Gold holds gains, silver slips as Wall Street plunges, Fed hike bets ease - Kitco PM Report

OTTAWA, Nov 5 (Reuters) - ​The Bank ‌of Canada ​on ​Thursday unveiled a ⁠new ​five year ​monetary policy framework with ​the ​federal finance ministry ‌which ⁠keeps its inflation ​target ​unchanged ⁠at 2%.(Reporting ​by ​David ⁠Ljunggren, editing by ⁠Maria ​Cheng) ((Reuters ​Ottawa editorial; david.ljunggren@tr.com, opens new tab))Keywords: ​CANADA CENBANK/FRAMEWORK

Bank of Canada keeps 2% inflation target

Chinese copper smelters are facing mounting pressure as falling sulphuric acid prices erode a key source of profits that had helped offset losses from processing copper concentrate at negative fees, industry sources said.The double blow for China’s smelters, which produce more than half of the world’s refined copper, has prompted some operators to extend maintenance outages this quarter. That is keeping output on track for its slowest pace in decades and raising the prospect of operating losses in coming quarters, analysts said.Smelters including Jiangxi Copper (SHA: 600362), (HKG: 0358) and Yunnan Copper (SZSE: 000878) reported sharp declines in third-quarter profits from the previous quarter, according to Reuters calculations based on company filings.Smelters typically earn treatment and refining charges (TC/RCs) for converting copper concentrate into refined metal. But a severe ore shortage has forced them to accept negative spot TC/RCs for almost two years, effectively paying for raw material supply.“Until this northern (hemisphere) summer, the only financial relief a copper smelter got from zero-to-deeply negative TC/RCs, was via its byproducts,” said Panmure Liberum analyst Tom Price. “Now they’re getting crunched too.”Smelters remained profitable in the first half of 2026 largely because sulphuric acid prices surged after disruptions to shipments from the war-hit Middle East.But that windfall is fading. Chinese sulphuric acid prices have fallen to about 1,484 yuan ($222.50) per metric ton from a July peak of 2,107 yuan, according to data from commodities information provider Zhuochuang.“Sulphuric acid prices dropped 30% in Q3. And if the US-Iran war ends tomorrow, expect more downside,” Price said.Spot copper treatment charges slid to a record low of minus $246.40 a ton on October 30, according to Argus data.Two managers whose companies are members of the China Smelters Purchase Team (CSPT), which includes most of the country’s copper smelters, said production cuts were coming, although they declined to provide details and asked not to be named because of the sensitivity of the matter.Some smelters have already shut down units for maintenance due to waning profitability.CSPT member Daye Nonferrous (HKG: 0661) recently flagged falling sulphuric acid prices in an exchange filing, warning that challenges facing its operations were becoming “even more severe”.“With both acid prices and processing fees falling, smelters will be under tremendous pressure in 2027 when it’s getting more difficult for them to make money,” said Yang Hua, an analyst at consultancy Mysteel.($1 = 6.6693 Chinese yuan)(Reporting by Tom Daly and Amy Lv. Editing by Tony Munroe and Mark Potter)

Falling sulphuric acid prices deepen China’s copper smelter squeeze

NEW YORK, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Wall Street’s most closely ​watched gauge of market anxiety logged its biggest intraday jump in more than 18 months ‌on Thursday as steep losses in chip and data center-related stocks dragged down major stock indexes.Analysts said much of the selling may reflect an unwind of the previous session's sharp rally and of the crowded AI trade that has driven markets for months, as ​well as investors cutting risk ahead of expected volatility-driven selling by funds and strategies. "It really did look ​as though things were going to relax a little bit and then, you know, the ⁠steamroller showed up today," Jim Carroll, senior wealth adviser and portfolio manager at Ballast Rock Private Wealth in ​Charleston, South Carolina, said.The Cboe Volatility Index (.VIX), an options-based indicator that reflects demand for protection against drops in the ​stock market, jumped 11.5 points to an eight-month high of 28.09, a day after markets rallied following Democrats' sweeping midterm victory.The index was last at 27.65, with the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC), down 4% as investors fretted that a change of guard in Washington might slow the ​pace of AI infrastructure development. At its session high, the VIX, often dubbed Wall Street's "fear gauge," had logged its ​largest one-day rise since the days immediately after US President Donald Trump unveiled sweeping new import tariffs on "Liberation Day" in April ‌2025.REACTION TO ⁠VOLATILITYThursday's stock market selloff was in sharp contrast to the upbeat market reaction the day before, when investors largely brushed aside the perceived threat to the AI trade from the Democrats' strong showing in the election."This is what happens when you have a big rally partly predicated on the idea that volatility would be decreasing ... it made no sense ​yesterday," said Steve Sosnick, ​chief strategist at Interactive Brokers."Yesterday ⁠there was the perception that no one needed protection and now it's 'Oh my god, we need it'," he added.Analysts attributed some of the market decline to investors looking ​to get ahead of selling from strategies that react to stock market volatility.Leveraged ​and inverse exchange-traded ⁠funds, along with some systematic strategies, typically rebalance their exposure near the market close, which can amplify late-day moves in either direction."You have people saying ... look at what's going to happen at the end of the day, we need ⁠to get ​out before that," Ballast Rock's Carroll said.Much now depends on whether ​investors' attitude toward the AI trade undergoes a lasting change, analysts said."If the re-evaluation of the AI investment theme is secular and not just ​a trading type of rebalance, that's problematic," said Sosnick.Reporting by Saqib Iqbal Ahmed; editing by Megan Davies, Kirsten Donovan

Wall Street fear gauge jumps most since 'Liberation Day' as AI trade stumbles

Residents living near a major Chinese-controlled cobalt mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo have sued the mine’s operator for $6.3 million, alleging that pollution harmed their health, according to UK-based corporate watchdog RAID and Congo-based nonprofit AFREWATCH.The 27 residents’ lawsuit alleges that the Zijin Mining (SHA: 601899) controlled COMMUS copper and cobalt mine polluted the environment, RAID and AFREWATCH said in a statement.The two groups said they commissioned the scientific studies that found the alleged pollution and effect on the environment, and are supporting the residents’ lawsuit.COMMUS told Reuters it would contest the allegations, and that it takes responsibilities towards the local community and the environment seriously.The claimants, including eight children, are seeking about $1.3 million in compensation and $5 million for environmental restoration.Under Congo’s 2018 mining code, companies can be held liable for environmental damage unless they can prove it was caused by factors unrelated to their operations under.“If successful, the case could pave the way for other communities living near industrial mines to seek justice,” RAID and AFREWATCH said in their joint statement.Lawsuit targets government, regulator The lawsuit, filed at the Commercial Court in Kolwezi, also targets the Congolese state and the environmental regulator ACE, accusing them of failing to properly monitor the mine and enforce regulations, the statement added.Congo’s mines ministry and ACE did not immediately respond to requests for comment.The court did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for documents.The lawsuit cites scientific studies commissioned by RAID and AFREWATCH that found elevated levels of particulate pollution and contaminated water near the mine, they said in the statement.COMMUS is 67%-owned by Zijin Mining, with state miner Gecamines and the Congolese government holding minority stakes. It has production capacity of more than 120,000 metric tons of copper and 2,000 tons of cobalt per year, according to the company.Congo is the world’s largest cobalt producer and second-largest copper producer.(Reporting by Maxwell Akalaare Adombila and Fiston Mahamba; Editing by Jessica Donati and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)

Congo residents sue Chinese copper mine over alleged pollution, statement says

Europe must build up stocks of critical raw materials to reduce its dependence on countries that dominate their extraction and processing, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Thursday.“Without critical raw materials, there would be no batteries, no high-performance electric motors, no modern semiconductors and none of the many other technologies on which our economies will depend in the future,” Merz told an economic conference in Berlin.“(The state) must help to diversify sources of supply, strengthen recycling and the circular economy (…) and – this is a very specific proposal I’m putting forward – build up stockpiles in Brussels, at the European level,” Merz said.The European Union, along with other major Western economies, relies heavily on China for critical minerals and components such as batteries and rare earths used in the defence, aerospace, automotive and renewable energy sectors.The European Commission announced last month that it has chosen 46 strategic raw material projects to benefit from faster permitting and help in bidding for public and private funding, as the bloc races to diversify supply chains.(Reporting by Thomas SeythalEditing by Ludwig Burger)

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Gold holds gains, silver slips as Wall Street plunges, Fed hike bets ease - Kitco PM Report

Bank of Canada keeps 2% inflation target

Falling sulphuric acid prices deepen China’s copper smelter squeeze

Wall Street fear gauge jumps most since 'Liberation Day' as AI trade stumbles

Congo residents sue Chinese copper mine over alleged pollution, statement says

Europe must stockpile critical raw materials, Germany’s Merz says