Power Metallic Mines with an extraordinary project
On July 30, the company had to announce the postponement of its mineral resource estimate (MRE) until the end of August. At first glance, this may seem like a setback, but it does not change the fundamental story. The delay is attributable to the engineering firm in charge, which is struggling with staffing shortages. Power Metallic Mines is nevertheless continuing its drilling operations on the NISK project undeterred. The property in Quebec is one of the very few polymetallic deposits known worldwide. It stands out for its exceptionally high copper-equivalent grades. While mines in production worldwide often make do with grades around 0.4% copper, the company has reported numerous drill intervals with copper-equivalent values, in some cases in the double digits, over significant lengths, such as 36.42 m grading 2.83% or 6 m grading 12.38%. In addition to copper, platinum, palladium, gold, silver, nickel, and cobalt are also present.
On June 25, the company strengthened its management team by appointing Chris Beal, an experienced mine developer. He is best known for scaling NextOre from inception to a valuation of CAD 131 million. At Strategic Resources, Beal will focus on advancing the Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) and the feasibility study. The company’s coffers are well-stocked with an additional CAD 28.23 million from the latest placement. The proximity to the road, the power grid, and the airport in Nemaska significantly reduces the risk for the project. In addition, well-known industry heavyweights such as Friedland, McEwen, and Rinehart, as well as about 15 other billionaires, have stocked up on shares of Power Metallic Mines. This should inspire confidence, as these individuals do not invest their money just anywhere.
In addition to the announced MRE and the PEA scheduled for December, the summer drill program covering 40,000 m is currently underway. This is complemented by geophysical SQUIDs and ANT surveys designed to identify new targets. In addition to its flagship project, the company is also active in Saudi Arabia. There, it entered into a joint venture with Amaar Mining. One advantage in the Middle East is the exploration costs, which are about half of the already low costs in Quebec. This additional opportunity does not yet seem to be reflected in the share price. The planned Nasdaq listing should significantly improve liquidity and visibility for Power Metallic.
BYD: International Expansion Expected to Drive Growth
After a prolonged slump, Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer BYD increased its monthly sales figures in June and July 2026. In June, 403,472 units were sold; in July, the number climbed to 419,211 vehicles. The reason for the recovery is exports, which have risen significantly. In June alone, 175,349 vehicles were shipped abroad, nearly double the figure from the previous year. The problem remains the domestic market. Since subsidies were scaled back and competition intensified at the same time, sales have declined, in some cases significantly. In June, 22% fewer vehicles were sold.
BYD is attempting to expand its product portfolio with new models to attract more customers again. Of particular note is the flagship SUV, the Da Tang EV, with a range of 950 km, which has been available since June. The subsidiary brand Denza completed 20,352 deliveries in June. European expansion is gaining momentum. To support these efforts, the group has brought former Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó on board. He is responsible for external relations. Exports rose significantly in the first half of the year, and there is no end in sight to this momentum. In addition to vehicle development, the group is advancing research on humanoid robots in China.
Compared to the first half of 2025, the company saw a decline this year, selling 1.81 million vehicles. To meet its planned annual targets, it will need to sell approximately 530,000 units per month in the second half of the year. Analysts such as CLSA are forecasting a net profit of CNY 7.2 billion for the second quarter, while Morgan Stanley expects as much as CNY 9 billion. Margin pressure remains a risk. Even though the gross margin in the vehicle business shrank from over 20% to 18.8%, it is still significantly better than that of German automakers. Rising overseas sales are commanding higher prices and should therefore offset the decline in domestic sales.
Intel: Investing in the Future
Intel has begun trial production of 18A-P. This is a performance-optimized variant of 18A that offers 9% more performance at the same power consumption or 18% lower power consumption at the same clock speed. This is good news from the development department. The manufacturing costs of the primary Panther Lake chip have fallen by 50% since the beginning of the year and are expected to decline further over the course of the year. CEO Lip-Bu Tan is driving the transformation forward with a three-phase strategy. The first phase focuses on strengthening the balance sheet, followed by building up management and increasing efficiency and accountability.
Revenue surged 25.4% to USD 16.1 billion in the second quarter. This result was approximately USD 1.8 billion above the company’s own forecast. The Data Center and AI division grew by 59% to USD 6.3 billion. Adjusted earnings of USD 0.42 were more than double the forecast. However, the bottom line is a net loss of approximately USD 11 billion calculated under GAAP. The main driver of this loss is a non-cash charge resulting from a USD 12.5 billion mark-to-market valuation of shares held in trust under the CHIPS Act agreement.
Management plans to increase investment and has revised its capital expenditure forecast for this year upward to over USD 20 billion. Spending is expected to rise significantly again in 2027. CFO Dave Zinsner acknowledged that the additional back-end investments could make it difficult to return to positive free cash flow as early as 2027. The foundry business remains the problem child, posting an operating loss of USD 2.1 billion on external customer revenue of just USD 293 million. Nevertheless, demand for server CPUs remains so strong that Intel cannot fully meet customer needs.
Demand for copper is being fueled in the long term by electric mobility and artificial intelligence. Power Metallic Mines, with its high-grade NISK project in Quebec, its rare geological structure, and prominent shareholder base, offers enormous potential that has not yet been priced in. BYD is impressing with strong export figures, but must contend with stiffer competition and shrinking margins in its domestic market. Intel is making solid operational progress with 18A and in the data center segment. On the other hand, the still loss-making foundry business and high capital expenditures are weighing on the company.
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