PRECIOUS METAL RALLY! North America in Focus: Barrick Mining, First Majestic Silver, and LAURION Mineral

Barrick Mining focuses on North America

Barrick's interim CEO, Mark Hill, is clearly focusing on North America. While a group-wide review of safety, reliability, and operational discipline is underway, he sees the greatest leverage in the region's gold assets – above all in Nevada Gold Mines (NGM), the joint venture with Newmont, and in the high-growth Fourmile discovery. According to Hill, NGM is the foundation of the group, accounting for more than half of attributable production in the third quarter, is on track to meet its annual targets, and is expected to deliver key value drivers.

Fourmile is now to be developed rapidly. The 16 active drill holes are to be expanded by four in the coming year. Barrick has updated its preliminary feasibility study and points to a rare combination of grade, size, and additional exploration potential. Strategically, Hill emphasizes that the overall course remains unchanged – only the focus is shifting. In the next growth phase, the Company plans to concentrate more heavily on North America.

The latest Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) classifies Fourmile as "one of the most significant gold discoveries of this century" and highlights its unique mix of high grade, size, and additional exploration upside – based on resource data from 2024 and evaluations completed in 2025. At the same time, market speculation is circulating that Newmont may seek to gain full control of Nevada Gold Mines (NGM) – either by acquiring Barrick's stake or by launching a takeover bid for Barrick itself, followed by a breakup. Several media outlets have outlined corresponding options. These rumors remain unconfirmed, but they underline how North America has become the strategic core of both mining giants.

This renewed focus also puts exploration companies such as LAURION Mineral Exploration in the spotlight.

LAURION Mineral Exploration: Are the shares too cheap?

LAURION Mineral Exploration has been listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange for just a few weeks. The Canadian gold explorer has been trading on its home exchange for some time and has focused on operational development in recent years. With a solid track record of successful drill programs, the Company now aims to raise its profile in the capital markets over the coming months. At CAD 0.30, the stock appears to be anything but expensive and could present an interesting entry opportunity.

LAURION's core asset is the Ishkōday project in Ontario, located in the Onaman-Tashota Greenstone Belt in northern Ontario and covers an area of 57.4 km². LAURION also owns the neighboring Brenbar and Twin Falls projects. Several million ounces of gold were mined in the region until the late 1960s, making it a well-established mining district. In addition, large historic waste dumps remain, from which several thousand ounces of gold could potentially be recovered using modern processing methods.

In early November, LAURION reported encouraging results from its 7,700-meter 2025 summer drill program at Ishkōday. The continuity of gold-bearing structures was confirmed. Highlights include 1.05 m at 2.68 g/t Au (including 0.5 m at 5.18 g/t) and several narrower intervals of up to 1.6 g/t Au; additional lower-grade intervals indicate a broader, structurally complex system. According to CEO Cynthia Le Sueur-Aquin, the fully oriented drill core material allows for more accurate structural interpretation and feeding into a 3D geological model. The program targeted folded quartz vein sets in the Brenbar area that had already returned higher-grade intercepts in historical Prodigy Gold drilling, with the aim of testing continuity and strike length of mineralization.

Strong drill results had already been reported in October. New high-grade zones were identified, with samples returning 32.47 g/t gold and 67.80 g/t gold. An expansion of the drilling program is already planned for the coming year. Several phases between 7,000 and 10,000 meters are to be drilled. The objectives include defining near-surface resources and exploring possible deeper extensions below the Sturgeon River and Brenbar mines.

First Majestic Silver: New momentum?

In addition to gold, silver is also shining again this year. First Majestic Silver is a basic investment in the sector. The share price had more than doubled by mid-October and was trading above EUR 13. This was followed by a noticeable correction to EUR 10. The most recently published quarterly figures have not yet triggered any significant buying momentum.

First Majestic reported record production and revenue figures for Q3. Silver output nearly doubled to 3.9 million ounces, with 1.4 million ounces coming from the Los Gatos mine, which had recently become majority-owned by First Majestic. Revenue climbed 95% to USD 285.1 million, driven by more AgEq ounces sold (+45%) and a higher realized silver price (USD 39.03/oz AgEq). Mining operations generated USD 99.1 million (excluding depreciation and amortization, USD 136.7 million), with EBITDA reaching USD 128.6 million. The bottom line was a net profit of USD 43.0 million (previous year: -USD 26.6 million), with unrealized gains from financial investments recorded separately in other comprehensive income.

The figures did not cause any jubilation. However, with the rising price of silver, First Majestic's share price should also pick up again.

Gold and silver appear to have completed their consolidation. Barrick Mining and First Majestic Silver have published strong figures. Barrick's focus on North America is exciting. Explorers such as LAURION Mineral Exploration should also benefit from this.