Morning Briefing: Trafigura Says Energy Markets at a Critical Juncture
Good morning and welcome back to the Mining Stock Daily morning briefing. I am Trevor Hall.
It's Thursday, June 4.
Gold is up 1.4% this morning to $4,529 an ounce on the front-month contract. Silver is gaining 1% to $74.48. Copper is at $6.52 a pound, as it attempts to bounce a tad higher after yesterday’s loss.
The choppy trade in gold continues, and today the move is higher — the culprit once again is Middle East optimism. The dollar and oil are both lower this morning, with Brent crude down almost 3% to $94.96 a barrel. On that note, Trafigura said energy markets are now at a quote critical juncture, with the factors that have kept a lid on prices swiftly receding. We are seeing similar statements from some of the world’s largest oil producers recently.
Elsewhere, Russia has claimed it produced between 480 and 500 tonnes of gold in 2025 — a figure that, if accurate, would make it the world's largest gold producer ahead of China. That number is roughly 50% higher than the World Gold Council's estimate of Russian output and comes after Moscow stopped releasing official gold production data following its 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Independent estimates ranged from 330 to 360 tonnes. The claim raises significant questions: Russia's Natural Resources Minister made the announcement via state media, and industry analysts say there are no major new mines that would explain the increase. Meanwhile, the Bank of Russia has reportedly sold approximately 28 tonnes of gold this year — raising over $4 billion — to help cover war-related budget deficits. Take the production numbers with some skepticism, but it is clear Russia sees gold as a critical strategic and financial asset.
We’ll get to the news from the miners and explorers in just a moment, but first a word about today’s sponsor.
This episode of Mining Stock Daily is brought to you by…Revival Gold.
Revival Gold is advancing the Beartrack-Arnett Gold Project in Idaho — the largest past-producing gold mine in the state — with a multi-million-ounce resource base and a pre-feasibility study underway. The company is also running a 16,000-metre drill program at the Mercur Gold Project in Utah, targeting a PFS completion in Q1 2027. Learn more at revival-gold.com.
Here’s what you need to know today.
Gladiator Metals has reported its strongest drill result yet at the Cub East discovery in the Whitehorse Copper Belt in Yukon, with a new hole returning 22 metres at 4.24% copper and 2.16 grams per tonne gold within a broader interval of 36 metres at 2.68% copper and 1.35 grams per tonne gold. The result is a meaningful step-up from the May hole that returned 24 metres at 3.03% copper and 1.08 grams per tonne gold, and continues the pattern of Cub East delivering exceptional skarn copper-gold grades with successive drilling. Gladiator is running a fully funded 50,000-metre 2026 campaign across the Whitehorse Copper Belt (TSX-V: GLAD, OTCQB: GDTRF). News Release
Fortune Bay and Manhattan Uranium Discovery have announced a fully funded 5,000-metre joint drill program at the Murmac and Strike Uranium Projects in northern Saskatchewan, designed to test up to 25 priority targets. Both projects are situated within 25 kilometres of Uranium City on the northern margin of the Athabasca Basin — an area with established infrastructure including roads, an active hydro powerline, and an airport. Previous drilling at Murmac returned 8.40 metres at 0.30% U3O8, including 1.20 metres at 1.79% U3O8. Drilling is expected to commence this month (TSX-V: FOR, OTCQB: FTBYF; Manhattan Uranium Discovery: TSX-V: MANU). News Release
Onyx Gold has extended the Argus Gold System with new step-out holes returning 0.8 grams per tonne gold over 70.0 metres and 0.7 grams per tonne gold over 95.0 metres. The results demonstrate the broad, continuous nature of the Argus system, which is being advanced as a bulk-tonnage gold target. The latest intercepts push the known boundaries of the system further along strike, and the company is continuing to define the full extent of the mineralized corridor (TSX-V: ONYX, OTCQX: ONXGF). News Release
Bonterra Resources has defined a depth extension at the Barry Gold Deposit in the Val-d'Or gold camp in Quebec, with new drilling confirming high-grade gold mineralization below the current resource envelope. Results reported today included 7.59 g/t Au over 1.9m, 4.6 g/t over 2.5m and 6.48 g/t over 2.2m. The 2026 exploration program was designed to test targets located south-west and east of the Barry deposit and included deep drilling to evaluate the down-plunge extension of mineralization at depths of approximately 750 to 850 meters, as well as the eastern down-plunge extension of the deposit. (TSX-V: BTR, OTC: BONXF). News Release
Alaska Silver has commenced its 2026 drill program at the Illinois Creek Gold-Silver Project in Alaska, targeting both resource expansion and new discoveries across the property. The Company's fully funded, two-rig, 6,000 meter exploration program is designed to expand the Waterpump Creek ("WPC") resource, evaluate the discovery potential of the Silver Sage target, and advance several emerging exploration targets across the broader Illinois Creek district. Additionally, the Company plans to advance baseline studies for fish habitat, cultural resources and wetlands in parallel with expanded environmental and geoscience programs which will support future permitting and regulatory assessments. (TSX-V: WAM, OTCQX: WAMFF). News Release
Silver X Mining has acquired a 100% interest in the Ccasahuasi Gold Property in Peru — a gold system located immediately adjacent to a producing mine and defined to date with only 903 metres of drilling, leaving it substantially open along strike and at depth. The acquisition adds a high-upside exploration asset to Silver X's Peruvian portfolio, which is anchored by the producing Nueva Recuperada silver mine in the Castrovirreyna district. Ccasahuasi represents a low-cost, high-leverage entry into a system that benefits from proximity to existing mine infrastructure (TSX-V: AGX, OTCQX: AGXPF). News Release
The Mining Stock Daily morning briefing is produced by Clear Commodity Network. It is distributed throughout the world through your podcast network of choice, and at Clear Commodity Network.
That's it for today everyone. Have a great day. Stay safe.
The information presented should not be considered investment advice. Mining Stock Daily and its affiliates are not responsible for any loss arising from any investment decision in connection with the material presented herein. Please do your own research or speak with a licensed financial representative before making any investment decisions.