Trump Leaves Beijing Without a Rare Earth Deal, Agnico Eagle's Hope Bay Decision Is Days Away, Gold Extends Its Slide to a 2026 Low, and Exxaro Locks South Africa's Matla Mine In for 17 More Years
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Today on The Mining Insider:
President Trump wrapped up his two-day summit with Xi Jinping in Beijing on Thursday and departed without a confirmed rare earth agreement. China's export controls on rare earths, heavy rare earth processing, and battery mineral precursors — imposed in early April as trade leverage — remain in place. A short-term bilateral arrangement was reportedly "still in effect" as of May 10, but it was not renewed or formalized at the summit. Rare earth processing remains more than 85% concentrated in China. Project Vault, the US strategic stockpile initiative, has committed $12 billion toward minerals supply, but stockpile fill takes time. Western mining and processing operators remain in a holding pattern on long-term procurement commitments.
Agnico Eagle's construction decision on its Hope Bay gold project in Nunavut appears imminent. CEO Ammar Al-Joundi told shareholders at the May 1 annual meeting that a "big investment in Nunavut" was expected in May. Canada's Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Tim Hodgson has flagged a May 19 announcement at Hope Bay. The project holds 3.2 million ounces of gold in mineral resources at approximately 6 g/t. Detailed engineering is ~55% complete; production is targeted from 2030 at 400,000–425,000 oz/year. Executive Chairman Sean Boyd described Hope Bay as a potential "multi-decade large business." Agnico Eagle accounts for approximately 25–30% of Nunavut's GDP.
Gold continued to lose ground over the weekend, trading at $4,539/oz on Saturday — its lowest since March 2026 and nearly 19% below the January all-time high of $5,589. The Beijing summit delivered no breakthrough on either Strait of Hormuz (US-Iran conflict, oil above $100/bbl) or rare earths. April CPI was 3.8% YoY; markets now place >50% probability on a Fed rate hike by January. J.P. Morgan maintains a Q4 2026 average gold price forecast of $5,055/oz; Goldman Sachs reiterated a $5,400 target.
Exxaro Resources opened the expansion of its Matla coal mine and confirmed a 17-year coal supply agreement with Eskom to deliver more than 9 million tonnes per year to the Matla Power Station through November 2043 — extending a partnership that began in 1983. Matla Power Station (~3,600 MW) was slated for decommissioning by 2034 under South Africa's Just Energy Transition plan; the supply commitment through 2043 implies a practical extension of that timeline.
