CHF WEEKLY ROUND-UP: June 2-6, 2025

It is June, it feels like summer at last, and it looks like there was no “sell in May and go away” again this year. The U.S. economy remains resilient, supporting an upbeat outlook for revenues and earnings. Stock markets may appear to be recovering, recession fears seem to be fading, and global trade tensions are easing, but is the path ahead really any clearer?

Canadian markets continued to perform well despite many naysayers on the Canadian economy. The TSX set another all-time high and is up 0.67% this week, and up 17% since the April 8 low. Interestingly, the TSXV hit a three-year high and is up 3.7% this week and 28% since the April 8 low, possibly showing strength for the small-cap sector.

Statistics Canada reported a surprisingly strong 2.2% annualized rise in real gross domestic product for the first quarter on Friday, partly because many businesses were trying to rush to get ahead of the tariffs, ramping up exports and stockpiling inventories. The Bank of Canada (BoC) found itself in a difficult position as the policy rate stood at 2.75% following the central bank’s last decision in April. On Wednesday, BoC held its target overnight rate at 2.75%. On Thursday, the European Central Bank once again lowered its three key ECB interest rates by 25 basis points. BoC Governor Macklem said that he would refrain from issuing any formal forecasts and be less forward-looking than usual until he gained more certainty on how the economy would react to ever-shifting tariff threats. The GDP figures are sending no obvious distress signals so far in 2025, but the question for some economists isn’t what the Canadian economy has done; it’s what comes next.

U.S. markets have recovered considerably from the April 8 low but have not established new highs for the year. The U.S. dollar (USD) is now down by 9.5% from its high for the year. President Trump threw sand into the gears of global trade last Friday when he announced doubling existing tariffs on steel and aluminum entering the United States to 50 % starting Wednesday, effectively closing the U.S. market to Canadian steel, maybe in support of Nippon Steel that has offered $14.9 billion for US Steel, seeking to capitalize on an expected ramp up in U.S. steel purchases. For aluminum, the U.S. has few alternatives to Canadian products, as it has no production capacity of its own. Therefore, costs to U.S. consumers will rise, as tariffs are essentially a corporate tax increase. Corporations must offset them by either raising productivity or passing the cost onto their vendors and/or customers.

Prime Minister Carney has so far resisted any temptation to immediately retaliate against these fresh tariffs because he knows counter-tariffs won’t work and will only bring more pain to Canadians. The ninety-day pause on full tariff implementation ends in one month from this Monday and no new trade deals are apparent. President Trump said Thursday that he had a "very good talk" with China's President Xi Jinping for an hour and a half mostly about trade. The financial markets yawned. Stock, bond, currency, and commodity traders may have become jaded with Trump's trade dealmaking.

In the last 2.5 months, gold prices have consolidated support in the USD$3,200 - $3,300/oz range, reaching USD$3,400/oz but not back to April’s all-time high. This has caused some gold bears to call the gold run over and recommend shorting. Gold opens the day at USD$3,357/oz this morning. According to one research firm, it is only a matter of time before that record level is tested and broken, and they expect gold prices to reach a record new high likely in the second half of the year. The major producers are seeing record margins, have debt-free, pristine balance sheets, and are buying back stock; however, the junior sector is seriously undervalued, lacking institutional and retail flows into mining stocks.  Gold bulls are looking for a big M&A rush as majors look to replenish depleting reserves after years of underinvestment, and that would kick off a rally in the junior small-cap names.  Agnico Eagle Mines Limited increased its stake in micro-cap stock Fury Gold Mines by 173%, investing CAD$4,305,920 through a non-brokered private placement. Silver has been breaking above USD$36/oz this week, its highest in 13 years, and opens today at USD$36.09/oz. Analysts see good reason to be more bullish on the precious metal equities now, with the most significant upside in junior miners and mid-tier producers.

Base and industrial metals prices remain range-bound, continuing to show the impact of inventory build-up driven by tariff avoidance. Copper has traded up to USD$4.90/lb this week. Nickel continues to struggle to break USD$7.00/lb. BHP and Lundin Mining Corporation are sitting on 38 mt of copper in Argentina, aiming to kick off production at the Josemaría and Filo del Sol projects by 2030. Panama may have begun to explore options for Cobre Panama, with or without First Quantum. According to a study, led by researchers from the University of Michigan, Cornell University and the University of Queensland, the problem isn’t finding enough copper in the ground, but the rate at which companies are mining to meet the rapid consumption of metal driven by two major themes: economic development and clean energy. It found that a price increase of up to 100% would be required to incentivize companies to build more mines and raise output to the projected levels. The study identifies what is seen as realistic pathways to reducing copper demand going forward, including the shift to nuclear energy as a primary power source, employing methane-powered baseload-power plants to support renewables, and promoting hybrid vehicles over fully electric ones.

Critical, battery, and electric materials did not experience any significant price gains this week, as oversupply and China's dominance have held this sector down, despite ongoing demand.

Rio Tinto is "consistent in its belief in the long-term outlook for lithium" and expects demand to grow at a CAGR of 10% through 2040.

Global uranium supply hasn’t kept pace with demand since the 1990s. Recently, Ontario broke ground on the first of four small modular reactors (SMRs) planned for the Darlington Nuclear Generating Site. A gap is opening between the amount of fuel reactors require and how the mining sector supplies are growing. Yet the price fell to USD$71.40/lb this week and exploration and new mine development lag by years. The uranium supply chain needs capital, confidence, and long-term offtake signals. Uranium mining and exploration equities will benefit, but the supply response is slow, and new production takes time, as geopolitics is a factor. Long-term, the energy thesis remains unchanged. Nuclear remains one of the most credible baseload green energy solutions available.

We are pleased to present our round-up of client news released between June 2 and 6, 2025.

Mining

On June 2, 2025, Nuinsco Resources Limited (CSE: NWI) announced that on May 29, 2025, the Company had filed the required periodic continuous disclosure documents, consisting of the Annual Audited Financial Statements (FS), Management’s Discussion and Analysis (MD&A) and related filings for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2024. Nuinsco also filed the unaudited condensed interim consolidated financial statements and MD&A for the three months ended March 31, 2025, and 2024. All filings are available for review under the Company's profile on SEDAR+.

As a result, a cease trade order issued May 7, 2025, by the Ontario Securities Commission under Multilateral Instrument 11-103: for Failure-To-File has been revoked.

On June 2, 2025, Athena Gold Corporation (CSE: ATHA) (OTCQB: AHNRF) announced that it has entered into a property option agreement with Firetail Resources Limited (ASX: FTL) dated May 28, 2025, whereby the Company has granted Firetail the exclusive right to acquire an 80% undivided interest in the Company's Excelsior Springs Project located in Nevada, USA. If the Option is exercised, Firetail will pay Athena Gold AUD$200,000 in cash and issue 32,000,000 ordinary shares, and Firetail will be required to incur USD$5,000,000 in expenditures over a five-year term. A 1% net smelter return royalty will also be retained by Athena Gold on certain claims comprising the Property. If Firetail successfully earns its 80% interest, the parties will form a joint venture partnership that provides Athena Gold with a 20% free-carried interest until a Definitive Feasibility Study is published.

Koby Kushner, President & CEO of Athena Gold, said, “Our efforts at Excelsior have attracted international interest, and we are pleased that the capable team at Firetail is keen to take on the risk and share the benefits with Athena Gold. When normalized to a 100% basis from 80%, the total investment approaches our current market capitalization. In addition to our significant shareholding in Firetail, Athena will maintain significant upside in the project through royalties and its 20% free-carried interest to a Definitive Feasibility Study. With Excelsior successfully monetized, we can place our focus on our new flagship project, Laird Lake, where crews have now mobilized for the 2025 field season."

Koby Kushner, CEO of Athena Gold attended THE Mining Investment EVENT in Quebec City: June 2-5, 2025. It was a great success!

On June 02, 2025, Rocky Shore Gold Ltd. (CSE: RSG) announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement with a subsidiary of Barrick Mining Corporation to sell its Hemlo-area mineral claims near Marathon, Ontario, for cash consideration of CAD$975,000. This agreement includes all Ontario claims owned by the Company, including the claims subject to an earlier option agreement, which will be terminated on closing of the transaction. The Company will retain a variable-rate royalty of up to 0.50% Net Smelter Returns on the claims; the rate per claim will depend on the preexisting royalty burden on such claim, and Barrick will have the right to buy back 50% of the royalty by making a one-time cash payment of CAD$500,000. The transaction is expected to close within 30 days.

Ken Lapierre, President and CEO, commented, “As we transition to Newfoundland to advance our 100%-owned, district-scale Gold Anchor Project, the opportunity to monetize our non-core Ontario assets presented itself. We are delighted that Barrick has agreed to a cash and royalty purchase of our Pic, Idaho and North Limb Projects.”

“The Company plans to use the non-dilutive proceeds to kick-start the spring-summer field season at Gold Anchor. The program will include more detailed geological and geophysical work at its Lane Pond Gold Target. At Lane Pond, significant gold values in recent and historical sampling in an area 6,000 metres long are located proximal to the Appleton fault. The Appleton fault, the most prolific gold-bearing fault in the emerging gold district, trends for a minimum of 20 kilometres at Gold Anchor. The fault hosts gold resources and high-grade drill intersections on trend to the northeast of our property. Our plan is to be drill-ready this summer to test the Lane Pond Gold Target with an inaugural drill program.”

Technology

On June 5, 2025, Visionstate Corp. (TSXV: VIS) announced the official launch of MIRA, its newest software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform designed to streamline and digitize inspections across public-facing facilities. The platform became available to customers in June 2025 following months of development and testing in real-world conditions.

MIRA represents the latest evolution in Visionstate’s commitment to delivering smart, scalable, and data-driven tools for the facility management industry. Built as a natural extension of the company’s WANDATM platform, MIRA allows facility teams to conduct audits, safety checks, and operational inspections with greater accuracy, accountability, and efficiency.

“The launch of MIRA is a major step forward in our vision to deliver an integrated suite of digital solutions for facility management,” said Shannon Moore, President of Visionstate IoT. “Where WandaLITE solves cleaning compliance, MIRA addresses a broader range of operational and regulatory inspections. Together, they form a powerful platform.”

It also marks a significant business milestone for Visionstate. As a new product in the company's SaaS portfolio, MIRA introduces a fresh recurring revenue stream that complements WandaLITE without increasing implementation complexity. Because most facility managers already conduct inspections using paper-based methods, MIRA offers a lower-friction transition to digital without the need for operational disruption. It also adds a valuable new layer of data that can be analyzed alongside cleaning and resource metrics to drive improved efficiency, accountability, and planning.