previous 'BBB+,' with a "negative" outlook. The reason given was an increase in financial stress following Nippon Steel's acquisition by U.S. Steel. ($1 = 150,5440 yen)

• ASIA GOLD-Gold Demand in Key Asian Hubs Improves amid Price Correction

  The physical gold demand on key Asian markets has improved this week, as the price drop has sparked a renewed interest in buying. However, volatility is keeping some buyers cautious. On Wednesday, spot gold fell to its lowest level for a whole month and was on track to suffer a third consecutive loss. This week footfall was higher than the previous week. "Buyers were asking about the price trends and made small purchases," said an Indian jeweller based in Pune. The domestic gold price was around 97.700 rupees for 10 grams of gold on Friday, after reaching 100.555 rupees the previous week. Indian dealers offer discounts The difference between official domestic prices and the price of gold has decreased to $7 per ounce, including 6% import duties and 3% sales taxes, as opposed to up to $15.00 last week. A Mumbai-based bullion seller with a private banking firm said that jewellers wanted to purchase items to replenish their inventory following a correction of overseas prices. However, a significant fall in the rupee partially offset the effect of the price drop. The World Gold Council announced on Thursday that India's gold demand in 2025 will fall to its lowest level in five years, due to record high prices. Dealers in China quoted gold at a range of prices, ranging from a discount of $4,2 to a premium up to $12 per ounce over international rates. Hugo Pascal is a precious metals dealer at InProved. He said, "China appears slightly to buy the dip in Gold... Trading volume for the physical contract AU9999 has been increasing (11 tons were traded yesterday), reflecting renewed interest in the Metal." Hong Kong gold Singapore sold the same product at a $1.50 price premium. Prices ranged from parity to a $1.40 surcharge. In Japan, bullion Was sold at par with a premium $0.60. There was a lot of demand for buying if the price even dropped slightly. A Japan-based trader stated that gold was being bought as an asset amid low interest rates, regardless of the Japan-U.S. deal. (Reporting from Anmol Choubey, Bengaluru, and Rajendra Jadhav, Mumbai)

• Andy Home: Copper market suffers for forgetting its TACO-hedging:

  The copper market has the tariffs right, but the products are wrong. The copper market was surprised by President Donald Trump’s announcement that he would "address the effects of imports of copper on America's security". Imports of semi-manufactured copper products, such as wires and tubes, will face a 50% tariff starting Friday. The tariff will not be applied to refined copper until at least January 2027. If warranted, a gradual increase in the rate may then take place. The tariff trade that has dominated the copper market in February has collapsed. CME's U.S. Contract plummeted more than 20% after the news. This wiped out the high premium that was previously over the London Metal Exchange price. The United States has a surplus of metal that it does not need, after traders shipped massive tonnages via the arbitrage gap. The copper market has forgotten Trump's tendency of backing down from his most extreme threats. To borrow a popular investor meme, it has been TACOed, which is short for Trump Always Chills Out. Targeted Products for Copper Tariffs on semifinished copper products are applied to between 400,000-500,000 metric tonnes of U.S. imports per year. The United States imports a lot more refined copper. Last year, imports were just under 900,000. Canada is by far the biggest copper supplier to the U.S. but there are many other suppliers. Copper tubes were imported from 32 countries last year. Tariffs will be applied to all copper-intensive products, including cables, connectors, and electrical components. This is likely to include more suppliers. The new tariff wall will be good for domestic processors - but only if their capacity is sufficient to cover what's currently imported. In the next few months, we will know how many exemptions specific to products have been granted. SCRAP WARS GET HOTTER Export restrictions will also be placed on concentrates mined in the United States and recyclable copper. A quarter of domestically-produced "copper input materials" will be required to be sold in the United States from 2027. This rate will increase to 30% in 2020, and then 40% in 2029. This may require more capacity than the three domestic smelters currently available, even if Grupo Mexico were to reactivate its idle Hayden facility in Arizona. To encourage domestic recycling, "high-quality copper scrap" must also meet a minimum requirement of 25%. The exact types of scrap that qualify for this measure are not known, nor is it clear how the measure will work in reality. However, the move represents an escalation of the simmering scrap battles. The European Union also considers export quotas for recyclable copper in order to stop "scrap leakage." China is the primary target, as it is the largest purchaser of secondary raw materials in the world. In 2024, the country imported 2,25 million tons copper scrap, the highest total ever since 2018, the first year that the authorities tightened the purity requirements on imported material. Imports are already slowing down this year due to a drop of 42% in shipments coming from the United States because of the high CME premium. The global scrap market is experiencing a growing resource nationalism, which will lead to structural changes in the recycling of materials. Can we have our COPPER back now? Not for refined copper as everyone expected. The United States has now ceased to need the copper that was shipped by large trade houses. It may have been a lucrative trade for the companies involved, but it is no longer necessary. CME warehouses now hold 232.195 tons of copper. This is the highest amount since 2004. Due to traders' last-minute rush to beat the August 1 deadline, metal is still arriving every day. Tariffs have a huge impact on the supply chain of other countries. China exported nearly 260,000 tons (or 78,800 tons) of refined copper from March to June. This is a significant increase over the previous four-month period. A portion of the copper was delivered to meet a shortfall on the London Market caused by the raid of LME stocks on brands that could be shipped to the United States. It was mostly non-Chinese steel that was shipped to the United States from warehouses bonded with non-Chinese metal. Shanghai Futures Exchange's stocks have plummeted to 73 423 tons, their lowest level since last December, due to China's booming exports. The physical supply chain may take longer to adjust than the futures trade. Analysts have already run the numbers to see if it makes sense to reverse the flow of copper back out of the United States. SAME TIME THE NEXT ANNUAL? What is the end of the copper tariff? Most likely not, as the reference explicitly mentions the option of a stepped tariff on imported refined copper starting at 15% in 2020 and increasing to 30% in 2030. The outcome will be determined by the report on the domestic market that Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick is scheduled to release at the end of next June. It is also dependent on whether Trump decides to change his mind before then. Tariff Man is a great way to find out. These are the opinions of a columnist who writes for.

• Gold losses on stronger dollar

  Gold prices were flat on Friday but on course for a loss this week as the pressure of a stronger dollar overshadowed support from trade uncertainties caused by U.S. Tariffs. As of 0242 GMT, spot gold remained unchanged at $3,287.65 an ounce. Bullion has fallen 1.5% this week. U.S. Gold Futures declined by 0.3% to $3337.20. Gold is now more expensive to other currency holders due to the dollar index reaching its highest level since 29 May. "Gold has been trading in the $3,250-$3,450 range for the past two months and we expect it to move towards the lower end of this range, and possibly break it," said Marex Analyst Edward Meir. He added that the Federal Reserve’s hawkish position was also driving the strength of the dollar, which weighed heavily on the bullion. On Wednesday, the Fed kept interest rates at 4.25% to 4.50% and dampened expectations for a rate cut in September. Trump signed a executive order Thursday that imposed "reciprocal tariffs" ranging from 10 to 41% on imported goods from dozens countries and foreign locations. This was done ahead of the Friday deadline for a trade agreement. He raised duties on Canadian products to 35%, up from 25%, for all goods not covered by the U.S. Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement. But he gave Mexico 90 days to negotiate a wider deal. If trade tensions rise, prices could move up again if various countries are unable to renegotiate lower tariff rates. In June, the U.S. inflation rate increased as import tariffs began to increase the price of certain goods. The focus now shifts to U.S. employment data, due later today for more clues on the Federal Reserve's path of rate cuts. In a low interest rate environment, gold is an asset that does not yield any income. Spot silver dropped 0.6%, to $36.53 an ounce. Platinum was down 0.2%, to $1,291.55, and palladium remained at $1,191.95. All three metals are headed for losses this week. Reporting by Anmol Chaubey in Bengaluru and Brijesh Patel; editing by Harikrishnan Nair

• Tariffs increase US operations, but Gerdau's adjusted profits fall by nearly 9%.

  The Brazilian steelmaker Gerdau reported a 8.6% drop in its adjusted net profit for the second quarter of 2018, compared to last year. This was slightly lower than analysts' expectations, despite a stronger performance by North American operations because of U.S. Tariffs. Gerdau, the largest Brazilian steelmaker in terms of market capitalization with mills throughout the Americas reported a net profit of 864 million reais (154.26 millions dollars) for the three-month period ending June 30. LSEG polled analysts who expected 847 million reais. Gerdau stated in its earnings report that the decline in profits was primarily due to the results of the company's operations outside Brazil and South America, which were partially offset by the currency effects. Gerdau's adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization) was 2.56 billion reals, down 2.4%, and in line with analyst expectations of 2.57 billion reals. Gerdau has reported an improvement in its North American operations compared to first quarter. It attributes this to a decrease in imports in the U.S. as a result of higher tariffs, and the supply rebalancing that follows. More than half of the steelmaker's net income comes from North America. Analysts believe that the steel tariffs set by U.S. president Trump will benefit the Brazilian steelmaking industry. Gerdau's net revenue total rose by 5.5% on an annual basis to 17.5 billion reals, while steel sales increased by 4.1%. Analysts estimated a 17.7 bn reais net income. Analysts at JPMorgan, including Rodolfo Anglee, said that the results were mostly neutral. In a note to clients, they said that North America's continued strength in 2Q25 was more than compensating the challenges in Brazil and South America. ($1 = 5,6008 reais). (Reporting and editing by Brendan O'Boyle, Chris Reese and Andre Romani)