Data: SHFE, DCE market movement (Oct 18)

Divisions within the US Fed over the next direction of monetary policy have become increasingly public. Richmond Fed President Barkin on Thursday laid out the case for keeping interest rates unchanged, while warning of persistent inflation risks; Cleveland Fed President Hammack again reiterated her call for rate hikes, extending the dissent she voiced at the July policy meeting.

The reserve verification exploration project of Hubei Jilongshan Gold Mining Co., Ltd. broke ground, marking the project’s official shift from planning, decision-making, and design validation to the substantive construction stage. This exploration program will last four months, with the core drilling work planned to complete 32 drill holes totaling 11,000 m of footage within two months. According to preliminary estimates, the project is expected to add 2.4 million mt of ore, 2 mt of gold metal content, and 4,500 mt of copper metal content.

Codelco executive Gustavo Reyes said the company's stalled El Teniente copper mine project is expected to begin production in 2029.On August 4, Codelco said it had suspended the project, which aims to develop the Andes Norte area of the vast underground mine. Earlier, the latest studies showed that the mine faced higher seismic risk than initially expected.