Offers of Minor Metals in Europe (2017-5-3)

[SMM Silver Weekly Review: Silver Prices Rose Before Falling with a Bearish Weekly Candlestick; Mixed Signals Await New Catalysts to Break the Deadlock] Silver prices rose before falling this week, with the weekly chart posting a medium bearish candlestick. Prices rebounded to yuan/kg 16,188.5 at the start of the week, before being pressured by stronger-than-expected PMI data and geopolitical tensions to pull back to around yuan/kg 15,600 by the end of the week, giving back all of the week's gains. The macro front was supportive early in the week but turned negative later. Spot silver stockpiling ahead of the double holiday briefly boosted trading activity before it faded. Inventory saw a slight buildup of 14 mt, while ETF holdings edged higher. In the absence of clear short-term guidance, silver prices are likely to swing wildly in a wide range.

[SMM Gold Flash] Cora Gold reported that fieldwork and three-dimensional plant modelling for front-end engineering design at its Sanankoro project in Mali had been completed. It also completed compensation for 174 hectares required for the planned tailings facility and upgraded the exploration camp, while geotechnical work covered the proposed process-plant and power-station sites. Front-End Engineering Design (FEED) remains targeted for completion in the fourth quarter of 2026. These activities improve construction readiness but do not constitute construction approval: full development remains conditional on Mali granting the required mining permit. Cora previously secured a binding US$120 million gold-stream facility, subsequently amended to permit partial replacement by senior debt.

[SMM Precious Metals Flash] Spot gold fell 0.4% to US$4,325.03/oz on 22 September as markets priced a prolonged period of high US interest rates; US gold futures declined 0.5% to US$4,362. Platinum rose 0.7% to US$1,810.81/oz, while palladium fell 1.1% to US$1,286.91/oz. A day earlier, gold had lost 0.6%, while platinum and palladium gained 0.3% and 0.4% respectively. The movement indicates that interest-rate expectations, the dollar and oil-driven inflation concerns remained the dominant immediate precious-metals drivers. Platinum’s relative resilience did not establish a change in physical PGM fundamentals, and the opposing palladium movement cautions against treating this as a broad PGM-sector rally.