Market Commentary ~ Weekly Summary

Precious metals were higher during the week as softer U.S. economic data reduced expectations for further Fed tightening. Weaker retail sales, lower Treasury yields and a softer U.S. dollar improved the appeal of non-yielding assets. Base metals were mixed during the week, with copper and aluminum underperforming due to easing near-term supply concerns, while tighter supply conditions supported zinc.

Precious Metals

·      Gold prices rose 5.2% during the week, supported by lower bond yields and a weaker U.S. dollar after the U.S. Treasury doubled liquidity-support buybacks for longer-dated securities. Continued investor interest in gold as a safe-haven asset amid geopolitical uncertainty, coupled with central-bank purchases, supported prices. Upside was partly capped by hawkish Fed signals and higher oil prices.

·      Silver outperformed gold as lower Treasury yields boosted demand for non-yielding precious metals, while silver also benefited from its stronger industrial exposure to solar, electronics and EV demand. Its higher beta to shifts in growth and rate expectations amplified the move.

·      PGM metals rallied with the broader precious metals complex, supported by a weaker U.S. dollar, lower Treasury yields and safe haven flows. Platinum rose on improving demand expectations, particularly from hydrogen fuel-cell applications, alongside its established use in automotive catalysts, while palladium gained on continued supply concentration risks among major producing countries (Russia and South Africa).

Base Metals

·      Copper edged lower by 1.7% as rising exchange inventories and weaker Chinese import demand eased near-term supply concerns. Record COMEX inventories also weighed on sentiment, offsetting support from mine disruptions and a weaker dollar. Zinc rose 2.7% on tightening supply concerns, with China flooding disrupting output. Glencore’s H1 zinc production fell 21% YOY, while Boliden’s concentrate output declined 16.8% QOQ.

·      Aluminum closed at $3,226.5/t, down 0.6%, as Middle East production restarts eased supply concerns. China’s July output rose 3.8% YOY to 3.9 million tonnes, while exports increased 18.6% YOY, reinforcing expectations of improving near term availability.

·      Tin was slightly lower as profit-taking at elevated prices and weak spot demand offset support from tight inventories.



·      Nickel rose 1.7% to $16,845/t during the week as Indonesian ore prices remained firm amid tight raw-material availability. Expectations that Indonesia’s planned commodity exchange could strengthen domestic nickel price-setting also supported sentiment. Lead was up 0.5% to $1,855/t during the week.





Spotlight: Key Updates from Coverage Companies

Lode Gold Resources Inc. (TSXV: LOD)

·      On August 17, 2026, Lode Gold commenced metallurgical drilling at its flagship Fremont Gold Mine in California, targeting areas planned for future mine development. The program will use large-diameter PQ core to generate representative samples for metallurgical testing, with trade-off studies evaluating gravity versus flotation recovery, grinding requirements and processing configurations to optimize future CAPEX and OPEX. The work is also intended to validate a 2014 metallurgical study that reported 91% gold recovery. Fremont has seen 43,000 metres of drilling and 10,000 underground channel samples, while the 2023 PEA was based on 1.16 Moz at 1.90 g/t Au in 19.0 Mt Indicated and 2.02 Moz at 2.22 g/t Au in 28.0 Mt Inferred resources.

Almonty Industries Inc. (Nasdaq: ALM)

·      On August 17, Almonty Industries authorized a new share repurchase program of up to US$300 million, allowing the company to buy back as many as 14.4 million shares, or approximately 5% of shares outstanding as of August 14, 2026. The program will run for 36 months from August 24, 2026, to August 24, 2029, with purchases permitted through Nasdaq and other approved channels. Management said the buyback reflects its view that Almonty’s current share price undervalues its strategic tungsten assets and growth outlook.

Dryden Gold Corp. (TSXV: DRY)

·      On August 18, 2026, Dryden Gold closed the initial tranche of its option agreement to acquire a 100% interest in the Lost Lake Property, comprising 122 mineral claims in the Gold Rock Mining Camp of Northwestern Ontario. Following TSXV approval, Dryden paid C$10,000 and issued 25,000 shares at C$0.21/share. To complete the acquisition, the company must make a further C$90,000 in cash and issue 100,000 shares over two years. Upon exercise, Orebot will retain a 3% NSR royalty, half of which Dryden can repurchase for C$1.0 million.

China Gold International Resources Corp Ltd. (TSX: CGG)

·      On August 17, 2026, China Gold International Resources announced approval of remediation plans for the Chang Shan Hao (CSH) Gold Mine following the May 22 slope instability event. The company expects to complete key interim works needed to restart mining within roughly one month of contractor mobilization, with normal operations resuming progressively thereafter and the main slope hazards expected to be mitigated by end-September 2026. The two approved remediation programs carry combined estimated capex of RMB98.4 million, comprising RMB48.5 million for slope-failure remediation and RMB49.9 million for geohazard prevention. Importantly, management does not expect a material impact on CSH’s 2026 production guidance.



·      On August 17, 2026, China Gold International Resources engaged SRK Consulting to complete an independent NI 43-101 feasibility-level assessment for the planned underground development of the CSH Gold Mine in Inner Mongolia. SRK’s work will proceed in two phases, an initial gap analysis followed by an independent feasibility study.

Pinnacle Silver and Gold Corp. (TSXV: PINN)

·      On August 18, 2026, Pinnacle Silver and Gold reported initial results from its underground drilling program at the El Potrero gold-silver project in Durango, Mexico, where 58 of 108 planned holes have been completed. At the historic Pinos Cuates mine, hole EPUG26035 returned 9.69 g/t Au and 143 g/t Ag over 13.18 metres, including 59.2 g/t Au and 424 g/t Ag over 1.07 metres with visible gold. The hole extended mineralization about 20 metres northwest, while drilling to the southeast returned up to 9.54 g/t Au and 134 g/t Ag over 1.5 metres, extending the potential mineralized strike at Pinos Cuates to at least 70 metres.

Juggernaut Exploration Ltd. (TSXV: JUGR)

·      On August 19, 2026, Juggernaut Exploration reported that maiden drilling at its 100%-controlled Big One property in British Columbia’s Golden Triangle had extended the Big Mac Zone to 450 metres of strike and 500 metres depth, with the system remaining open laterally and at depth. Multiple holes intersected broad quartz-sulphide mineralization, including 30.11 metres in BO-26-14, 11.22 metres in BO-26-02 and 10.04 metres in BO-26-18, with assays pending. Surface work has returned samples of up to 114.60 g/t AuEq and channel cuts of 4.89 g/t AuEq over 5.21 metres. Encouraged by the scale of the mineralized system, Juggernaut expanded its fully funded 2026 drill program by about 30%, from 10,000 metres to 13,000 metres.

District Copper Corp. (TSXV: DCOP)

·      On August 19, District Copper presented an integrated geological framework for its Copper Keg porphyry copper project, consolidating geological, geochemical and geophysical datasets to refine priority drill targets ahead of a planned DCIP survey. The work is intended to better define the scale and geometry of the interpreted porphyry system and improve targeting of zones with potential for higher-grade copper mineralization.

Nord Precious Metals Mining Inc. (TSXV: NTH)

·      On August 18, 2026, Nord Precious Metals reported that July prospecting and stripping at its Castle East property in Ontario extended the known surface gold trend to approximately 560 metres. A new prospecting sample returned 2.80 g/t Au, while channel sampling returned 2.09 g/t Au over 1.6 metres, including 2.51 g/t Au over 0.7 metres; grab samples assayed up to 2.47 g/t Au. Nord plans a larger fall prospecting and stripping program, with results to be incorporated into an expanded Castle East silver-gold geological model.

PTX Metals Inc. (TSXV: PTX)

·      On August 17, 2026, PTX Metals reported results from the first locked-cycle metallurgical test at its W2 Copper-Nickel-PGE Project in Northern Ontario, achieving 97% copper recovery into a concentrate grading 28% Cu, 7.2 g/t palladium and 0.8 g/t gold. The test also recovered 70% of palladium and 54% of gold into the final concentrate. Importantly, these results were achieved using a relatively simple flotation flowsheet, providing further validation that W2 mineralization could support production of a saleable high-grade copper concentrate.

Tartisan Nickel Corp. (CSE: TN)

·      On August 20, 2026, Tartisan Nickel announced support for a two-day prospecting and geological training course for First Nations community members on August 25-26 at its flagship Kenbridge Nickel-Copper-Cobalt Project in Northwestern Ontario. The program, delivered with participation from the Ontario Geological Survey, will combine field and classroom training covering local geology, mineral occurrences, sampling, GPS use and prospecting fundamentals. Tartisan said the initiative is intended to strengthen Indigenous participation in mineral exploration.