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March 19, 2025

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Riding the Wave: What the Stock Market Rebound Means for Your Investments

Stock 3 Mins Read

Last week, tariff talks, recession fears, and waning consumer sentiment sent stocks lower. This week, the narrative may have shifted, as investors prepare for a macro-filled week and NVIDIA’s annual GTC developers’ conference.

Retail sales data for February came in slightly lower than expectations but better than January’s number. This, along with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessant’s comments about the necessity of the economy undergoing a detox period, may have eased investor worries. All broader equity indexes closed higher on Monday, marking two solid up days in a row.

Next up, we have home prices and new home sales, an important measure of consumer health. The SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF (XHB) went through a steep downturn as did the SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT). Consumer spending is a major contributor to GDP growth which is why these two charts should be on every inverter’s radar. While both ETFs saw an upside swing on Monday, it’s not enough to change the trend (see chart below).

FIGURE 1. SPDR S&P HOMEBUILDERS ETF AND SPDR S&P RETAIL ETF. Both saw a significant slide in value. The upside swing in the last price bar needs to see a lot more momentum and follow through and a confirmed trend reversal. Chart source: StockCharts.com. For educational purposes.

Both ETFs (XHB in the top panel and XRT in the bottom panel) are trading below their 50-day simple moving average (SMA). Monday’s upside move is significant enough to alert investors that perhaps momentum is starting to change. It could be the start of a reversal, a short-term rally that resumes its downtrend, or the beginning of a sideways move. Regardless, it’s worth monitoring the sectors and specific industry groups to get an idea of the general investor sentiment. The StockCharts MarketCarpets can go a long way in giving a big-picture view of the overall market (see below).

FIGURE 2. IT’S MOSTLY A SEA OF GREEN EXCEPT FOR THE HEAVY-WEIGHT LARGE-CAP STOCKS. There was money flowing into the market, especially in the Real Estate, Energy, and Consumer Staples sectors. Image source: StockCharts.com. For educational purposes.

Money flowed into the Real Estate, Energy, and Consumer Staples sectors, but all 11 S&P sectors closed in the green. The weakest performer was Consumer Discretionary—you can thank the slide in Tesla, Inc. (TSLA) and Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN) for that.

All Ears on Fed

Perhaps the most important macro-event this week will be the FOMC meeting. Although an interest rate cut isn’t expected, there’s still uncertainty surrounding tariffs. When Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell takes the podium on Wednesday, investors will be listening for clues about economic growth and inflation expectations.

Bond prices are showing signs of rising. The iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT), which has been trending higher this year, closed modestly higher. Gold and major cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ether also closed higher.

The Bottom Line

While it’s encouraging to see the stock market show upside momentum after sliding lower for almost a month, take things one day at a time. If you have some cash sitting on the sidelines, be patient and wait for confirming signals of a trend reversal.

Disclaimer: This blog is for educational purposes only and should not be construed as financial advice. The ideas and strategies should never be used without first assessing your own personal and financial situation, or without consulting a financial professional.

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Stock Market Shifts Gears: Indexes Plunge After Climb

Stock 3 Mins Read

Tuesday’s stock market action marked a reversal in investor sentiment, with the broader indexes closing lower. The S&P 500 ($SPX), Nasdaq Composite ($COMPQ), and Dow Jones Industrial Average ($INDU) are still below their 200-day simple moving average (SMA). Investor anxiety is elevated ahead of the Fed’s culmination of its two-day policy meeting. The risk-off sentiment is back, with gold and silver prices rallying. But it may not all be due to the risk-off mode, as lower US Treasury yields and the lower US dollar may have also played a role in the precious metal rally. The SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) hit a new all-time high and silver prices are on the rise.

Technology and consumer discretionary were Tuesday’s worst-performing sectors, while Energy and Health Care took the lead but rose modestly. Overall, it was a pretty red day for U.S. equities (see the StockCharts MarketCarpet below).

FIGURE 1. A SEA OF RED. Tuesday’s StockCharts MarketCarpet was a sea of red with specks of green in the Energy and Health Care, Real Estate, Materials, and Industrials sectors.Image source: StockCharts.com. For educational purposes.

The Mag 7 Unwind

The mega-cap, Mag 7 stocks stand out strongly in Tuesday’s MarketCarpet. The daily chart of the Roundhill Big Tech ETF (MAGS) below shows how these stocks are in a steep fall. The ETF fell below its 50-day SMA and struggled to retain its position above it. The fall from the 50-day to the 200-day SMA was like an elevator ride down. MAGS managed to find a little resistance at its 200-day SMA, but that was short-lived. 

FIGURE 2. ROUNDHILL BIG TECH ETF (MAGS) SLIDES BELOW 200-DAY MOVING AVERAGE. After sliding below its 50-day SMA, MAGS fell hard and continued sliding as it broke below the 200-day SMA.Chart source: StockCharts.com. For educational purposes.

The rise in volume after MAGS fell below its 200-day SMA suggests there’s a lot more selling than buying. The relative strength index (RSI) is hovering above 30, which implies it isn’t oversold yet. So there’s a chance MAGS could fall lower, although it could reverse before dipping into oversold territory.

International Markets

Meanwhile, the iShares China Large-Cap ETF (FXI), iShares MSCI Germany (EWG), iShares MSCI Italy ETF (EWI), and other European stock ETFs are rising. The daily chart of the iShares MSCI EAFE ETF (EFA), which has its top 10 holdings in European companies, is hitting all-time highs (see below).

FIGURE 3. DAILY CHART OF ISHARES MSCI EAFE ETF. European stocks have been rising since early 2025. The 50-day SMA has crossed above the 200-day and price is well above the 50-day SMA.Chart source: StockCharts.com. For educational purposes.

With elevated tariff uncertainty, a slowdown in the U.S. economy, and declining U.S. consumer confidence, it shouldn’t be surprising to see investors diversifying their holdings across different asset groups. This reiterates the importance of having a diversified portfolio spread across different sectors, precious metals, international stocks, and bonds. 

The Closing Bell

Tuesday’s reversal after a two-day winning streak suggests investor uncertainty remains prominent. The Federal Reserve policy meeting ends on Wednesday. Chairman Powell’s press conference is the main event to listen to on Wednesday, but really, any headline could rock the markets in either direction. The best you can do is stay diversified.

Disclaimer: This blog is for educational purposes only and should not be construed as financial advice. The ideas and strategies should never be used without first assessing your own personal and financial situation, or without consulting a financial professional.

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Investing

Trigg Expands Tier-1 Australian Antimony-Gold Tenure with Grades up to 61% Sb & 1045 g/t Au

Investing 4 Mins Read

Trigg Minerals Limited (ASX: TMG| OTCQB: TMGLF) (‘Trigg’ or the ‘Company’) is pleased to announce the acquisition of the Nundle, Upper Hunter and Cobark/Copeland Projects, a highly prospective tenement package covering a significant portion of the historic Nundle Goldfield and three additional historic goldfields within the New England Orogen (NEO) in northern New South Wales.

HIGHLIGHTS

  • Trigg Minerals signs a binding purchase agreement to acquire 100% rights of the Nundle, Upper Hunter, Cobark/Copeland projects, conditional upon completion of due diligence. Covering a total area of 1,039.7 km².
  • These projects will be developed as Trigg’s second flagship exploration asset behind its primary, advanced stage high-grade Wild Cattle Creek deposit. Trigg will have two exploration teams advancing both these new projects and Wild Cattle Creek simultaneously.
  • The package includes five historical antimony deposits, with rock chips grading 61% Sb and 9.7% Sb, and 12 tonnes of recorded Sb production (EL 9594, Nundle), plus a 37% Sb sample collected from 12m down adit indicating potential mineralisation at depth (EL 9655, Upper Hunter).
  • The tenements also feature 60+ historical gold mines/occurrences across each tenement with historical recorded high-grade production. As an example, Standard Reef was worked in 1904 with an estimated production of 15,000oz at 53.8 g/t Au.
  • Total historical production across the tenement package is estimated at 174,000 oz Au without modern mining techniques and significantly lower gold prices. Initial review suggests that mineralisation is interpreted to be open along strike and down depth and with considerable high grade rock chip grades ranging from 30 g/t Au to 1,045 g/t Au.
  • The addition of the Nundle Project to TMG’s North Nundle holdings extends the Company’s prospective strike along the underexplored and prolific Peel Fault to approximately 40 km, significantly enhancing exploration potential.

The acquisition includes four key projects:

Nundle (EL 9594)

The Nundle Goldfield has a rich history of gold production, with several historical antimony mines present within the region. It covers parts of the major Peel Fault and contains numerous old workings where typically small high-grade gold deposits occur in dolerites. The expanded Nundle Project, encompassing both Nundle and North Nundle, provides Trigg access to a 40 km length of the Peel Fault, a deep-seated conduit for mineralising fluids, controlling the localisation of auriferous (gold-bearing) quartz veins and antimony deposits. Several historical goldfields, including Nundle, Hanging Rock, and Bingara, are closely associated with this fault system.

Upper Hunter (EL 9655)

The Upper Hunter Goldfield in NSW is a historic gold-producing region known for its structurally controlled, quartz-vein-hosted gold deposits. Mineralisation occurs in fault breccia and shear zones within sedimentary rocks, with gold typically found alongside pyrite, arsenopyrite, minor chalcopyrite, and, locally, stibnite (antimony).

Cobark and Copeland (EL 9653)

The Cobark and Copeland Goldfields in NSW were prominent during the late 1800s gold rush. Mining focused on high-grade quartz veins hosted in faults and shear zones. The Copeland area became a key mining hub, with underground workings targeting gold-rich sulphides such as pyrite, stibnite (antimony), arsenopyrite, and minor chalcopyrite. The region remains highly prospective for modern exploration.

The association of antimony mineralisation with gold enhances the project’s critical mineral potential, aligning with Trigg Minerals’ strategy to explore and develop high-value, multi- commodity assets in Tier-1 mining jurisdictions.

STRATEGIC RATIONALE

The Projects are in an underexplored yet highly prospective region, with historical workings and strong geological indicators suggesting significant upside potential. The presence of both gold and antimony presents an exciting opportunity for Trigg to unlock new resources and expand its footprint in the strategic metals sector.

Tim Morrison, Executive Chairman of Trigg Minerals, commented:

“The acquisition of the Nundle and other Projects marks an exciting expansion for Trigg Minerals into historically productive goldfields with strong critical mineral potential. The presence of both gold and antimony in this underexplored region aligns perfectly with our focus on high-value, strategically significant minerals. We look forward to applying modern exploration techniques to uncover new opportunities within this proven mineral province.”

Click here for the full ASX Release

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

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Mining Industry’s Exploration Spending Lagging, Will Budgets Grow in 2025?

Investing 5 Mins Read

Exploration spending in the mining sector peaked in 2012 and has since declined for over a decade.

Last year, global funding for explorers dropped near lows last seen in 2005. This could mean funding has reached a cyclical low, and the industry may be ready for renewed interest and increased investment.

Speaking at this year’s Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) convention in Toronto, Kevin Murphy, research director for metals and mining research at S&P Global Market Intelligence, ran through issues surrounding the flow of capital into mining exploration and shared his thoughts on whether the tide will change this year.

Why has resource exploration funding declined?

Several factors have contributed to the decline of exploration funding.

Murphy noted that in the past decade, interest in the mining industry has seen competition, with new investors pursuing headline-grabbing opportunities in cryptocurrencies and elsewhere in the tech sector.

Meanwhile, many older investors in the industry began using their profits to fund their retirements.

In addition, much investment in the resource sector is focused on mining rather than juniors, which perform the majority of exploration. There has been little trickle down in funding from the majors to the juniors.

Aside from that, Murphy explained that for many metals, including copper, the focus has shifted away from greenfield exploration aimed at discovering new deposits. Instead, copper majors are performing more mine site exploration aimed at expanding resources at existing operations and, more broadly, increasing efficiency.

While mine site exploration increases supply, Murphy said it indicates structural deficiencies in the future.

“We’re adding to reserves and resources, but we’re adding to old discoveries — so assets that were discovered in the ’90s, ’80s and the ’60s,” he said. While this is replacing current production, Murphy believes that more money should be spent on greenfield exploration and the discovery of resources needed to meet future demand growth.

When it comes to the gold sector, which has been focused on mine site exploration for a longer time, Murphy suggested the downward trend in exploration funding has multiple causes.

“It’s been a rough go in 2024 for the juniors, and the juniors historically love gold exploration,” he said. ‘There’s been some pretty high-level M&A, and we find in exploration that … when large companies come together, they pare down their assets, and what would have been a tier-one asset for one company becomes a tier two and is put on hold.’

Even though gold has soared to record high prices, greenfield exploration funding hasn’t benefited. This is largely due to high inflation over the past several years, which has pushed operational costs higher and decreased margins.

When these foundational challenges come into perspective, untying purse strings becomes more difficult.

How geopolitics impacts resource exploration funding

Geopolitics is another major factor in exploration funding in 2025, according to Murphy.

He shared his thoughts on how this can affect Canadian mining companies.

“The Canadian government — there’s a lot of uncertainty there, and also that uncertainty happens to flow through to some very important programs like the METC, which is very good for exploration,” he said.

The METC, or Mineral Exploration Tax Credit, is part of a flow-through scheme that passes on paper costs to investors, allowing them to claim a 15 percent tax rebate on their investments.

The program’s future was uncertain going into PDAC, but on March 3, the day after Murphy’s presentation, Jonathan Wilkinson, Canada’s minister of energy and natural resources, extended it until March 31, 2027.

Even so, a great deal of unknowns remain. The Canadian government won’t sit again until March 24, this time with a new prime minister at the helm and with the almost-certain fate of a new election being called.

The continual threat of tariffs from the US has added to the chaos.

Investor takeaway

Looking at factors that may move the needle on exploration funding in 2025, Murphy said gold should do ‘pretty well’ under the Trump administration given its status as a safe-haven asset in times of uncertainty.

At the same time, global electrification remains a focus, which could help metals like copper.

However, exploration funding for other metals isn’t looking quite so rosy.

‘Will that be enough to push us into exploration budget growth this year? I would argue absolutely not,’ he said.

“The question really is going to be how far down we go this year, and if gold majors in particular are going to be increasing their budgets enough to counter what people see as being a pretty sour scenario for a lot of other commodities,’ Murphy explained to the audience at PDAC.

Whether or not the exploration funding cycle has bottomed remains to be seen.

‘Financing conditions continue to be incredibly challenging,’ Murphy said.

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

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

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Investing

Crypto Market Recap: CME Launches SOL Futures Contracts, Ripple Files for Trademark

Investing 4 Mins Read

Here’s a quick recap of the crypto landscape for Monday (March 17) as of 9:00 p.m. UTC.

Bitcoin and Ethereum price update

Bitcoin (BTC) is currently trading at US$84,430.77, a 1.3 percent increase over the past 24 hours. The day’s trading range has seen a high of US$84,583.84 and a low of US$82,669.84.

Despite the recent market downturn, traders are now seeing historical patterns that suggest Bitcoin’s price could rise. Network economist Timothy Peterson said a repeat of Bitcoin’s historical pattern could mean that the token could hit a new ATH, potentially around US$126,000, by June.

Bitcoin performance, March 17, 2025.

Chart via TradingView.

Ethereum (ETH) is priced at US$1,940.40, marking a 2.9 percent increase over the same period. The cryptocurrency reached an intraday high of US$1,949.66 and a low of US$1,892.89.

Ether’s price has been stuck below US$2,000 for several reasons that indicate a risk-off sentiment for investors, including declining network activity and decreasing TVL, negative spot Ethereum ETF flows and weak technicals.

An analysis shows the potential of a bear flag forming, which could mean more downside in the coming days. Testing of Ethereum’s Pectra upgrade is set to begin on Hoodi today, and the upgrade will be launched 30+ days after Hoodi forks successfully.

Altcoin price update

  • Solana (SOL) is currently valued at US$129.70, up 2.1 percent over the past 24 hours. SOL experienced a high of US$130.53.61 and a low of US$125.97 on Monday.
  • XRP is trading at US$2.36, reflecting a 2.6 percent increase over the past 24 hours. The cryptocurrency recorded an intraday high of US$2.38 and a low of US$2.31.
  • Sui (SUI) is priced at US$2.36, showing a 5.2 percent increase over the past 24 hours. It achieved a daily high of US$2.37 and a low of US$2.27.
  • Cardano (ADA) is trading at US$0.7251, reflecting a 3.4 percent increase over the past 24 hours. Its highest price on Friday was US$0.7291, with a low of US$0.7150.

Crypto news to know

CME launches Solana futures

The highly anticipated launch of Solana (SOL) futures trading on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) saw its inaugural block trade completed on Sunday evening. Digital asset prime broker FalconX announced the completion of the inaugural block trade of Solana (SOL) futures contracts with financial services company StoneX acting as the counterparty.

This transaction occurred amidst a period of notable volatility for SOL. Leading up to March 17, the price of SOL experienced a decline, coinciding with reductions in both network transaction volume and Total Value Locked (TVL).

Additionally, open interest in SOL has decreased significantly, and technical analysis suggests a potential further price drop of up to 35 percent. Analysts have identified the US$120 level as a critical support threshold; a breach of this level could lead to a test of support at US$110.BNY Mellon deepens ties with Circle for stablecoin services

Financial giant BNY Mellon is expanding its services to include digital assets by partnering with stablecoin giant Circle. This collaboration will allow select BNY Mellon clients to send and receive funds to and from Circle, and to buy and sell Circle’s USDC stablecoins. This move signifies the increasing acceptance of stablecoins in traditional finance and demonstrates BNY Mellon’s dedication to innovation and adapting to client needs.

Strategy’s latest Bitcoin purchase

Strategy announced its latest Bitcoin purchase on Monday, acquiring 130 Bitcoins for around US$10.7 million in cash, at an average price of roughly US$82,981 per Bitcoin. This marks the company’s smallest acquisition on record, made using proceeds from the “STRK ATM,” a new Strategy program looking to raise up to US$21 billion in fresh capital to acquire more Bitcoin. Strategy is now just 774 tokens shy of 500,000.

Ripple Labs plans cryptocurrency custody expansion

Ripple Labs, the company behind XRP, appears to be planning an expansion into cryptocurrency custody, according to a trademark application for “Ripple Custody” dated February 25.

The filing also reveals plans for downloadable software to custody and manage various currencies, including crypto and fiat, suggesting Ripple may be developing a cryptocurrency wallet, a service it doesn’t currently offer. Providing wallet services would also generate new revenue for Ripple through transaction fees.

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

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

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

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Investing

Trump’s Tariffs Disrupting North American Critical Minerals Supply Chains

Investing 5 Mins Read

Underscoring the global need for raw materials, Canada, the US, the UK, the EU and Australia have all established critical minerals lists aimed at streamlining and expediting projects up and down the supply chain.

Reducing reliance on powerhouse critical minerals producer China is a key goal, but as the Trump administration focuses on tariffs and domestic production, it is threatening to disrupt fragile ex-China supply chains.

During a policy outlook panel at this year’s Toronto-based Benchmark Summit, Gracelin Baskaran, director of critical minerals security at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and Morgan Bazilian, professor at the Colorado School of Mines, discussed the global implications of US tariffs, honing in on critical minerals.

Although inflation is the most obvious consequence of widespread tariffs, Baskaran pointed to longer-term effects.

“We have a tendency in policy to think about the consequence of tariffs being inflation in the short to medium term,’ she commented. “But I think the bigger thing is it also undermines the development of domestic industry.”

Using uranium and the nuclear fuel cycle as an example, Baskaran explained to the audience that tariffs would disincentivize the growth of the domestic nuclear fuel supply chain in the US. In her view, a tariff on uranium would lead to a 2 percent increase in electricity costs, which would have a ripple effect across the supply chain.

“The biggest problem is we’re building our enrichment capabilities in the US, and we need to incentivize sending raw uranium to the US for enrichment. And it undermines that effort, because it’s now 25 percent more expensive,” she said.

As the US pushes for domestic reindustrialization and stronger internal supply chains, tariffs are making it harder to secure critical resources needed for midstream processing — an already unprofitable sector.

While the impact may seem short term, failing to develop a sustainable domestic industry could have lasting consequences, affecting US manufacturing and resource independence for decades, she added.

Copper tariff investigation boosts prices

Deemed essential for widespread electrification, copper is listed on all critical minerals lists.

The US produced 1.1 million metric tons of copper and 890,000 metric tons of refined copper in 2024. However, according to the US Geological Survey, the country also imported 810,000 metric tons of refined copper last year.

In late February, the Trump administration launched a Section 232 investigation into copper imports.

It’s been described by Peter Navarro, trade adviser for the White House, as a move to curb China’s expanding copper sector while addressing vulnerabilities in the US supply chain.

Navarro has stressed the need to restore domestic mining, smelting and refining of copper, citing military and technological applications. News of the investigation and concerns about potential tariffs targeting the sector pushed have copper prices over 9 percent higher, from US$4.50 per pound on February 27 to US$4.94 on March 17.

As Bazilian pointed out, the rise has come in part due to tariff speculation, which has been reflected in a price discrepancy between copper trading on the COMEX and London Metal Exchange.

“You know that delta has increased, so the markets have already priced in the tariffs. That’s what it should be doing,” he said, noting that the markets for some minor metals lack similar mechanisms.

“The minor metals have no such price transparency or discovery,” he noted. ‘But if you have robust markets, they can be a really good bolster against what will always be a rapidly changing and uncertain political landscape.”

Critical minerals deals in jeopardy

Aside from the added costs tariffs are expected create, they are doing damage to the friendly, decades-long relationship between Canada and the US, and concerns about joint projects are coming to the forefront.

In December, the US Department of Defense (DoD) earmarked US$15.8 million to help advance a tungsten project in the Yukon. The deal, which also included C$12.9 million from the Canadian government, was hailed as “close collaboration among like-minded partners” aimed at unlocking critical minerals development.

It is part of the larger US-Canadian Joint Action Plan on Critical Minerals.

‘Tungsten is used in a diverse set of DoD systems and is essential to national security,’ Dr. Laura Taylor-Kale, assistant secretary of defense for industrial base policy, said in a press release.

‘The United States is overly reliant on overseas sources of tungsten and a secure North American supply for this commodity will mitigate one of our most critical material risks. This award also highlights the importance of the Department’s partnership with our Canadian allies,’ Taylor-Kale continued.

Bazilian said while government investment is important, it’s not sufficient and in this case has become uncertain.

“There’s been investment in Canada by the Pentagon. I’m not sure that will continue,” he said.

“We have to look at financial mechanisms that help investors look at demand — (they need) some kind of certainty on the demand side, whether it’s an offtake agreement or something else. That’s not going to come from the DoD — while the US DoD is massive, it’s not big enough to to provide all of that downstream,” Bazilian emphasized.

The professor also noted that unclear capital structures and limited access to funds are creating challenges for investment, and without both supply and demand certainty, securing financing will remain difficult.

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

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

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Investing

REPEAT — Independent Survey Confirms Public Support for Falco Horne 5 Project

Investing 6 Mins Read

Falco Resources Ltd. (TSX.V: FPC) (‘ Falco’ or the ‘ Company’ ) is pleased to publish the results of an independent survey of the population of Rouyn-Noranda and Abitibi-Témiscamingue conducted by Léger regarding the understanding and social acceptability of the Falco Horne 5 underground mine project (the ‘ Project’ ).

Three out of four people support the Project

The results show that Falco enjoys strong majority support in Rouyn-Noranda, where 72% of respondents are in favour of the Horne 5 Project, and in Abitibi-Témiscamingue, where support reaches 74%. These results demonstrate the population’s significant support for the Project, particularly given its economic spin-offs and positive impact on employment.

Trust in Falco

Respondents recognize the benefits the Project will bring to the region, emphasizing its key role in local and regional economic growth and job creation. Despite some concerns about environmental impacts, a strong majority of respondents (73%) are confident that Falco will work with civil society actors to ensure responsible implementation of the Project.

A Project for the common good

In addition, a high proportion of respondents (74%) felt that the Project should proceed for the community’s benefit, strengthening the legitimacy and social acceptability of the Falco Horne 5 Project in the region.

Hélène Cartier, Vice-President of Environment, Sustainable Development and Community Relations, stated: ‘As demonstrated by the numerous briefs submitted to BAPE, these results confirm the population’s strong support for our Project and our commitment to act responsibly. We will continue our concerted efforts with all stakeholders to ensure a mutually beneficial development. We believe this strong support justifies our request to the Québec government to deem the project acceptable.’

Luc Lessard, President and CEO, added: ‘These results are a testament to the broad support for the Project among Rouyn-Noranda residents, consistent with what we have been seeing for several years now. Falco has submitted to the authorities at the Québec government a mining development project that will be of great benefit to the city, the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region and all of Québec. It remains surprising, however, that after more than 8 years, the government has yet to recognize the Project’s conformity.’

The Company will continue its discussions with the Ministère de l’Environnement, de la Lutte contre les changements climatiques, de la Faune et des Parcs (the ‘ Ministère ‘) to have the Project’s compliance recognized and complete the environmental analysis.

Highlights
Favourability of the Project

  • 73% of respondents were in favor of the Project (28% very favorable, 46% somewhat favorable)
  • Only 15% are unfavorable (5% very unfavorable, 10% somewhat unfavorable).

Main reasons for being in favor

  • 47% : Job creation
  • 26% : Positive impact on the local economy

Main perceptions

  • 86% believe the Project will have a positive economic impact
  • 80% believe mining projects strengthen regional pride
  • 73% are confident that Falco will make its project acceptable and aligned with applicable societal and environmental expectations
  • 61% believe Falco will take public opinion into account

The survey was conducted from February 27 to March 9, 2025, among 500 Abitibi-Témiscamingue residents aged 18 and over. The presumed margin of error is ±4.38%, 19 times out of 20. The survey can be viewed by clicking on the following link: https://bit.ly/3RfaMlZ

The Falco Horne 5 Project features a state-of-the-art mining operation that maximizes the use and rehabilitation of previously disturbed sites such as Quemont and Norbec. The Project will generate significant economic benefits, contributing approximately $3.8 billion to Québec’s GDP, including $2.2 billion to the regional GDP, notably through the creation of 900 jobs during construction and 500 jobs during operations. By adding value to critical and strategic minerals, it will actively contribute to the energy transition and decarbonization of the economy.

ABOUT FALCO
Falco Resources is one of the largest mineral claim holders in the province of Quebec, with an extensive portfolio of properties in the Abitibi Greenstone Belt. Falco holds rights to approximately 67,000 hectares of land in the Noranda Mining Camp, which represents 67% of the camp and includes 13 former gold and base metal mining sites. Falco’s main asset is the Horne 5 Project located beneath the former Horne mine, which was operated by Noranda from 1927 to 1976 and produced 11.6 million ounces of gold and 2.5 billion pounds of copper. Osisko Development Corp. is Falco’s largest shareholder, with a 16% interest in the Company.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Hélène Cartier
Vice President, Environment, Sustainable Development and Community Relations
514 216-8611
hcartier@falcores.com

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE METHODOLOGY:
Éric Normandeau
Strategic consultant, Léger
514 245-0195
enormandeau@leger360.com

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This press release contains forward-looking statements and information (collectively ‘ forward-looking statements ‘) within the meaning of applicable securities laws. These statements include references to the social acceptability and development of the Project, its economic spin-offs and positive impacts on employment, the benefits the Project will bring to the region, its key role in local and regional economic growth and job creation, and public support for the Project.

These statements are based on information currently available to the Company, and the Company provides no assurance that actual results will meet management’s expectations. The occurrence of such events or the making of such statements are subject to several risk factors, including, without limitation, the risk factors identified in Falco’s annual management report and other continuous disclosure documents available at www.sedarplus.com .

Although Falco believes that the assumptions and factors applied in preparing the forward-looking statements are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on these statements, which only apply as of the date of this press release, and there can be no assurance that such events will occur within the time frames disclosed or at all. As mentioned by Falco in its public disclosure and previous press releases, certain major issues have been raised by the   Ministère   in connection with the development of the Project and in the BAPE process, including the Project’s compliance with section 197 of the Règlement sur l’assainissement de l’atmosphère (RAA).   There can be no assurance or guarantee that the Ministère will change its position with respect to the application of section 197 of the RAA to the Project, that Falco will be able to respond to the Ministère’s numerous additional requests in a timely manner or that Falco will be able to raise the funds necessary to pursue the additional studies requested by the Ministère, which could materially delay or prevent the granting of the required authorizations and thus adversely affect the development of the Project and Falco’s financial condition.   Except as required by applicable law, Falco disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

News Provided by GlobeNewswire via QuoteMedia

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

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Business

Klarna, nearing IPO, plucks lucrative Walmart fintech partnership from rival Affirm

Business 6 Mins Read

Swedish fintech firm Klarna will be the exclusive provider of buy now, pay later loans for Walmart, taking a coveted partnership away from rival Affirm, CNBC has learned.

Klarna, which just disclosed its intention to go public in the U.S., will provide loans to Walmart customers in stores and online through the retailer’s majority-owned fintech startup OnePay, according to people with knowledge of the situation who declined to be identified speaking about the partnership.

OnePay, which updated its brand name from One this month, will handle the user experience via its app, while Klarna will make underwriting decisions for loans ranging from three months to 36 months in length, and with annual interest rates from 10% to 36%, said the people.

The new product will be launched in the coming weeks and will be scaled to all Walmart channels by the holiday season, likely leaving it the retailer’s only buy now, pay later option by year-end.

The move heightens the rivalry between Affirm and Klarna, two of the world’s biggest BNPL players, just as Klarna is set to go public. Although both companies claim to offer a better alternative for borrowers than credit cards, Affirm is more U.S.-centric and has been public since 2021, while Klarna’s network is more global.

Shares of Affirm fell 13% in morning trading Monday.

The deal comes at an opportune time for Klarna as it readies one of the year’s most highly anticipated initial public offerings. After a dearth of big tech listings in the U.S. since 2021, the Klarna IPO will be a key test for the industry. The firm’s private market valuation has been a roller coaster: It soared to $46 billion in 2021, then crashed by 85% the next year amid the broader decline of high-flying fintech firms.

CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski has worked to improve Klarna’s prospects, including touting its use of generative artificial intelligence to slash expenses and headcount. The company returned to profitability in 2023, and its valuation is now roughly $15 billion, according to analysts, nearly matching the public market value of Affirm.

The OnePay deal is a “game changer” for Klarna, Siemiatkowski said in a release confirming the pact.

“Millions of people in the U.S. shop at Walmart every day — and now they can shop smarter with OnePay installment loans powered by Klarna,” he said. “We look forward to helping redefine checkout at the world’s largest retailer — both online and in stores.”

As part of the deal, OnePay can take a position in Klarna. In its F-1 filing, Klarna said it entered into a “commercial agreement with a global partner” in which it is giving warrants to purchase more than 15 million shares for an average price of $34 each. OnePay is the partner, people with knowledge of the deal confirmed.

For Affirm, the move is likely to be seen as a blow at a time when tech stocks are particularly vulnerable. Run by CEO Max Levchin, a PayPal co-founder, the company’s stock has surged and fallen since its 2021 IPO. The lender’s shares have dipped 18% this year before Monday.

Affirm executives frequently mention their partnerships with big merchants as a key driver of purchase volumes and customer acquisition. In November, Affirm’s chief revenue officer, Wayne Pommen, referred to Walmart and other tie-ups including those with Amazon, Shopify and Target as its “crown jewel partnerships.”

An Affirm spokesman had this statement: “We win business when merchants want superior performance and maximum value, given our underwriting and capital markets advantages. We will continue our long-term strategy of competing on our products and entering into sustainable partnerships.”

The deal is no less consequential to Walmart’s OnePay, which has surged to a $2.5 billion pre-money valuation just two years after rolling out a suite of products to its customers.

The startup now has more than 3 million active customers and is generating revenue at an annual run rate of more than $200 million.

As part of its push to penetrate areas adjacent to its core business, Walmart executives have touted OnePay’s potential to become a one-stop shop for Americans underserved by traditional banks.

Walmart is the world’s largest retailer and says it has 255 million weekly customers, giving the startup — which is a separate company backed by Walmart and Ribbit Capital — a key advantage in acquiring new customers.

Last year, the Walmart-backed fintech began offering BNPL loans in the aisles and on checkout pages of Walmart, CNBC reported at the time. That led to speculation that it would ultimately displace Affirm, which had been the exclusive provider for BNPL loans for Walmart since 2019.

OnePay’s move to partner with Klarna rather than going it alone shows the company saw an advantage in going with a seasoned, at-scale provider versus using its own solution.

OnePay’s push into consumer lending is expected to accelerate its conversion of Walmart customers into fintech app users. Cash-strapped consumers are increasingly relying on loans to meet their needs, and the installment loan is seen as a wedge to also offer users the banking, savings and payments features that OnePay has already built.

Americans held a record $1.21 trillion in credit card debt in the fourth quarter of last year, about $441 billion higher than balances in 2021, according to Federal Reserve Bank of New York data.

“It’s never been more important to give consumers simple and convenient ways to access fair credit at the point of sale,” said OnePay CEO Omer Ismail. “That’s especially true for the millions of people who turn to Walmart every week for everything.”

Next up is likely a OnePay-branded credit card offered with the help of a new banking partner after Walmart successfully exited its partnership with Capital One.

“We’re looking forward to going down this new path where not only can they provide installment credit … but also revolving credit,” Walmart CFO John David Rainey told investors in June.

— CNBC’s MacKenzie Sigalos and Melissa Repko contributed to this report.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS

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AI that can match humans at any task will be here in five to 10 years, Google DeepMind CEO says

Business 5 Mins Read

LONDON — Artificial intelligence that can match humans at any task is still some way off — but it’s only a matter of time before it becomes a reality, according to the CEO of Google DeepMind.

Speaking at a briefing in DeepMind’s London offices on Monday, Demis Hassabis said that he thinks artificial general intelligence (AGI) — which is as smart or smarter than humans — will start to emerge in the next five or 10 years.

“I think today’s systems, they’re very passive, but there’s still a lot of things they can’t do. But I think over the next five to 10 years, a lot of those capabilities will start coming to the fore and we’ll start moving towards what we call artificial general intelligence,” Hassabis said.

Hassabis defined AGI as “a system that’s able to exhibit all the complicated capabilities that humans can.”

“We’re not quite there yet. These systems are very impressive at certain things. But there are other things they can’t do yet, and we’ve still got quite a lot of research work to go before that,” Hassabis said.

Hassabis isn’t alone in suggesting that it’ll take a while for AGI to appear. Last year, the CEO of Chinese tech giant Baidu Robin Li said he sees AGI is “more than 10 years away,” pushing back on excitable predictions from some of his peers about this breakthrough taking place in a much shorter timeframe.

Hassabis’ forecast pushes the timeline to reach AGI some way back compared to what his industry peers have been sketching out.

Dario Amodei, CEO of AI startup Anthropic, told CNBC at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland in January that he sees a form of AI that’s “better than almost all humans at almost all tasks” emerging in the “next two or three years.”

Other tech leaders see AGI arriving even sooner. Cisco’s Chief Product Officer Jeetu Patel thinks there’s a chance we could see an example of AGI emerge as soon as this year. “There’s three major phases” to AI, Patel told CNBC in an interview at the Mobile World Congress event in Barcelona earlier this month.

“There’s the basic AI that we’re all experience right now. Then there is artificial general intelligence, where the cognitive capabilities meet those of humans. Then there’s what they call superintelligence,” Patel said.

“I think you will see meaningful evidence of AGI being in play in 2025. We’re not talking about years away,” he added. “I think superintelligence is, at best, a few years out.”

Artificial super intelligence, or ASI, is expected to arrive after AGI and surpass human intelligence. However, “no one really knows” when such a breakthrough will happen, Hassabis said Monday.

Last year, Tesla CEO Elon Musk predicted that AGI would likely be available by 2026, while OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said such a system could be developed in the “reasonably close-ish future.”

Hassabis said that the main challenge with achieving artificial general intelligence is getting today’s AI systems to a point of understanding context from the real world.

While it’s been possible to develop systems that can break down problems and complete tasks autonomously in the realm of games — such as the complex strategy board game Go — bringing such a technology into the real world is proving harder.

“The question is, how fast can we generalize the planning ideas and agentic kind of behaviors, planning and reasoning, and then generalize that over to working in the real world, on top of things like world models — models that are able to understand the world around us,” Hassabis said.”

“And I think we’ve made good progress with the world models over the last couple of years,” he added. “So now the question is, what’s the best way to combine that with these planning algorithms?”

Hassabis and Thomas Kurian, CEO of Google’s cloud computing division, said that so-called “multi-agent” AI systems are a technological advancement that’s gaining a lot of traction behind the scenes.

Hassabis said lots of work is being done to get to this stage. One example he referred to is DeepMind’s work getting AI agents to figure out how to play the popular strategy game “Starcraft.”

“We’ve done a lot of work on that with things like Starcraft game in the past, where you have a society of agents, or a league of agents, and they could be competing, they could be cooperating,” DeepMind’s chief said.

“When you think about agent to agent communication, that’s what we’re also doing to allow an agent to express itself … What are your skills? What kind of tools do you use?” Kurian said.

“Those are all elements that you need to be able to ask an agent a question, and then once you have that interface, then other agents can communicate with it,” he added.

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