Oxford University spinout Ascension has raised £1.7 million in new funding, combining a £670,490 Innovate UK Growth Catalyst grant with £1 million from UKI2S, Oxford Science Enterprises and East X, bringing total capital raised to £6.2 million. The company’s Selective Recovery programme targets rare earths and other critical minerals in deep volcanic glass, aiming to separate metals in situ and cut surface processing stages. Ascension’s process uses natural geothermal heat in volcanic rock deposits, avoiding excavation, high-temperature surface processing and associated land disturbance.

Gold jumped 1.7% to about $4,887/oz, its highest level since 17 March, after Iran reopened the Strait of Hormuz, restoring commercial traffic through a corridor that carries roughly 20% of global oil flows. Silver climbed more than 5% to $83/oz, a five-week high, as easing energy-price and inflation fears revived expectations of interest rate cuts that favour non-yielding assets. Analysts at Zaner Metals and MKS PAMP see scope for a move back towards $5,000/oz in the near term, while Goldman Sachs keeps a bullish $5,400/oz year-end target.

Benchmark Mineral Intelligence reports that 2025 copper production deviated sharply from company guidance, with CMOC beating its target by 111,000 tonnes while Zijin Mining missed by 65,000 tonnes due to delays at the Julong expansion and weaker African output. The analysis explicitly separates stated guidance from realised tonnages, showing that most copper supply models still treat guidance as production. For mine planners and market modellers, the data signal that project delays and operational volatility can materially distort supply curves if guidance is used unadjusted.