While Gold has Surged During the Pandemic, Bulls Still Predicting Surge to $2,300/oz in 2021

PALM BEACH, Fla., Jan. 21, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- During periods of crisis, gold has proven to be a time-honored safe-haven asset. Scarcity and built-in utility have made the yellow metal a sought after commodity throughout recorded human history. Whether in physical or paper form, gold bullion is the world's go to financial hedge against uncertainty. Gold's validity as a financial safe-haven underwent a formidable test during the pandemic of 2020. Traders, investors, central banks and individuals took an active stance toward bullion on a global scale. The results were consistent pricing volatility and confirmation of gold's undeniable intrinsic value. As the international economic system ground to a halt, gold experienced extreme market turbulence on its way to near all-time high valuations. Throughout the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, gold was a staple of global finance. Prices ebbed and flowed, with economic and social chaos spiking participation. Institutions around the world stockpiled bullion as an insurance policy against the unknown. Accordingly, the yellow metal performed well as a financial safe-haven.  BusinessInsider.com reported recently that Goldman Sachs says Gold prices will break out of a tight trading range in 2021 as inflation worries stoke demand. The bank holds a $2,300-per-ounce price target for the precious metal, implying a 22% rally from current levels over the next 12 months. Active stocks in the mining markets this week include Valorem Resources Inc. (CSE: VALU), Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE: GOLD) (TSX: ABX), Largo Resources Ltd. (OTCQX: LGORF) (TSX: LGO), Endeavour Silver Corp. (NYSE: EXK) (TSX: EDR), First Mining Gold Corp. (OTCQX: FFMGF) (TSX: FF).

Gold prices soared last year and many analysts predict gold will top $2,000. Gold usually rises alongside investors' uncertainty in the economy. It's a "safe haven" for investors who want to hedge their bets against a falling dollar and instability in financial markets, and, as long as investors are still unsure about the health of the market, they'll continue putting money into gold.   Transparency Market Research said in a report that: "In times of high inflation, currency fluctuations, and geopolitical crisis, gold is considered to be the safest investment… the growth of the global gold market is likely to be driven by the rising prices of gold across the world…The purchase of gold is expected to rise as consumers are focusing on long-term investments. As the confidence over bullion as a secure mode of investment is rising, the demand for gold is also rising at a considerable rate."

VALOREM RESOURCES INC. (CSE: VALU) BREAKING NEWS:  Valorem Announces Exploration Program for Wings Shear Project -  Valorem Resources Inc. (the "Company" or "Valorem") is pleased to announce that it has planned a systematic exploration program to maximize the utilization of existing exploration-trench and other data for the Wings Shear project (the "Property"). This, coupled with new work, will enable Valorem to fill in gaps and quickly evaluate anomalies and structures to generate drill targets.

The Company will use a combination of soil sampling and magnetic/VLF-EM geophysical surveys, on detailed grids over known anomalous areas and along gold-bearing structures.

Collection of up to 5,000 soil samples over previously untested zones, and 90 line km of magnetics/VLF-EM, will be carried out over the 1 km long gold-bearing structural zone located on the Wings Shear Trend. The results of the surveys, along with geological mapping, will be used to plan for the first-phase drill program, which is currently scheduled to begin in the late summer/early fall of 2021.

Valorem has engaged local service provider Planet X Exploration Services Ltd. ("Planet X"), as an operator on Property. A regional geochemical soil-sampling survey design has also been completed by Planet X and consulting Geoscientist Dr. Steve Amor Ph.D. P. Geo.

The Company plans to begin field work over the winter months, as weather and suitable working conditions permit.

The Property is underlain to the NW and SE by the Jonathan's Pond Formation, comprising interbedded psammite, semipelite and pelite, with minor mafic sills and dykes and calc-silcate layers. The central area of the Property is underlain by the Indian Bay Big Pond Formation, comprising medium to thick bedded, buff, grey and maroon sandstone; thinly bedded maroon and green siltstone and black pelite and tuffaceous semipelite. Numerous fossiliferous and conglomeratic boulders occur nearby and are interpreted to be derived from this unit.

Regional deformation, leading to abundant quartz-vein emplacement and the development of local shear zones, makes the Jonathan's Pond Formation an attractive target for structurally controlled, vein-hosted gold mineralization. At the Wing Pond showings, located in the centre of the property, gold mineralization is hosted by sulphide- (arsenopyrite, pyrite, stibnite ± galena ± sphalerite) bearing quartz veins cutting metasediments.

Tony Louie, interim CEO of the Company stated, "We are excited to begin the process of moving the Property forward with this proposed program. The Wings Shear trend is an exciting untested mineralized zone. This deep-seated gold-bearing structure has been traced for over 1 km and is located approximately 27 km east of the Newfound Gold Inc.'s Queensway Project."   Read this entire release for the Valorem Resources news at:  https://www.financialnewsmedia.com/news-valu/ 

Other recent developments in the mining markets include:

Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE: GOLD) (TSX: ABX) recently announced preliminary full year and fourth quarter 2020 results which indicate that it has met its 2020 guidance targets. Preliminary gold production for the full year of 4.8 million ounces is at the midpoint of the 4.6 to 5.0 million ounce guidance range, while preliminary copper production of 457 million pounds is also within the guidance range of 440 to 500 million pounds.

The preliminary Q4 results show sales for the quarter of 1.19 million ounces of gold and 108 million pounds of copper, as well as preliminary Q4 production of 1.21 million ounces of gold and 119 million pounds of copper. The average market price for gold in Q4 was $1,874 per ounce, while the average market price for copper was $3.25 per pound.

Preliminary Q4 gold production was higher than Q3 2020, mainly due to a strong performance from Pueblo Viejo, the ramp-up of mining operations at Bulyanhulu and ongoing improvement at Turquoise Ridge. Preliminary Q4 gold sales were lower than Q3 2020 as third quarter sales included the export of the remaining stockpiled concentrate in Tanzania. Q4 gold cost of sales per ounce¹ and total cash costs per ounce² are expected to be in line with the prior quarter and gold all-in sustaining costs per ounce² are expected to be 3-5% lower than in Q3 2020.

Largo Resources Ltd. (OTCQX: LGORF) (TSX: LGO) was very pleased to recently announce that it has achieved record quarterly and annual 2020 operational results at the Maracás Menchen Mine and has exceeded its 2020 annual sales guidance by 260 tonnes. Building upon the operational and sales accomplishments in 2020, management is confident in its ability to deliver on its production, sales and cost guidance in 2021. The Company is also heavily focused on the strategic development of Largo Clean Energy in 2021 to provide safe, grid-scale VRFBs to fast-growing renewable energy storage sector.

Paulo Misk, President and Chief Executive Officer of Largo, stated: "Operations at the Maracás Menchen Mine had an exceptionally strong finish to the year resulting in new quarterly and annual production records. I am also delighted to report that the Company has exceeded its 2020 sales guidance by 260 tonnes, with Q4 2020 V₂O₅equivalent sales of 3,751 tonnes representing a new quarterly sales record for the Company. 2020 was transformational and demanding year for Largo; one in which the Company implemented its new sales and trading operations, started construction of its V₂O₃ plant and launched Largo Clean Energy in the midst of a global pandemic. The entire Largo team would like to take this opportunity to extend our sympathies to everyone who has been affected by this virus." 

Endeavour Silver Corp. (NYSE: EXK) (TSX: EDR) recently reported its highest quarterly production in the last two years from its three high grade, underground, silver-gold mines in Mexico; Guanacevi in Durango state, Bolañitos in Guanajuato state and El Compas in Zacatecas state. Fourth Quarter, 2020 production was 1,117,289 silver ounces (oz) and 12,568 gold oz for 2.1 million oz silver equivalent ("AgEq") at an 80:1 silver:gold ratio.

The Company's 2020 full year production met its original guidance notwithstanding the government mandated two-month suspension of operations due to the pandemic. In fiscal 2020, silver production totaled 3,513,767 oz and gold production totaled 37,139 oz for 6.5 million oz AgEq. The Company withdrew its 2020 production guidance in early April due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the temporary shutdown mandated by the Mexican government and chose not to issue revised guidance when production was resumed at the end of May due to continued uncertainty caused by the ongoing pandemic.

First Mining Gold Corp. (OTCQX: FFMGF) (TSX: FF) recently announced the positive results of a Pre-Feasibility Study ("PFS") completed for its 100%-owned Springpole Gold Project (the "Project" or "Springpole") located in northwestern Ontario, Canada. The PFS results support a 30,000 tonnes-per-day open pit mining operation over an 11.3 year mine life.

"This PFS is an important milestone for the Company as we continue to advance and de-risk the Springpole Gold Project," stated Dan Wilton, CEO of First Mining. "First Mining is declaring mineral reserves for the first time ever on the Springpole Gold Project, reflecting the culmination of a year of detailed data collection, trade-off studies, and engineering and technical de-risking work done by First Mining and our partners on our project team. The results of the PFS confirm that Springpole has the potential to become a strategically significant, highly profitable gold mine in one of the most attractive mining jurisdictions in North America. The work we have undertaken to date to reduce the potential environmental impact from the project demonstrates the potential for Springpole to be developed in a responsible manner and to mitigate long-term impacts. We look forward to the Project's continual improvement through collaboration with our local and Indigenous communities of interest as we advance Springpole through the federal and provincial Environmental Assessment processes. We are very excited to have added Steve Lines and his team to lead this effort for First Mining. The team's recent and significant experience successfully permitting the Hardrock project in Ontario and other similar open pit mining projects in Canada requiring in-lake cofferdams and associated dewatering will serve us well as we continue to advance Springpole."

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