CHF WEEKLY ROUND-UP: March 24-28, 2025

The uncertainty continues, and very volatile markets are sending ominous signals. U.S., European, and Asian markets all had a bad week. The 25% Auto Tariff on the portion of vehicles not made in America is on. Nobody can be certain what will happen on April 2nd. 

Canadian Markets are the only ones that held up this week, thanks to the number of resource listings. CIBC Capital Markets’ head of portfolio strategy is optimistic about the S&P/TSX Composite Index based on, higher prices for gold and oil, a weaker Canadian dollar, and lower domestic borrowing costs. The TSX was up more than 1% this week while the Venture index continued to gain and was up 4% on the month.

The Bank of Canada (BoC) noted that the Canadian economy had been performing above expectations heading into 2025, which should have provided conditions for a rate hold this month, but they had chosen to cut based on uncertainty around tariffs from the United States. 

Despite the recent stock market correction American consumers seem to feel satisfied with the present situation, but they are losing confidence in the future. Tariffs mean inflation and that prices go up for everybody. A recession is considered to be at a 35% probability of occurring and that means fewer jobs. March U.S. consumer confidence plunged to the lowest level in more than four years. The Fed is expecting a tariff-driven wave of inflation and may be forced to cut rates later in the year. Expectations are for a choppy stock market for the next couple of months, but it could be choppier to the upside rather than choppy to the downside as it has been since mid-February. During the past ten years, March has been quite a weak month for the S&P 500, then the index rallied through late July. 

The U.S. dollar is up again today and is holding onto its strength on the back of Fed deferring rate cuts and sticky inflation continuing.

Gold hit a new high of USD$3,085/oz this week on the combined uncertainties and continues to have solid support above the USD$3,000/oz level, opening at USD$3,070/oz this morning. A major catch-up is predicted in silver prices, from USD$34.50/oz this morning to Eric Sprott’s call for $250 to $500/oz silver. Goldman Sachs analysts raised their target gold price forecast to $3,300/oz even up to $3,680 an ounce by year’s end. Gold prices are surging, yet many gold producers remain undervalued, and junior holders of resources in the ground are still bargains: they are a unique opportunity for investors.

Base and industrial metal prices had spiked as traders rushed to send the metal to America ahead of any tariffs, causing metal shortages elsewhere. That ended on Thursday with copper falling to USD$4.45/lb and nickel to USD$7.32/lb. Copper is attracting a lot of interest, and M&A activity continues, with some targets pushing back against “opportunistic bids” by the majors.

Battery and critical materials prices remain in a six-month slump with no real sign of a breakout and have given back the increases seen in the pre-tariff buying surge. Export restrictions on materials and technology placed by China and the recently increased U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports continue to hold this sector down. The economy in China remains weak despite stimulus efforts. It may be next year before there is a recovery and the demand for these commodities will improve. The price of uranium is now down more than a third from early 2024 and has slumped 26 % in the last year alone. 

We hope you enjoy our round-up of client news released between March 24 and 28, 2025.

Mining

On March 24, 2025, Nuinsco Resources (CSE: NWI) was featured on CHF’s Bay Street Q&A digital interview platform. Professor of Economic Geology at McGill University, A. E. Williams-Jones, PhD, spoke about the important research he and his team are conducting on the exciting Niobium potential of Nuinsco’s project.

View Here.

On March 27, 2025, Falcon Gold Corp. (TSXV: FG| OTCQB: FGLDF| FSE: 3FA) announced the successful completion of its third drill hole at the Great Burnt Copper-Gold Project in Newfoundland. Drilling on the fourth hole is now being finalized, and preparations are underway to move the drill rig to Pad #5, marking a critical step forward in Falcon’s aggressive and systematic exploration of this highly prospective copper-gold system. 

“We are highly encouraged by the latest results from Great Burnt,” stated Karim Rayani, CEO of Falcon Gold. “The geological indicators we are seeing – particularly the significant increase in sulphide mineralization - strongly suggest we are closing in on a major mineralized system. This aligns with our technical team’s expectation, reinforcing confidence in our exploration model.”

Disseminated Pyrite in a Vuggy Quartz Vein, Grey Coloured (smokey) Quartz Veins, Vugs, and Pyrite are Typical Indicators of a Gold Mineralization System. 

On March 28, 2025, - Athena Gold Corporation (CSE: ATHA) (OTCQB: AHNR) announced the results from its Annual, General, and Special Meeting of Shareholders, held on Thursday, March 27, 2025. Shareholders holding a total of 153,401,821 common shares were represented in person or by proxy at the Meeting, representing 78.75% of the vote attached to all outstanding common shares of the Company as of the record date. Stockholders voted in favour of all the matters submitted before the Meeting as set out in the Proxy Statement dated February 4, 2025, including: 

• The migration of the Company from the State of Delaware to the Province of British Columbia, Canada, by merger into its British Columbia subsidiary, Nova Athena Gold Corp.  

• The election of the following as directors until the next annual stockholder meeting of the Company: David Goodman, Koby Kushner, John C. Power, John E. Hiner and Brian Power;  

• The appointment of Davidson & Company LLP as the Company’s auditors for the ensuing year and to authorize the directors to fix the remuneration to be paid to the auditors;  

• The approval, on an advisory, non-binding basis, of the compensation of the Company’s Named Executive Officers;  

• The approval, on an advisory, non-binding basis, establishing the frequency of shareholders voting on the compensation of Named Executive Officers to be every two (2) years.  

  
  

The Board appointed David Goodman as Chairman, Koby Kushner as President and Chief Executive Officer, Ty Minnick as Chief Financial Officer, and John C. Power as Corporate Secretary. John E. Hiner, John C. Power, and Brian Power were appointed members of the Audit Committee.  

Fintech

On March 28, 2025, Tenet Fintech Group Inc. (CSE: PKK) (OTCQB: PKKFF) announced that it recently entered into partnership agreements with three accounting and bookkeeping service providers in its continuous quest to provide SME entrepreneurs with the technology-driven tools and services they need to operate and grow their businesses efficiently. 

"Although we haven't yet expanded the Business Hub to the U.S., our new partners' presence south of the border is of great value to us because it will allow us to immediately hit the ground running as soon as we're ready to start servicing U.S. SMEs," commented Fredi Tasciyan, Director of Strategic Partnerships and Financial Institutions at Cubeler. "We also greatly value all our accounting and bookkeeping partners' commitment to using Dext Software's bookkeeping automation platform to help provide their SME clients with daily pictures of their financial and accounting data. Their use of the Dext platform, along with their existing services, will nicely complement the Business Hub's offerings and combine to bring significant value to North American SMEs," concluded Mr. Tasciyan.