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McDonald’s revenue disappoints as U.S. sales see worst drop since pandemic

February 11, 2025

McDonald’s on Monday reported disappointing quarterly revenue, dragged down by weaker-than-expected sales at its U.S. restaurants following an E. coli outbreak just weeks into the quarter.

But shares of the company rose more than 4% in morning trading as executives predicted sales would improve in 2025.

Here’s what the company reported compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:

Net sales of $6.39 billion were roughly flat compared with the year-ago period. The company’s overall same-store sales growth of 0.4% outperformed Wall Street’s expectations of same-store sales declines of 1%, according to StreetAccount estimates.

But McDonald’s U.S. business reported a steeper-than-expected drop in its same-store sales. Same-store sales at the company’s domestic restaurants fell 1.4% in the quarter; Wall Street was projecting same-store sales declines of 0.6%.

McDonald’s said traffic was slightly positive, but customers spent less than usual during the quarter. Over the summer, the chain rolled out a $5 combo meal to bring back price-conscious diners and reverse sluggish sales. The strategy worked, helping McDonald’s U.S. same-store sales tick up in the third quarter.

However, analysts have warned that value meals only work if customers also add menu items that aren’t discounted to their orders. McDonald’s executives downplayed those concerns Monday, saying the average check on the $5 meal deal is more than $10.

The biggest hit to McDonald’s U.S. sales came in late October, when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention linked a fatal E. coli outbreak to its Quarter Pounder burgers. McDonald’s switched suppliers for its slivered onions, the ingredient fingered as the likely culprit for the outbreak. In early December, the CDC declared the outbreak officially over.

However, in the days following the news of the outbreak, traffic at McDonald’s U.S. restaurants fell steeply, particularly in the states affected.

U.S. sales hit their nadir in early November, but began rising again after that. In particular, demand for the Quarter Pounder, a popular core menu item with high margins, fell quickly in the wake of the crisis.

McDonald’s expects its U.S. sales to recover by the beginning of the second quarter, executives said.

“I think right now what we’re seeing is that the E. coli impact is now just localized to the areas that had the biggest impact,” CEO Chris Kempczinski said on the company’s conference call. “So think about that as sort of the Rocky Mountain region that was really the epicenter of the issue.”

The company hopes value deals, along with key menu additions, will help to fuel the recovery this year. In 2025, the burger chain plans to bring back its popular snack wraps, which vanished from menus during pandemic lockdowns, and to introduce a new chicken strip menu item.

Outside the U.S., sales were stronger. Both of McDonald’s international divisions reported same-store sales increases, bolstering the company’s overall performance.

The company’s international developmental licensed markets segment, which includes the Middle East and Japan, reported same-store sales growth of 4.1%.

McDonald’s international operated markets division, which includes some of its biggest markets, reported same-store sales growth of 0.1%. The company said most markets reported same-store sales increases, but the United Kingdom and some other markets saw same-store sales shrink in the quarter. One bright spot was France, which saw its same-store sales turn positive during the quarter after months of weak demand.

McDonald’s reported fourth-quarter net income of $2.02 billion, or $2.80 per share, down from $2.04 billion, or $2.80 per share, a year earlier.

Excluding gains tied to the sale of its South Korean business, transaction costs for buying its Israeli franchise and other items, McDonald’s earned $2.83 per share.

Looking to 2025, the first quarter is expected to be the low point for McDonald’s same-store sales, CFO Ian Borden said, citing a weak start to the year in the U.S., among other factors. Winter storms and wildfires in California weighed on restaurant traffic across the industry in January.

For the full year, McDonald’s plans to open roughly 2,200 restaurants. About a quarter of those locations will be in the U.S. and its international operated markets. The rest will be in the company’s international developmental licensed markets, including about 1,000 new restaurants in China.

Including its investments in restaurant openings, McDonald’s plans to spend between $3 billion and $3.2 billion this year on capital expenditures.

The company is also projecting a headwind of 20 cents to 30 cents per share to its full-year earnings due to foreign currency exchange rates.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS

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Politics

FBI must release Mar-a-Lago probe records despite Trump’s criminal immunity: judge

February 11, 2025

FBI records from the Mar-a-Lago classified documents probe will soon be released despite the dismissal of the case against President Donald Trump and his presidential immunity, according to a federal judge’s ruling Monday.

In a court filing first obtained by Politico, U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell found that the FBI must disclose more information related to the case by Feb. 20.

The decision concerned a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) case brought by journalist Jason Leopold.

Leopold filed a request with the FBI in 2022 after reports that Trump during his first term ‘allegedly flushed some presidential records down the toilet when he was still in the White House and brought presidential records, including sensitive classified documents, to his personal residence in Florida,’ according to the filing.

The FBI asked the court to authorize withholding the records under Exemption 7A, which concerns ‘records or information compiled for law enforcement purposes, but only to the extent that production of such law enforcement records or information…could reasonably be expected to interfere with enforcement proceedings.’

In light of the SCOTUS ruling on presidential immunity as well as Trump’s election win in November, Trump is exempt from criminal proceedings, but Howell found the documents could still be released because of that fact, as there are no law enforcement proceedings against him.

‘Somewhat ironically, the constitutional and procedural safeguards attached to the criminal process include significant confidentiality mechanisms…. with a parallel safeguard in Exemption 7(A) to help preserve the necessary confidentiality of ongoing criminal investigations leading to anticipated enforcement actions, but for an immune president, Exemption 7(A) may simply be unavailable, as it is here,’ Howell said.

‘Defendants’ motion for summary judgment seeking judgment in their favor as to the legality of relying on Exemption 7(A) to withhold entirely the FBI’s investigative files from the processing of the FOIA request at issue and to assert a Glomar response to the sixth category of requested information, must be denied, and plaintiff’s cross motion for summary judgment as to these legal issues is granted,’ the decision concluded. ‘The parties are directed to submit jointly, by February 20, 2025, a status report proposing a schedule to govern future proceedings to conclude this case expeditiously.’

Howell also noted that though Trump is immune from prosecution, anyone who may have helped to ‘aid, abet and execute criminal acts,’ is not.

‘Of course, while the Supreme Court has provided a protective and presumptive immunity cloak for a president’s conduct, that cloak is not so large to extend to those who aid, abet and execute criminal acts on behalf of a criminally immune president,’ Howell wrote in a footnote. ‘The excuse offered after World War II by enablers of the fascist Nazi regime of ‘just following orders’ has long been rejected in this country’s jurisprudence.’

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

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World

World’s most populous nation saw a ‘staggering’ rise in hate speech last year, report says

February 11, 2025

India’s religious minorities have faced a “staggering” rise in hate speech over the past year, including from top leaders of the ruling Hindu nationalist party of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, according to a report released Monday.

The number of hate speech incidents targeting Muslim and Christian minorities rose to 1,165 in 2024 from 668 the year prior, a 74% increase, according to a report from the Washington-based research group, India Hate Lab. The majority of these, around 98%, targeted Muslims, either explicitly or alongside Christians.

“Hate speech in India in 2024 followed an alarming trajectory, deeply intertwined with the ideological ambitions of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the broader Hindu nationalist movement,” the report said.

Modi, who won a third term in last year’s elections, has long been accused by critics of fueling religious tensions and inciting violence against Muslims and other minorities since assuming power more than a decade ago.

His Hindu nationalist party has sought to turn India – a nation constitutionally bound to secularism – into a Hindu rashtra, or homeland for the Hindu majority, critics say, at the expense of the millions who profess minority faiths.

Modi and his BJP have repeatedly said they do not discriminate against minority groups.

The BJP’s national spokesperson, Jaiveer Shergill, condemned the report on Monday, saying it was published to malign India’s image.

According to the report, hate speech last year reinforced “longstanding Hindu nationalist tropes” such as the portrayal of Muslims and Christians as “outsiders,” “foreigners” and “invaders” who lack a legitimate claim to belonging in India, the report said.

It found that the BJP organized around 30% of last year’s hate speech events, a nearly six-fold increase from the year prior, with its party leaders delivering 452 hate speeches, a 350% rise from the previous year. The majority were recorded during the general election campaign.

Modi has in the past been accused of making Islamophobic remarks in speeches on the campaign trail.

“These high-profile hate speeches (by Modi and powerful regional leaders) were further amplified and reinforced by an arsenal of local BJP leaders, Hindu far-right organizations, and religious figures, who spread similar rhetoric at community and grassroots levels,” the report found.

Muslims make up roughly 200 million of India’s 1.4 billion population, with the population of Christians at roughly 27 million.

Under Modi’s leadership, Hindu nationalists have been appointed to top positions in key government institutions, giving them the power to make sweeping changes to legislation that rights groups say unfairly target Muslims. Textbooks have been rewritten to downplay the history of India’s former Islamic rulers, cities and streets with Mughal-era names renamed and Muslim properties have been demolished by authorities for illegal encroachment on government land and as punishment for alleged rioting.

In 2019, Modi removed the special autonomy of Jammu and Kashmir – India’s only Muslim-majority state – bringing it under the direct control of New Delhi. That same year, his administration passed a controversial citizenship law that excluded Muslim migrants, sparking deadly riots.

India prohibits hate speech under several sections of its penal code, including a section that criminalizes “deliberate and malicious acts” intended to insult religious beliefs.

However, some experts say hate speech has proliferated in India as a result of the judiciary’s reluctance to recognize hate speech offenses.

Anas Tanwir, a lawyer and founder of the Indian Civil Liberties Union, said the judiciary has failed to take concrete action against hate speech “despite clear prohibitions under various laws in India.”

The India Hate Lab, a project under the Washington, DC-based think tank Center for the Study of Organized Hate (CSOH), releases annual data on hate speech in the world’s largest democracy. They define hate speech by the United Nations framework which looks at any kind of communication in speech, writing or behavior that attacks or uses pejorative or discriminatory language based on a person’s religion.

This post appeared first on cnn.com

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Investing

Skyharbour Announces Closing of Option and Purchase Agreements with Hatchet Uranium for Several of its Uranium Projects Located in the Athabasca Basin

February 11, 2025

Skyharbour Resources Ltd. (TSX-V: SYH ) (OTCQX: SYHBF ) (Frankfurt: SC1P ) (‘Skyharbour’ or the ‘Company’), is pleased to announce that, further to its news release dated November 4 th 2024, closing has occurred on the option agreement (the ‘Agreement’) with Hatchet, whereby Hatchet Uranium Corp. (‘Hatchet’) may acquire an 80% interest in the Company’s 17,606 ha Highway Uranium Property (the ‘Optioned Property’) and a 100% interest, subject to a claw-back provision for Skyharbour, in the Company’s Genie, Usam and CBXShoe Uranium Projects (the ‘Purchased Property’). The properties total 66,358 ha and are all located in the Athabasca Basin of Northern Saskatchewan, Canada. The Agreement on the Optioned Property provides Hatchet an opportunity to earn an 80% interest in the claims over a three-year period by fulfilling combined cash, share issuance and exploration expenditure commitments of CAD $3,345,000. For the Purchased Property, Skyharbour will also receive units in the capital of Hatchet consisting of a share and a warrant (‘Hatchet Units’) equal to 9.9% of the issued and outstanding shares of Hatchet.

Highway, Genie, Usam, CBX and Shoe Project Map:
https://skyharbourltd.com/_resources/images/Sky_Highway.jpg

Terms of the Optioned Property:

The Optioned Property, Highway, consists of nine (9) mineral claims comprising approximately 17,606 hectares. Hatchet may acquire an 80% interest in the Optioned Property by (i) issuing common shares in the capital of Hatchet (‘Shares’) having an aggregate value of CAD $1,050,000; (ii) making aggregate cash payments of CAD $245,000; and (iii) incurring an aggregate of CAD $2,050,000 in exploration expenditures on the Optioned Property over a three-year period, as follows:

Date	Cash Payments	Exploration Expenditures	Value of Shares Issued
On or before the first anniversary of Closing	$25,000	$250,000	$25,000 ⁽¹⁾
On or before the second anniversary of Closing	$20,000	$300,000	$25,000 ⁽¹⁾
On or before the third anniversary of Closing	$200,000	$1,500,000	$1,000,000 ⁽¹⁾
TOTAL	$245,000	$2,050,000	$1,050,000

(1) Deemed pricing of Shares is based on the twenty (20) day volume weighted average price on the stock exchange in which Hatchet shall list its Shares for trading, being either the TSX Venture Exchange or the Canadian Securities Exchange (‘Deemed Price’) or the last sale price, if not listed on a stock exchange at the time of issuance.

In the event that the issuance of any Shares pursuant to the above would result in the Company holding 10% or more of the outstanding Shares of Hatchet, Hatchet will issue that number of Shares which would result in the Company receiving 9.9% of the issued and outstanding Shares post-issuance and will pay cash in lieu of the Shares for the difference.

The Company shall retain a 2% net smelter returns royalty from minerals mined and removed from the Optioned Property, of which Hatchet may purchase one-half, being 1%, at any time for $1,000,000.

Terms of the Purchased Property:

The Purchased Property consists of twenty-five (25) mineral claims comprising approximately 66,358 hectares across the Genie, Usam and CBX/Shoe projects. Hatchet has acquired a 100% interest in the Purchased Property by, on the date of closing (the ‘Closing Date’), paying the Company $25,000 and issuing to the Company such number of Units in the capital of Hatchet equal to 9.9% of the issued and outstanding shares immediately following the issuance. Each Hatchet Unit shall be comprised of one Share and one share purchase warrant, entitling Skyharbour to purchase one additional Share for a period of three years at a price that is a 25% premium to the deemed value of the Shares in both years 1 and 2, and then increases to a 50% premium to the issuance value of the Shares in year 3.

The Company shall retain a claw-back provision whereby, within 90 days after the 3 ^rd anniversary of the Closing Date, the Company may elect by written notice to Hatchet of its intention to purchase back a twenty-five percent (25%) interest in the Purchased Property by, within 90 days of delivery of such notice, incurring exploration expenditures or paying cash in lieu of to fund future exploration, equivalent to fifty percent (50%) of the total amount that Hatchet had spent during the term that is three years from the Closing Date in exploration expenditures on the Purchased Property. If Hatchet has not incurred any exploration expenditures during the three years following the closing date, then Skyharbour shall automatically receive the 25% interest in the Property.

The Company shall also retain a 2% net smelter returns royalty from minerals mined and removed from the Purchased Property, of which Hatchet may purchase one-half, being 1%, at any time for $2,000,000.

One of the conditions precedent for Hatchet prior to closing on both agreements was to close a financing for minimum gross proceeds of $1,500,000 which is now complete. Furthermore, Hatchet will proceed to list on the TSX Venture Exchange or the Canadian Securities Exchange or will have sold its interest to or combined with a similarly listed issuer. If this is not complete within 18 months, Hatchet’s right to acquire the Purchased Property will terminate. If after 12 months Hatchet has not listed then it shall pay Skyharbour a monthly fee of $10,000 until such conditions are satisfied or an aggregate of $60,000 has been paid, whichever occurs first.

Highway Property Summary:

The Highway Uranium Project consists of nine claims covering 17,606 hectares, approximately 41 km south of the Rabbit Lake Mine and 11 km southwest of Uranium Energy Corp.’s (UEC, formerly UEX) West Bear U and Co-Ni Deposits. Highway 905 runs through the property, providing excellent access for exploration and the project is in close proximity to regional infrastructure. There has been limited modern exploration carried out on the project but there is the potential for high-grade basement-hosted and unconformity-related uranium mineralization.

Highway Property Map:
https://skyharbourltd.com/_resources/images/Sky_Highway.jpg ‎

The project is underlain by Wollaston Supergroup metasedimentary gneisses (pelitic to psammopelitic and psammitic to meta-arkosic) folded around and overlying an Archean felsic gneiss dome which outcrops in the southwestern portion of the property and cores a northeast trending antiformal fold nose. The Highway Project is located approximately 7 km east of the present-day margin of the Athabasca Basin but is believed to have been covered by Athabasca sandstone in the past.

Genie Property Summary:

The Genie property consists of five claims totalling 16,930 ha, and is located approximately 48 km northeast of Cameco’s Eagle Point Uranium Mine (Rabbit Lake Operation) and 40 km north of Wollaston Lake Post. The project is underlain by Wollaston Superground metasedimentary gneisses and Archean granitoids, with highly prospective pelitic to psammopelitic gneisses (including graphitic varieties) and several north-trending faults related to the Tabbernor fault system being mapped on the property. The project lies outside the current extent of the Athabasca Basin, but is believed to have been overlain by now-eroded Athabasca sandstones in the past and has the potential for high-grade basement-hosted and unconformity-related uranium mineralization. The property is underlain by a series of linear magnetic highs (interpreted as granitoids) and magnetic lows (interpreted as metasedimentary gneisses), cross-cut by a highly magnetic northwest-trending Mackenzie Diabase dyke.

Genie Property Map:
https://skyharbourltd.com/_resources/images/Sky_Genie.jpg

Previous work on the Genie project includes limited diamond drilling (three historical drill holes, of which one was abandoned in overburden) and a variety of airborne and ground geophysical surveys, prospecting, geological mapping, lake sediment and overburden sampling, and soil sampling. Most of this exploration work took place between 1966 to 1980, prior to the advent of modern geophysical methods and geological models, but in 2014 part of the Genie property was covered by a helicopter-borne DIGHEM magnetic, electromagnetic, and radiometric survey. The survey showed a strong central EM conductor following a magnetically inferred contact on the two northeastern most claims, which is locally disrupted by several moderately conductive N-S trending structural breaks, inferred to be faults. This strong conductor is highly prospective for uranium mineralization, and drilling done in 1969 and 1971 has confirmed the presence of graphitic and sulfide-containing pelitic gneisses on the property. Lake sediment samples also collected at Genie during the 2014 exploration program, contained up to 63.3 ppm U, further showcasing the prospectivity of the property.

Usam Property Summary:

The Usam Project consists of twelve claims totalling 40,041 ha and is located approximately 16 km northeast of Cameco’s Eagle Point Mine (Rabbit Lake Operation). The project has numerous EM conductors that are associated with significant magnetic lows of the Wollaston Domain. While the project is outside the current confines of the Athabasca Basin, the area was overlain by Athabasca sandstones historically. Basement rocks on the property include Wollaston Supergroup metasediments and Archean granitoid gneisses, with highly prospective pelitic to psammopelitic gneisses (including graphitic varieties) making up the largest proportion of the basement rocks. Several north-trending faults related to the Tabbernor fault system cross-cut the property.

Usam Property Map:
https://skyharbourltd.com/_resources/images/Sky_Usam.jpg

Previous work on the project includes diamond drilling (12 holes), lake sediment sampling, soil sampling, geological mapping, ground and airborne geophysics, marine seismic, prospecting, and other geochemical sampling, the majority of which was done in the 1980’s and 1970’s. Modern exploration of the property has been limited to geophysics and ground prospecting. As such there is a significant untested potential on the project. Trenching on Cleveland Island uncovered up to 0.31% U ₃ O ₈ in mineralized pegmatite, and diamond drilling on Gilles Island intersected anomalous uranium, indicating that the basement rocks underling the Usam property are fertile sources of uranium in addition to containing pegmatite- and granite-hosted U-Th-REE mineralization. There are also several sedimentary-hosted base metals (i.e. Cu and Zn) showings on the project and in the surrounding area, which show similarities to the sedimentary-hosted Cu mineralization previously discovered by Rio Tinto and its partners at the Janice Lake Project further southwest in the Wollaston Domain.

CBX/Shoe Property Summary:

The CBX property has been recently expanded through staking to include five additional claims adjoining the previously staked CBX and Shoe properties, which have been combined to include a total of seven claims covering 8,777 hectares. The 609 ha Shoe property has remained unchanged, with both CBX and Shoe now consisting of eight non-contiguous claims totalling 9,386 hectares.

CBX/Shoe Property Map:
https://skyharbourltd.com/_resources/images/Sky_Shoe.jpg ‎

The new claims lie approximately 6.5 km to 25 km northeast of the Eagle Point uranium mine and cover the northern shore of Wollaston Lake including parts of Cunning Bay. Outcrop exposure on the property is poor, but historical mapping and drilling shows that the newly expanded CBX project is underlain by a mixture of Wollaston Supergroup metasedimentary gneisses, Hudsonian intrusives, and Archean felsic gneisses of the Western Wollaston Domain. Similar lithologies host uranium mineralization at the Rabbit Lake operation, including the Eagle Point deposit, and other uranium deposits in the Athabasca Basin and surrounding regions. The CBX and Shoe properties have had historical exploration, including airborne and ground geophysical surveys, lake sediment, soil, and spruce geochemical surveys, till sampling, prospecting, geological mapping, and a marine seismic survey, but the majority of this work took place in the 1960’s to 1980’s, with limited modern exploration work being carried out on a small portion of the CBX and Shoe properties.

Grant of Incentive Stock Options:

Skyharbour also announces that the Company has granted 3,500,000 incentive stock options (the ‘Options’) to officers, directors and consultants of the Company. The Options are exercisable at $0.40 per share for a period of five years from the date of grant. The Options have been granted under and are governed by the terms of the Company’s Incentive Stock Option Plan.

Qualified Person:

The technical information in this news release has been prepared in accordance with the Canadian regulatory requirements set out in National Instrument 43-101 and reviewed and approved by Serdar Donmez, P.Geo., VP of Exploration for Skyharbour as well as a Qualified Person.

About Skyharbour Resources Ltd.:

Skyharbour holds an extensive portfolio of uranium exploration projects in Canada’s Athabasca Basin and is well positioned to benefit from improving uranium market fundamentals with interest in thirty-six projects covering over 614,000 hectares (over 1.5 million acres) of land. Skyharbour has acquired from Denison Mines, a large strategic shareholder of the Company, a 100% interest in the Moore Uranium Project, which is located 15 kilometres east of Denison’s Wheeler River project and 39 kilometres south of Cameco’s McArthur River uranium mine. Moore is an advanced-stage uranium exploration property with high-grade uranium mineralization in several zones at the Maverick Corridor. Adjacent to the Moore Project is the Russell Lake Uranium Project, in which Skyharbour is operator with joint-venture partner RTEC. The project hosts widespread uranium mineralization in drill intercepts over a large property area with exploration upside potential. The Company is actively advancing these projects through exploration and drilling programs.

Skyharbour also has joint ventures with industry leader Orano Canada Inc., Azincourt Energy, and Thunderbird Resources at the Preston, East Preston, and Hook Lake Projects, respectively. The Company also has several active earn-in option partners, including CSE-listed Basin Uranium Corp. at the Mann Lake Uranium Project; TSX-V listed North Shore Uranium at the Falcon Project; UraEx Resources at the South Dufferin and Bolt Projects; Hatchet Uranium at the Highway Project; CSE-listed Mustang Energy at the 914W Project; and TSX-V listed Terra Clean Energy at the South Falcon East Project. In aggregate, Skyharbour has now signed earn-in option agreements with partners that total to over $36 million in partner-funded exploration expenditures, over $20 million worth of shares being issued, and $14 million in cash payments coming into Skyharbour, assuming that these partner companies complete their entire earn-ins at the respective projects.

Skyharbour’s goal is to maximize shareholder value through new mineral discoveries, committed long-term partnerships, and the advancement of exploration projects in geopolitically favourable jurisdictions.

Skyharbour’s Uranium Project Map in the Athabasca Basin:
https://www.skyharbourltd.com/_resources/images/SKY_SaskProject_Locator_2024-11-21_v1.jpg

To find out more about Skyharbour Resources Ltd. (TSX-V: SYH) visit the Company’s website at www.skyharbourltd.com .

Skyharbour Resources Ltd.

‘Jordan Trimble’
__________________________________
Jordan Trimble
President and CEO

For further information contact myself or:
Nicholas Coltura
Investor Relations Manager
‎Skyharbour Resources Ltd.
‎Telephone: 604-558-5847
‎Toll Free: 800-567-8181
‎Facsimile: 604-687-3119
‎Email: info@skyharbourltd.com

NEITHER THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THE CONTENT OF THIS NEWS RELEASE.

Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains ‘forward‐looking information or statements’ within the meaning of applicable securities laws, which may include, without limitation, completing ongoing and planned work on its projects including drilling and the expected timing of such work programs, other statements relating to the technical, financial and business prospects of the Company, its projects and other matters. All statements in this news release, other than statements of historical facts, that address events or developments that the Company expects to occur, are forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Such statements and information are based on numerous assumptions regarding present and future business strategies and the environment in which the Company will operate in the future, including the price of uranium, the ability to achieve its goals, that general business and economic conditions will not change in a material adverse manner, that financing will be available if and when needed and on reasonable terms. Such forward-looking information reflects the Company’s views with respect to future events and is subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including the risks and uncertainties relating to the interpretation of exploration results, risks related to the inherent uncertainty of exploration and cost estimates and the potential for unexpected costs and expenses, and those filed under the Company’s profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward looking statements include, but are not limited to, continued availability of capital and financing and general economic, market or business conditions, adverse weather or climate conditions, failure to obtain or maintain all necessary government permits, approvals and authorizations, failure to obtain or maintain community acceptance (including First Nations), decrease in the price of uranium and other metals, increase in costs, litigation, and failure of counterparties to perform their contractual obligations. The Company does not undertake to update forward‐looking statements or forward‐looking information, except as required by law.

News Provided by GlobeNewswire via QuoteMedia

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

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Investing

What Factors Impact Graphene Cost?

February 11, 2025

Graphene has the potential to spur advances in a variety of sectors, from transport to medicine to electronics. Unfortunately, the high cost of graphene production has slowed commercialization.

Graphene prices have come down substantially from its early days, when it reportedly cost tens of thousands of dollars to make a piece of high-quality graphene the size of a postage stamp.

However, the 21st century wonder material remains expensive. Specific graphene pricing data is hard to come by, but relatively recent estimates peg the commercial cost of graphene in a range of US$100 to US$10,000 per kilogram. The wide variance is mainly because the price of graphene is determined by a number of factors, such as production method, form, quality and quantity.

Graphene has many exciting applications. Notably, its properties have been applied to graphene-polymer composites. Together, these carbon-based materials are effective in energy, biomedicine, aerospace and electronics applications. In addition, graphene can be used for water purification due to its naturally occurring water-repellent properties.

Other key applications of graphene include graphene-conductive inks, which can be used for printed electronics in applications like logic circuits, inkjet printing, environmental sensors and smart clothing.

Here’s a look at how graphene is made, and why the production process plays a key role in graphene cost.

What is the origin of graphene?

Graphene’s origin story is by now well known. The 2D material was first produced in 2004, when two professors at the University of Manchester used Scotch tape to peel flakes of it off a chunk of graphite.

The story gives the impression that it’s easy to make graphene, but that’s not entirely true. The Scotch tape method, while a fun party trick, can only produce a very small amount of graphene — certainly not enough to use commercially.

How is graphene made?

The Scotch tape method of making graphene is known as exfoliation, and there are other ways to create graphene via exfoliated graphite as well. For instance, a diamond wedge can cleave graphene layers.

But what are some other ways of making graphene? Currently, the most popular method is chemical vapor deposition (CVD). The deposition process involves a mix of gases reacting with a surface to create a graphene layer. The process creates high-quality graphene, but the graphene is often damaged when it comes time to detach it from its substrate.

Looking at the process in greater depth, Graphenea states that another problem with CVD is that it’s difficult to create a totally uniform layer of graphene on a substrate. Graphenea also notes that much work is being put into reducing problems with CVD. For example, scientists are experimenting with treating the substrate before the reaction that creates graphene takes place. Even so, it’s expected to take a long time for the wrinkles to be smoothed out.

The Graphene Flagship identifies a number of other ways of making graphene, including direct chemical synthesis; the material can also be made by putting natural graphite in a solution.

Some of the latest innovations in graphene creation don’t involve the use of chemicals and can be conducted in the open air, as opposed to in vacuums. One method that was patented in 2017 is able to create larger quantities of graphene using acetylene, oxygen and a spark plug. Unfortunately, this process creates unrefined chunks of material and not sheets, meaning more money must be spent to make the graphene chunks useable.

In 2021, the Indian Institute of Technology Patna developed a way to produce graphene using a plasma gun; it’s possible it will prove to be a cheaper, yet scalable route to producing high-quality graphene material. The method has been shown to produce single-layer graphene 85 percent of the time without hazardous chemicals or expensive solvents, and estimates show that doing so only costs about US$1.12 per gram of graphene.

In mid-2022, chemical manufacturing company CleanGraph announced its proprietary process for transforming graphite into graphene, saying it had been developed over the past four years with the help of partnerships with market leaders in the construction industry and prominent universities. This method of producing graphene reportedly reduces the environmental impact by 99 percent compared to traditional graphene production.

‘Expanded graphite is a layered nanocarbon material, which is produced at industrial scale by oxidative intercalation and high-temperature expansion of natural graphite. CleanGraph is a novel proprietary process to chemically modify graphite into various forms of graphene in a faster, more productive and ecologically friendly way,’ as per the company.

Along with construction materials, the graphene produced by this method can also be used for heating, battery technology and as a sorbent.

More recently, in late 2023 NanoXplore (TSX:GRA,OTCQX:NNXPF) unveiled a new proprietary large-scale dry process for manufacturing graphene based on advanced exfoliation technology. It has a lower CAPEX compared to liquid-based exfoliation methods.

‘The technology finds potential applications in batteries and lightweight composites, enhancing its appeal in cutting-edge industries,’ states the company. ‘This new manufacturing process also opens doors to a myriad of applications, including plastic pipes, geosynthetics, recycled plastics, concrete, drilling fluids, and insulation foams, among others.’

Click here for a deeper dive on companies developing graphene and graphene products.

What factors impact graphene cost?

Getting an understanding of how graphene is produced is crucial to understanding graphene cost. That’s because the way in which graphene is made has a major impact on how much it ultimately costs.

Echo Zhang, founder of China-based graphene technology company GrapheneRich, explains that CVD and liquid-phase exfoliation are the most expensive methods due to the ‘advanced equipment and high energy consumption required.’ Meanwhile, the chemical reduction of graphene oxide is cheaper but may produce lower quality material.

Graphene oxide, which has advanced composite, biotechnology and water filtration applications, can cost between US$100 and US$500 per kilogram. ‘The price can vary depending on the oxidation level, production method, and supplier,’ Zhang states.

Graphenea also highlights that while graphene oxide is relatively inexpensive to produce, its lower quality means it can’t be used in batteries, flexible touch screens and ‘other advanced opto-electronic applications.’

In contrast, CVD graphene, which Zhang calls ‘top-tier graphene’ resulting in a ‘high-performance material with excellent properties,’ fetches upwards of US$10,000 or more per kilogram. Its often used in advanced electronics and energy-storage systems.

‘Methods like CVD, which produce high-quality, high-purity graphene, are generally more expensive than liquid-phase exfoliation or reduction of graphene oxide,’ Zhang explains. ‘The production method affects both the quality and the cost of the final product.’

Commercial-grade graphene can be produced in larger quantities, resulting in a price range of US$100 to US$1,000 per kilogram. This grade of graphene is used in energy storage, sensors and composites. ‘These prices depend on the production scale and the quality of the graphene being produced,’ Zhang states.

The issue, of course, is that with few commercial applications for graphene yet available, few end-users are looking to buy the material in large quantities.

What is the future of graphene research?

Those involved in graphene research hope that ultimately more commercial applications for the material will be developed, spurring advances that will make cost-effective mass production of the material a reality.

Graphene products are making their way into next-generation electronics such as flexible and foldable screens, enhanced batteries and ‘lightning-speed’ computers.

Graphene can also be used to create more fuel-efficient cars, faster and lighter aircraft and paint that could end deterioration of ships and cars. Overall, there’s no shortage of applications for graphene products.

Graphene’s impressive properties and the fact that it’s made from carbon, much like human bodies, makes it well suited to biotechnologies, including tools that can help healthcare professionals scan a patient’s biosignals quickly, accurately and safely.

“Graphene is a single layer of carbon molecules,” explained Dr. Kiana Aran, chief scientific officer at Cardea Bio, and Keck Graduate Institute associate professor of bioengineering. “Everything in our body is made of carbon. It’s the most compatible material we can find that has amazing electronic properties. You can build electronics and conjugate with biology, without impacting … biology and without biology impacting it.”

Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology have created the first functional semiconductor made from graphene. As an alternative to silicon, the breakthrough has the potential to allow for smaller and faster electronic devices, which may have applications for quantum computing.

In terms of market growth, Grand View Research notes, ‘Market growth stage is high, and pace of the market growth is accelerating. Graphene market is characterized by a high degree of innovation owing to rising advancements driven by factors including research and development. Subsequently, innovative applications are constantly emerging, disrupting existing industries and creating new ones.’

The market research firm projects that the graphene market will see revenues grow at a compound annual growth rate of 35.1 percent between 2024 and 2030 to reach US$1.61 billion. The automotive, aerospace and medical industries are the core drivers of demand for the material. Graphene’s role as a powerful catalyst in the chemical industry is also expected to contribute to increased demand for the wonder material on a global scale.

Securities Disclosure: I, Melissa Pistilli, currently hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

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Positive Uranium Leach Test Results at Lo Herma

February 11, 2025

GTI Energy (GTR:AU) has announced Positive Uranium Leach Test Results at Lo Herma

Download the PDF here.

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Gold Price Breaks US$2,900 as Tariff Turmoil Boosts Safe-haven Appeal

February 11, 2025

The gold price gained 30 percent in 2024, setting new highs along the way.

It broke through US$2,500 per ounce, then continued higher, hitting US$2,600 and then US$2,700.

Less than a month and a half into 2025, the breakneck pace continues. The price of gold broke through the US$2,800 mark on January 31, and pushed above US$2,900 during intraday trading on Monday (February 11).

Gains since the start of the year have been primarily driven by economic uncertainty, as US President Donald Trump has vowed to make sweeping changes to trade and foreign policy and amid relative strength in the US dollar.

The most recent announcement came on Sunday (February 10), when Trump told reporters on Air Force One that he was planning 25 percent tariffs on aluminum and steel and reciprocal tariffs on all countries. He said a formal announcement would be made on Monday, but at the time of publication, no announcement had been made.

There was quick pushback on the tariff plans as the EU threatened its own retaliatory tariffs.

The new tariffs come just one week after the US backed down from imposing sweeping 25 percent tariffs on all goods entering the US from Mexico and Canada. The president appeared to be leveraging the threat of tariffs against its two trading partners to increase border security. Both countries had previously announced significant increases in funding for technology and patrols along their respective borders.

Recent weeks have also seen the President make remarks about the future of Gaza that would see the displacement of millions of Palestinians. Trump also suggested that Gaza could become US property as it works to redevelop the area, likening it to the Riviera. On Monday he expanded on the idea saying that Gaza residents would have no right to return.

The language and tone of his statements were met with pushback, particularly from other Middle Eastern countries, which argued it could push the region deeper into conflict.

Investors seek stability as uncertainty mounts

All these announcements have spooked some investors, prompting them to turn to gold for added stability in their portfolios.

According to data from the World Gold Council (WGC), US$2.6 billion in investments were added to gold ETFs in January. The majority of these inflows came from European funds, which saw investors add 39 metric tons to their holdings. However, both US and Asian funds saw some decreases, with combined losses of 10 metric tons.

The council suggests that the increase was at least partly due to European Central Bank rate cuts, which caused a sharp fall in bond yields during the month.

The release also predicts further gains in February, in particular from China, where New Year’s celebrations tend to favor retail gold sales. The WGC noted that February sales have a positive correlation with January’s performance.

Monday saw gold rise sharply, gaining 1.48 percent to reach US$2,902.30 per ounce by 1 p.m. EST. Silver was also up, but not as much, gaining 0.71 percent to US$32 per ounce.

Despite the announcements of new tariffs, equity markets were also up in morning trading. The S&P 500 (INDEXSP:INX) gained 0.64 percent to 6,064.57, while the Nasdaq-100 (INDEXNASDAQ:NDX) rose 1.22 percent to 21,754.19. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:.DJI) saw a slight gain of just 0.2 percent to 44,390.78.

Securities Disclosure: I, Dean Belder, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

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GameStop, MicroStrategy shares rise after Ryan Cohen posts photo with Michael Saylor

February 11, 2025

Shares of GameStop and MicroStrategy were on the rise Monday after Ryan Cohen, CEO of the video game retailer, posted a photo with Michael Saylor, co-founder and chairman of the largest corporate holder of bitcoin.

GameStop, day traders’ favorite meme stock, climbed more than 7%, while MicroStrategy, which recently rebranded as “Strategy,” saw shares rising as much as 4%. Cohen uploaded the photo over the weekend on X, sparking speculation that GameStop is plotting another strategy around crypto. MicroStrategy shares last traded up 1%.

The video game company had expanded into digital services in recent years by offering crypto wallets that let users manage their crypto and nonfungible tokens. However, the firm shut the service down in 2023, citing “regulatory uncertainty.”

Cohen, co-founder of Chewy, bought shares in GameStop in 2020 and joined the board in 2021 as GameStop became one of the key stocks in the WallStreetBets meme trading mania.

His e-commerce experience fueled hopes that he could help modernize the brick-and-mortar retailer, but the company still struggles to adapt to changing spending habits by gamers. Trading in the stock remains highly volatile and speculative as meme stock personality “Roaring Kitty” continues to spur buying from retail investors.

Saylor’s Strategy also has a fan base of retail investors as the firm touted its aggressive bitcoin-buying strategy. In the past year, the firm has raised billions of dollars through the sale of stock or convertible bonds for the sole purpose of purchasing more bitcoin.

Last week, Strategy said it’s almost halfway to its ambitious capital-raising goal as it went on a buying spree throughout the postelection rally. As of Monday, Strategy holds roughly $47 billion worth of bitcoins on its balance sheet, about 2.5% of the total supply.

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McDonald’s revenue disappoints, as U.S. sales see worst drop since pandemic

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