
March 16, 2023
Colibri Resource Corporation (TSXV: CBI) (OTC Pink: CRUCF) ("Colibri" or the "Company") is very pleased announce the strategic acquisition of the "Plomo Gold" property located in the Caborca Gold Belt, northwest Sonora, Mexico.
HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE:
- The Plomo property covers an area of approximately 4,260 hectares ("Ha") and is contiguous with the Company's Evelyn Property. The additional land increases Colibri's footprint by 842% to a total of 4,766 hectares.
- The Plomo and Evelyn properties are located in the 500 km long, northwest trending Caborca Gold belt which includes the > 15 million ounce La Herradura Mine, located 30 km west of Plomo and the > 2 million ounce Noche Buena Mine located approximately 8 km southwest of Plomo.
- The current (historical) database totalling 1,853 surface rock samples includes 524 samples greater than 0.1 grams per tonne ("g/t") Au, 132 samples greater than 1.0 g/t Au, and 15 high grade samples greater than 10 g/t Au. Surface exploration including prospecting, mapping, and rock sampling since 2007 has resulted in the identification of 9 target areas on the Plomo property.
- Underground sampling completed in the adit at the Banco de Oro prospect in 2008 are reported to have included 298.0 g/t Au over a chip length of 2.4 metres.
- The Plomo property has been the subject of only very limited exploration drilling, completed in 2008, with a total of 1,570 meters completed in 10 holes. A highlight of the drilling is the intercept of 0.66 g/t Au over an intersection length of 11.65 metres ("m") completed in the San Perfect target area.
- The Plomo property has had small scale artisanal mining including, pits, adits, and placer mining dating back to the 18th century. First recorded exploration was in 2006 and the property has been the subject of only episodic exploration since that time.
- Due diligence mapping and sampling completed by Colibri geologists has confirmed vein style mineralization consisting of veins, veinlets, and vein stockworks, altered host rocks that include intense silicification, sericite, disseminated pyrite, and locally tourmaline bearing stockworks and breccias.
- Compilation and due diligence related field work completed by Colibri has provided the foundation for continued exploration planning which includes the prioritization of drill targets on the newly combined Evelyn-Plomo property, the planning and execution of field exploration programs to advance targets to the drill stage, and property scale surveys to completely evaluate and realize the property potential.
Ron Goguen, President & CEO of Colibri commented, "Plomo is a great addition to our property portfolio in Sonora. We have been very encouraged with the progress made on our Evelyn property over the last 18 months and the acquisition of Plomo provides us with a much expanded footprint for discovery. Our technical due diligence on the Plomo property confirmed significant continuity of alteration and structure especially in the San Perfecto target area and most significantly confirms the application of our exploration model developed to date through our work at Evelyn."
Plomo Location and Geological Setting
The Plomo Gold property is located in northwestern Sonora, approximately 50 kilometres ("km") northwest of the town of Caborca (Map 1). The Plomo property consists of 2 exploration concessions covering an area of 4,260 Ha located immediately to the east of the Company's Evelyn property. The Plomo property is located within the Caborca Gold belt which consists of vein, replacement, and disseminated styles of Au mineralization interpreted as Orogenic type gold mineralization emplaced during the Laramide Orogeny. Major deposits currently or recently in production include La Herradura, San Francisco-Llano, El Chante, Soledad-Dipolos, and Noche Buena (see map 1). The Caborca Gold belt remains a very active exploration district with development projects occurring at Tajitos (920,000 Oz Au Indicated Resource and 173 Oz Au Inferred Resource).
Map 1: Location of Plomo & Evelyn within Caborca Gold Belt
Plomo Historical Exploration and Results
The Plomo property has been the object of historical, very small scale mining activity consisting of test pits and adits and likely minor gold production thought to date back to the 18th century. It appears that modern exploration and evaluation of Plomo was initiated with geological mapping and sampling in 2006 with the collection and analyses of several hundred out crop samples. Mapping, sampling, and assaying of outcrop grab samples was completed in 2007 and 2008 also with the collection and analyses of several hundred samples. Diamond drilling was completed on the Plomo property during 2008 with the completion of 10 holes totalling 1,570 m. The next recorded exploration on the property was 2012 with the further collection of outcrop samples and mapping and during this time geological mapping completed to date was compiled. The next phase of work recorded was completed in 2021 and consisted of further geological mapping and sampling as well as 14.1 line kilometres of Induced Polarization ("IP") survey which borders the eastern boundary with Evelyn.
The field work completed on the Plomo property since 2006 has resulted in the collection of a large number of high grade outcrop samples (Figure 2). A total of 1,853 surface rock samples includes 424 samples greater than 0.1 grams per tonne ("g/t") Au, 132 samples greater than 1.0 g/t Au, and 15 high grade samples greater than 10 g/t Au. The sampling has resulted in the identification of 9 prospect areas on the Plomo property (Figure 2).
Figure 2 - Evelyn & Plomo Outcrop & Trench Grab Samples
Colibri has completed compilation of historical exploration data and information and has completed due diligence field work. Based on this work, Colibri has prioritized targets for continued exploration on the Plomo property.
Highlights include:
- The Banco de Oro prospect area occurs over an area of approximately 1,000m x 450m which includes a narrow south-southeast striking and shallow west dipping open cut developed on surface over an approximately 70 m strike length. The extent of underground development is unknown to the Company. Numerous historical surface grab samples > 1 g/t, including 5 samples > 5 g/t Au, from Banco de Oro form a north-northeast trend over an approximately 1 km distance. Historical sampling of the fault zone exposed in the open cut at surface and underground returned 298.0g/t Au over 2.35 metres, 15.1g/t Au over 0.65 metres, 14.5g/t Au over 0.80 metres and 11.0g/t Au over 0.60 metres. Mineralization at Banco de Oro consists of brecciated quartz veins hosted in foliated sericitized rhyolite and is interpreted to be at the intersection northwest trending and northeast trending fault zones. The Banco de Oro is a priority target area with the objective of developing a drill plan.
- The San Perfecto target includes numerous grab samples with Au > 1 g/t occurring over a over a NE-SW trend length of approximately 950 m and a NW-SE trend length of approximately 700m and includes several samples > 5 g/t Au (see Figures 2 and 3). The San Perfecto area is the target of recent alluvium placer mining and contains several older pits of uncertain age. Due diligence field work by the Company confirms that the area is underlain by well developed and continuous zones of quartz-sericite-hematite+/- pyrite alteration and is characterized by numerous faults and shears zones trending both NE and NW. Two drill holes have been completed in the San Perfecto target area one of which which intersected 0.66 g/t Au over 11.65 m. The San Perfecto area is coincident on a NW trend with the Company's Sahuaro target on the Evelyn property. The San Perfecto is a priority target area with the objective of developing a drill plan. As a priority, the Company will also be evaluating structural controls and the potential continuity of the San Perfecto and the Evelyn's Sahuaro zone along a NW trending structural domain.
Figure 3 - San Perfecto Area - Grab Sample Map
- The Pavorreal target is located NE of the San Perfecto target area and similarly contains zones of pervasive quartz-sericite-hematite-pyrite alteration. However, historical work also recognizes tourmaline alteration including tourmaline in NW trending structures reported to be traced over a 600 m strike length and containing anomalous gold values including 5.82 g/t Au. Due diligence mapping by the Company confirms the presence of tourmaline-quartz alteration locally forming overprinting stock work and breccia textures. Preliminary observations by the Company indicate that the quartz-sericite-pyrite + tourmaline alteration is hosted, at least in part, by granodiorite. The Pavorreal is a priority target area to complete advanced geological mapping and sampling with the objective of advancing the target to the drill stage.
- The Bonancita target area is located in the north-central part of the property northeast of the San Perfecto and Pavorreal targets and consists of 4 prospect areas; Bonancita, and Bonancita NW1, NW2, and NW3. Historical work in the Bonancita target area notes very strong NW trending foliation development. The extent and significance of the foliated zone remains unknown to the Company. However, the Company notes that three of the occurrences, Bonancita, and Bonancita NW1, and NW2, which all contain historical grab samples greater than 1 g/t Au, form a well defined NW trending linear. Compilation by the Company confirms that the alignment of the 3 prospects, is coincident with both a strong topographic lineament and with a strong, NW trending, regional scale magnetic gradient lineament. Recent exploration reports on Plomo have recommended drilling at both the Bonancita NW1 and NW2 prospects. Colibri views the Bonancita target area as an earlier stage opportunity to evaluate the potential for a large gold system through geological mapping and possibly geophysics to support future drill hole planning.
Plomo Geology and Mineralization
The Plomo property is underlain by a variety of rock types that include Paleoproterozoic metamorphic rocks, a sequence of Jurassic volcanic rocks ranging in composition from andesite to rhyolite, and intrusive rocks that include diorite, granodiorite, and monzonite. Based on the Company's due diligence data compilation and field work, and correlation with mapping completed on the Evelyn property, Colibri interprets the intrusive rocks to be part of both the Jurassic volcanic-sedimentary sequence and the subsequent Cretaceous/Paleocene Laramide tectonic-magmatic event.
Structures previously mapped on the Plomo property trend dominantly northwest-southeast and to a lesser extent to the northeast-southwest. These fault and shear zone orientations are recognized as a regional control on the occurrence and distribution of gold mineralization in the Caborca Gold belt. Through compilation, evaluation of available geophysical data sets, and field due diligence work, Colibri correlates faults and structural domains mapped on the Evelyn property onto the Plomo property. Preliminary evaluation of geophysical data sets suggests that a major NNW-SSE trending structure, mapped and also interpreted from resistivity data, on the Evelyn property is continuous on the southwestern Plomo property.
Gold mineralization on the Plomo property consists of quartz veins, veinlets, and stockworks with disseminated pyrite, oxidized pyrite associated with dominantly quartz-sericite-hematite-pyrite alteration. Anomalous gold values from historical work are also associated with quartz-pyrite-tourmaline bearing alteration assemblages. Colibri's due diligence field work confirmed the presence of historically sampled gold mineralization to be hosted by multiple rock types including andesite, diorite, granodiorite, and rhyolite.
Ian McGavney, COO of Colibri commented, "The Plomo property, like our Evelyn property, has a great address. It contains all the ingredients that characterize large gold deposits in the Caborca Gold Belt and contains targets we consider to be drill ready. We are of the opinion that while Plomo been the object of very well executed surface exploration programs that have advanced very promising prospects, it has not yet seen a sustained and systematic approach to exploration. Minimal drilling has been completed and it was completed very early on in the exploration history of the property without the benefit of recent work. However, we are of the opinion that the work completed to date provides an excellent framework for continued exploration and combined with our Evelyn property provides over 4,776 Ha from which to prioritize drill programs and ground exploration programs."
Plomo and Evelyn Next Steps
The compilation and due diligence field work completed in the acquisition phase provides an excellent start to exploring Plomo. The review has provided the Company a much greater understanding of the high quality targets on the Plomo property. The Company is continuing its geo-compilation with the objective of completing a seamless dataset across the Evelyn-Plomo property and further developing its exploration model to include observations and data from Plomo.
The combined Evelyn-Plomo property provides Colibri with discovery opportunities that range from advanced (drill ready), intermediate, and early stage. The planned exploration strategy includes:
- Prioritization of drill targets
- Development of drill targets from existing prospects
- Property wide evaluation
Prioritization of drill ready targets: The combined property provides a number of high-quality drill targets. On the Evelyn side targets include the Main Zone and El Sahuaro. On the Plomo side, drill targets include Banco de Oro, San Perfecto, and the Pavorreal prospects. The Company will be evaluating these targets, deriving drill plans for each.
Development of additional drill targets: Current and planned exploration on the Evelyn property include 'short hole' drilling under alluvial cover immediately north of the Main Zone, evaluation of the Central Evelyn prospect, evaluation of a potentially major structure mapped and interpreted from a very strong resistivity gradient, and evaluation and drill testing a very well defined soil anomaly. On the Plomo property, the compilation completed to date points to the Bonancita target area and potentially related large NW trending structure as an area for continued exploration to develop a drill target.
Property Wide Evaluation: A near term priority for Colibri is the completion of a seamless (GIS) compilation of all Evelyn and Plomo geology, geophysics, and geochemistry. In addition to other possible initiatives, the Company anticipates completing a high resolution airborne magnetic survey over the Plomo property, similar to that completed at Evelyn in 2021, completing property wide geological mapping, and completing a property wide soil geochemistry survey. The Company is of the opinion that this work will support the interpretation of drill ready and advanced targets as well as providing the opportunity for early stage discovery.
QUALIFIED PERSON
Jamie Lavigne, P. Geo and a Director for Colibri is a Qualified Person as defined in NI 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the technical information in this press release.
ABOUT COLIBRI RESOURCE CORPORATION:
Colibri is a Canadian-based mineral exploration company listed on the TSX-V (CBI) and is focused on acquiring and exploring prospective gold & silver properties in Mexico. The Company holds seven high potential precious metal projects of which five have planned exploration programs for calendar 2023.
For more information about all Company projects please visit: www.colibriresource.com.
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements:
This news release contains "forward-looking statements". Statements in this press release which are not purely historical are forward-looking statements and include any statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations, or intentions regarding the future. Actual results could differ from those projected in any forward-looking statements due to numerous factors. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release, and the Company assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the plans, expectations and intentions contained in this press release are reasonable, there can be no assurance that they will prove to be accurate.
For information contact:
Ronald J. Goguen, President,
Chairperson and Director,
Tel: (506) 383-4274,
rongoguen@colibriresource.com
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12h
High-Grade Gold Discovery in First 8 Mile Drill Hole
Miramar Resources Limited (ASX:M2R, “Miramar” or “the Company”) is pleased to announce that the first RC drill hole at the 8 Mile target has intersected high-grade gold and ended in mineralisation.
- First RC hole at 8 Mile discovers high-grade gold and ends in mineralisation
- 8 Mile gold mineralisation extends 75m north of tenement boundary
The 8 Mile target is located within the Gidji JV Project (“Gidji” or “the Project”), approximately 15 kilometres north of Kalgoorlie and surrounded by multiple gold mining and processing operations, including Northern Star Resources Limited’s (“NST”) Kalgoorlie gold operations (Figure 1).
The 8 Mile Target is located immediately adjacent to NST’s “8-Mile Dam” gold deposit which, according to the most recent publicly available data, contains an estimated 7Mt @ 1.4g/t Au for 313,977 ounces1.
A limited number of fast-tracked results from the first RC hole, GJRC029, show a wide zone of gold mineralisation with a similar tenor to 8 Mile Dam (18m @ 0.94g/t Au from 480m including 1m @ 6.04g/t Au), approximately 75m north of the tenement boundary, and ended in mineralisation (3m @ 0.52g/t Au).
The Company is awaiting assay results from the remainder of the hole which are expected in 2-3 weeks.
Miramar’s Executive Chairman, Mr Allan Kelly, said the Company was excited to see gold mineralisation continuing onto Miramar’s ground for a significant distance.
“This is the first time we have discovered significant gold mineralisation on our side of the fence, even though the drill hole didn’t end up exactly where we planned it to. The flip side of this is that we have extended the strike of gold mineralisation for over 100m on to our tenements,” he said.
“We’ve also demonstrated a relationship between the IP anomalism and gold mineralisation, which makes the other IP anomalies we have outlined at Gidji even more prospective,” he said.
Figure 1. The Gidji JV Project and 8-Mile Dam in relation to Kalgoorlie and surrounding deposits.
GJRC029 aimed to test an Induced Polarisation (IP) anomaly on the tenement boundary interpreted to represent the sulphide-rich gold mineralisation seen at the neighbouring 8 Mile Dam Deposit.
GJRC029 was collared approximately 10m north of the tenement boundary and mirrored MPGD008, a diamond hole drilled down-dip approximately 40m south of the tenement boundary by KCGM in 2013 and which intersected significant gold mineralisation related to the 8 Mile mafic unit.
Unfortunately, GJRC029 deviated significantly from the planned azimuth and, as a result, by the time the hole was terminated at the target depth of 504m, the drill trace ended up approximately 75m north of the tenement boundary (Figure 2). Despite this, the hole intersected a thick section of the steep westerly- dipping and highly altered 8 Mile mafic unit with widespread sulphide mineralisation, including disseminated magnetite and coarse-grained arsenopyrite, pyrrhotite and chalcopyrite, similar to the 8 Mile Dam Deposit (Figure 3).
Based on visual logging of RC drill chips, handheld portable XRF results and magnetic susceptibility measurements, samples from the bottom 56m of the hole were sent for priority analysis by fire assay at Bureau Veritas in Kalgoorlie.
The results from these initial samples confirm the relationship between the gold mineralisation and sulphides, and a relationship between the best gold mineralisation and coincident magnetic anomalism and elevated Arsenic as measured by handheld portable XRF. The first results also confirm that the IP anomaly is associated with potentially significant gold mineralisation, whilst the significant deviation of GJRC029 away from the planned target increases the potential strike length of gold mineralisation on Miramar’s ground.
Significant results are listed in Table 1, with assay results from the remainder of the hole expected in coming weeks.
The initial RC drilling programme, which also tested two other IP targets, is nearing completion and results will be reported once received and compiled.
Once all assays are received, the Company will plan further RC and/or diamond drill holes including to test the dip and strike extent of the mineralisation intersected in GJRC029.
The Company advises that the WA Department of Mines, Petroleum and Exploration (DMPE) has extended the main Gidji JV tenement, E26/214, for a further five years, and will now expire in March 2030.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Miramar Resources Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
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19h
Pacgold
Investor Insight
Pacgold is one of Australia’s most compelling gold exploration opportunities, backed by a strong technical team, offering investors exposure to a large-scale, underexplored gold system with significant resource growth potential.
Overview
Pacgold (ASX:PGO) is an Australian gold exploration company focused on the systematic advancement of the Alice River gold project in Northern Queensland. The company is led by a technically driven and highly experienced team of geologists and mining professionals, with demonstrated success in exploration, resource development and capital markets.
Pacgold team on site at Alice River gold project
With a dominant land position in the region, Pacgold holds 377 sq km of exploration permits and eight mining leases across the prospective Alice River Fault Zone (ARFZ). This structure is interpreted as part of a large-scale intrusion-related gold system, with characteristics analogous to major global deposits such as Fort Knox (USA) and Hemi (Western Australia).
The company has validated its model through drilling success at the Central Zone, culminating in a maiden mineral resource of 474,000 oz of gold. This comprises both open pit and underground components, with resource grades averaging 1.2 grams per ton (g/t) gold, and zones open in all directions. Less than five percent of the strike length has been tested, and much of the prospective corridor is obscured by thin sand cover, highlighting strong potential for blind discoveries.
With extensive infrastructure already in place, including an airstrip, accommodation camp and road access within 100 km, Pacgold is positioned to rapidly scale exploration and accelerate resource growth. The 2025 campaign, which includes more than 10,000 metres of RC drilling and new IP surveys, aims to unlock the full regional potential of the ARFZ.
Company Highlights
- District-scale Discovery Potential: Pacgold controls more than 377 sq km of tenure and more than 30 km of strike length across the Alice River Fault Zone (ARFZ), a fertile, underexplored structural corridor in Northern Queensland.
- Maiden Resource: In May 2025, the company published a 474,000 oz gold mineral resource estimate (MRE), covering just five percent of the total strike, confirming high-grade mineralization and strong potential for expansion.
- Aggressive Exploration Strategy: More than 10,000 metres of RC drilling campaign is underway, complemented by air-core and diamond programs, aimed at growing the Central Zone resource and testing multiple regional targets.
- Attractive Valuation Entry: With a market capitalization of just ~AU$10 million and an EV of AU$8.5 million (as of Q1 2025), Pacgold provides a low-cost entry into a potentially Tier 1 gold system.
- Experienced Leadership: The board includes proven mine developers and discovery geologists with prior success at Chalice, AngloGold Ashanti, BHP and Sibanye-Stillwater.
Key Project
Alice River Gold Project
The Alice River gold project is a large-scale, greenstone-hosted gold system centred on the regional ARFZ, located in Northern Queensland. The project area comprises 377 sq km of contiguous tenure, including eight granted mining leases. Pacgold controls over 30 km of strike length along the ARFZ, a major crustal-scale structure that has only recently been systematically explored with modern techniques.
The deposit style is interpreted as an intrusion-related gold system, a highly attractive deposit type known for hosting long-life, large-tonnage gold mines. Examples include the Fort Knox gold mine in Alaska and the Hemi gold project in Western Australia. The Alice River system features sheeted quartz-sulfide veining, extensive sericite-altered zones, and strong IP chargeability responses coincident with surface gold anomalism.
Pacgold’s 2024 and 2025 drilling campaigns have focused on the Central Zone, which yielded the maiden MRE totaling 474,000 oz gold across both open pit and underground resources. The pit-constrained resource includes 10.6 Mt at 1.2 g/t gold (404,000 oz), with a further 1.5 Mt at 1.4 g/t gold (71,000 oz) defined for underground potential. High-grade zones remain open at depth and laterally, with drill spacing still relatively broad (~80 x 80 metres), leaving significant scope for resource expansion.
Beyond the Central Zone, the company has delineated multiple high-priority regional targets along the ARFZ. These include:
- White Lion: A compelling target with surface gold anomalism and a coincident IP chargeability anomaly. A gradient and dipole-dipole IP survey is being extended in Q2 2025, with drilling expected in Q4.
- Victoria and The Shadows: Emerging prospects to the south with limited historical drilling but strong geophysical responses.
- Posie and Southern Target Area: Additional areas along the southern ARFZ strike that exhibit strong structural preparation, geochemical responses and potential for concealed mineralization.
Drilling recommenced in April 2025, with RC drilling underway and air-core and diamond drilling scheduled through Q3 2025. The program aims to increase drill density in resource zones and test underexplored regional anomalies. Pacgold expects up to 15,000 metres of total drilling during the 2025 campaign, coupled with ongoing geophysical targeting, including IP and drone magnetics.
The project is fully permitted, with strong access and logistics, and is located in a low-risk jurisdiction with significant precedent for gold development. With limited historical exploration and clear mineralizing controls now defined, Alice River represents a transformative opportunity to uncover a Tier 1 discovery in an overlooked Australian belt.
Management Team
Matthew Boyes – Managing Director and CEO
Matthew Boyes is a geologist with over 28 years of international experience across mine geology, exploration, corporate leadership and capital markets. He has managed exploration teams and development projects across Western Australia, the Americas and Europe. His technical oversight and commercial strategy guide Pacgold’s resource growth and investor engagement.
Caoilin Chestnutt – Non-executive Chair
A former head of business development at BHP and currently head of technical services at Thiess, Caoilin Chestnutt brings nearly 30 years of experience in global exploration strategy, M&A and deal structuring across multiple commodities. She is also deputy chair of Critical Minerals at the Queensland Exploration Council.
Michael Pitt – Non-executive Director
Michael Pitt is the co-founder of New Century Resources (ASX:NCZ), and former VP of business development at Sibanye-Stillwater (JSE:SSW). He currently leads development at Broken Hill Mines. His expertise in mine redevelopment and business strategy supports Pacgold’s long-term operational execution.
Richard Hacker – Non-executive Director
Former CFO and GM commercial at Chalice Mining (ASX:CHN), Richard Hacker played a key role in the Julimar discovery. He has held leadership roles at Liontown Resources and DevEx. Hacker contributes deep experience in financial oversight and strategic planning for discovery-stage companies.
Bruce Kendall – Non-executive Director
Bruce Kendall is an award-winning exploration geologist with over 30 years in exploration management at AngloGold Ashanti, Chalice Mining, Jabiru Metals and IGO. He was a key contributor to the Tropicana, Julimar and Coyote discoveries, and brings essential geological insight to Pacgold’s targeting and evaluation.
Geoff Lowe – Exploration Manager
As a Competent Person and seasoned exploration geologist, Geoff Lowe is responsible for executing Pacgold’s field campaigns. He has played a central role in resource modeling, target generation and drill program design for the Alice River project.
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21h
WGC: Gold Keeps Climbing, Future Hinges on Economic and Geopolitical Crossroads
Gold has notched an extraordinary first half of 2025, climbing 26 percent in US dollar terms and setting 26 new all-time highs — but the rally now faces a murky and fragile second act shaped by inflation, monetary policy, and unresolved global tensions, according to the World Gold Council’s (WGC) recent mid-year report.
Investors around the globe turned to gold as both a tactical hedge and a strategic store of value, pushing trading volumes to an all-time high of US$329 billion per day in the first six months of the year.
The WGC’s mid-year outlook suggests the precious metal’s momentum could continue, but with significant caveats. Under current consensus forecasts, gold is likely to remain rangebound in the second half, potentially rising another 0 to 5 percent.
However, sharp deviations in macro conditions — particularly those involving stagflation, recession, or worsening geopolitical risks — could lift gold by an additional 10 percent to 15 percent before year-end.
A record-breaking first half
Gold’s 26 percent gain in H1 made it one of 2025’s top-performing major assets. The yellow metal benefited from a rare combination of global factors: a declining US dollar — which had its worst start to a year since 1973 — muted Treasury yields, and a sharp uptick in geopolitical tensions, many linked to US trade policies and regional flashpoints.
These factors created fertile ground for strong inflows into exchange-traded funds (ETFs), over-the-counter (OTC) markets, and futures.
Gold ETF holdings surged by 397 metric tons in the first half — the highest since August 2022 — bringing total holdings to 3,616 tonnes and pushing total assets under management to $383 billion, a 41 percent increase from the start of the year.
Central banks, too, continued to buy gold, albeit at a moderated pace compared to the record-setting quarters of 2022 and 2023. Although net purchases have slowed, they remain significantly above the pre-2022 average of 500–600 metric tons annually.
Why investors piled in
According to the WGC’s Gold Return Attribution Model (GRAM), three key drivers contributed to gold’s H1 surge: risk and uncertainty, opportunity cost, and momentum.
Investor demand stemming from heightened geopolitical and financial risks contributed approximately 4 percent of gold’s return, with half of that explained by a measurable increase in the Geopolitical Risk Index.
A further 7 percent of the return was attributed to changes in opportunity cost, primarily due to the weakening dollar and low bond yields, which made non-interest-bearing gold relatively more attractive.
Lastly, momentum effects, including continued ETF inflows and trend-following investment behavior, added another 5 percent, supporting the metal’s climb through positive feedback loops.
Altogether, these macro and market-based dynamics explained around 16 percentage points of gold’s 26 percent performance in the first six months of the year.
The outlook: Three scenarios for H2
While gold’s fundamentals remain supportive, analysts are cautious about expecting a repeat performance in H2. The WGC outlines three macroeconomic paths that could shape gold’s direction in the second half.
In the base case, moderate global growth and inflation settling near 5 percent could keep real yields subdued, especially if the US Federal Reserve cuts rates by 50 basis points in the fourth quarter.
This environment would likely support gold prices modestly, with forecasts pointing to gains of up to 5 percent. Continued interest from ETF and OTC investors could offset softer consumer demand and increased recycling, both of which may act as speed bumps for further upside.
The bull case envisions a sharp rise in gold if economic conditions worsen — either through stagflation or a full-blown recession.
A flight to safety could trigger renewed ETF inflows, central bank diversification away from the dollar, and heavier positioning in COMEX futures. Under this stress-driven rally, gold could surge another 10 to 15 percent in H2, echoing the strong performance seen during previous crises like 2008 and the early pandemic years.
On the flip side, a more stable geopolitical and macroeconomic environment, such as a resolution to major global conflicts or normalization in trade, would dampen demand for gold. In this bear case, stronger yields and renewed investor appetite for risk assets could pull gold down by as much as 12 to 17 percent.
No matter the outcome, gold continues to serve as a resilient portfolio hedge. Its strong showing in the first half of 2025 reaffirmed its utility in volatile markets, particularly as traditional safe havens like US Treasuries struggle to deliver.
Even if jewelry and retail demand sees pressure, structural support could come from institutional players — including reports that Chinese insurers are quietly upping their gold allocations.
For now, gold may consolidate. But should conditions turn, the metal still has plenty of room to move, in either direction.
Don’t forget to follow us @INN_Resource for real-time updates!
Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
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16 July
Wide Gold Intercepts at Mt York Support Future Resource Growth
Three diamond drill rigs on site at 1.4Moz Mt York Gold Project, WA, with 56% of Stage 1 resource drilling complete; Results extend mineralisation along strike and at depth; good continuity of higher-grade shoots confirms new structural model
Kairos Minerals Ltd (ASX:KAI) (“KAI” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce results from the first 16 diamond holes drilled at its Mt York Gold Project in WA’s Pilbara, where current resources at the Main Trend sit at 1.4Moz Au. The results are from Gossan Hill (7 holes), Breccia Hill (5 holes) and Main Hill (4 holes) (Table 1), and are shown on drill plan (Figure 1) and long-section (Figure 2).
Highlights
- 36 holes for 10,025m completed at Mt York, ahead of schedule and on-budget; Stage 1 is an 80-hole, 18,000m resource expansion program
- Results for 16 holes received, with best intercepts including:
- 21m @ 1.87 g/t Au from 169m incl 9m @ 3.19 g/t Au (25MYDD009);
- 5m @ 4.26 g/t Au from 299m (25MYDD010);
- 34m @ 0.81 g/t Au from 242m incl 7m @ 2.66 g/t Au from 269m (25MYDD012);
- 24m @ 1.17 g/t Au from 222m incl 7m @ 2.62 g/t Au from 222m (25MYDD016);
- 48m @ 1.03 g/t Au from 227m incl 11m @ 3.38 g/t Au from 264m (25MYDD017).
- Higher-grade mineralisation consistently reported across Main Trend confirming and extending high-grade shoots at all prospects
- Encouraging first results likely to positively impact grades and widths of mineralisation for an updated resource estimate later in 2025
- Drilling accelerated with third diamond drill rig capable of low-angle drilling on site at the highly prospective but under-drilled Main Hill Prospect
Stage 1 drilling aims to boost gold resources at Mt York and test extensions of high- grade shoots ahead of a mineral resource estimate (MRE) update expected in 2H CY25. Stage 2 drilling later in the year or early 2026 aims to convert Inferred resources to higher confidence Indicated resources.
Kairos Managing Director Dr Peter Turner said: “The first results from Mt York continue to reinforce our belief in the potential scale of this project, and we are on track to deliver a new and much improved mineral resource estimate later in 2025 incorporating at least 18,000m of additional drilling results. We continue to ask ourselves ‘how big is the Mt York gold resource’ and will increase and expand Stage 1 drilling if we believe the mineralisation continues to be open which appears to be the case at the moment.
We are seeing good widths of mineralisation in areas where the resource model is unguided and importantly, solid higher-grade gold intercepts within the lower-grade envelopes. From the previous 2023 resource, Mt York has more than 750,000 ounces of gold at 1.6 g/t Au and the current drilling is confirming that high-grade shoots are both horizontal within the system, but also likely to be extensive (>300m) along-strike in both footwall and hangingwall positions. This is great news.
We are drilling the western half of the large Main Hill Prospect where the mineralised banded iron formation (BIF) host rocks attain 100m in true thickness but where topographic challenges previously prevented drilling. With a suitable small-footprint rig now in place, we can see an assemblage of sulphide-bearing BIF in many drill holes in this area that is associated with free-milling gold mineralisation in other parts of the Main Trend.
With drilling scheduled to continue into September and possibly beyond, we look forward to releasing results as they become available.
We are confident Mt York will become one of the Pilbara’s (and Western Australia’s) largest undeveloped gold resources with clean metallurgy once drilling is complete.”
Drill Results
Results from the first 16 holes are shown in Table 1. The Stage 1 drill holes have been designed to test the grades and widths of mineralisation and purposely looking for extensions of higher-grade pods within the entire 3,000m-long Main Trend Gold Deposit. The positions of the drill holes and their results are shown on Figure 1 (plan view) & Figure 2 (long-section).
Holes 25MYDD007 to 25MYDD009 test gaps in the resource model at Breccia Hill and confirm multiple zones of mineralisation, where 25MYDD009 returned high-grade core of 9m @ 3.19 g/t Au from 176m. This confirms the extension of a high-grade pod of mineralisation some 75m away from historic drillhole KMYD040’s result of 10m @ 4.90 g/t Au from 257m1, that confirms that higher-grade mineralisation may well form significant, horizontal zones previously not recognised yet confirmed in recent structural interpretation.
Deeper drilling into the eastern side of Main Hill has infilled and extended mineralisation with holes 25MYDD010, 012, 014 and 017. Big gains in both mineralisation width and grade are captured in hole 25MYDD017 that intercepted multiple zones including 48m @ 1.03 g/t Au from 227m including a higher-grade zone of 11m @ 3.38 g/t Au from 264m. This extends a new zone of high-grade mineralisation on the footwall position and forms part of the horizontal-plunging, high-grade zone drilled >300m to the west in hole 25MYDD012 (7m @ 2.66 g/t Au from 269m) extending to 25MYDD010 (5m @ 4.26 g/t Au from 299m) (see Figure 2). Another 5 drillholes are planned to the west of these holes to test the extension of the high-grade mineralisation for a further 500m to the west (Figure 1).
The results of the mineralised intercepts are considered close to true widths as the mineralisation has been intercepted orthogonally.
A third diamond drill rig (DDH1 drill rig #83) capable of low-angle drilling has been sent to site to accelerate the program, especially at the poorly tested but prospective Main Hill Prospect. Historic drill results of 109m @ 2.09 g/t Au from 50m (MYD24A) entirely in banded iron formation (BIF) host rocks demonstrate the importance of this prospect. The mineralised banded iron formation (BIF) rocks are the thickest (~100m true thickness) in the area but due to the topographic and access challenges around the hill, the Main Hill target has, until now, been inaccessible for drill rigs.
Holes 25MYDD001-006 are largely testing the mineralised banded iron formation (BIF) on the extreme eastern end of the Main Trend at Gossan Hill.
Rig #83 is drilling the Main Hill Prospect extensively from both the northern and southern sides of the hill (see Photo 2) to truly understand the scale of the resource in this area. There is plenty of evidence that high-grade mineralisation exists at this prospect. Results for these holes (25MYDD023, 028, 031, 032, 033, 034 – see Figure 1 and 2 for location of holes) are awaited.
Further drill results are expected throughout July, August and September and will be released to the ASX once routine quality-assurance, quality-control (QAQC) checks have been completed.
Click here for the full ASX Release
This article includes content from Kairos Minerals, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
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