Pension funds in the Netherlands, US, Britain and Australia are keeping 2%–5% of portfolios in gold, typically via physical bullion or futures, as bond–equity correlations rise and government bonds lose diversification power, according to the World Gold Council. Dutch fund PDN (€7.7 billion) reallocated 10% of its government bonds in 2020–21 to reach a 5% gold stake, while Fairfax County Retirement Systems (US$6.2 billion) holds about 3% in gold futures and Now: Pensions Master Trust (UK, £8+ billion) around 2%. NGS Super in Australia maintains roughly 3% in gold alongside sovereign bonds as a defensive, inflation- and currency-risk hedge, with all four funds retaining positions opened during the pandemic.

Freeport-McMoRan’s Grasberg copper-gold complex in Central Papua has restored milling to about 140,000 tonnes of ore per day, roughly 67% of normal rates, a year after an 800,000-tonne mudslide from the former open pit killed seven workers and forced a shutdown. The Grasberg Block Cave supplied about 70,000 tonnes per day of mill feed in Q3, with underground material-handling upgrades due by early 2027 and Production Block 1S targeted to restart by mid-2027, lifting output towards 80% of capacity. PT Freeport Indonesia’s East Java smelter is ramping up alongside the PT Smelting facility, together able to produce up to 800,000 tonnes of copper cathode annually, while Freeport guides to Q3 copper production of 830 million lb and expects realised prices above $6.50/lb.

KGHM and South32 have approved a $725 million expansion at the Sierra Gorda copper mine in Chile’s Antofagasta region, adding a fourth grinding line that will raise ore-processing capacity by 26% and target about 195,000 tonnes of payable copper per year by 2030. Updated ore reserves stand at 1.1 billion tonnes grading 0.39% Cu (0.46% CuEq), with resources of 1.87 billion tonnes at 0.37% Cu, supporting operations out to at least 2045 and a planned $100 million exploration campaign to 2049. The fully permitted project, managed by Sierra Gorda SCM, will create roughly 900 construction jobs and continues a technical collaboration with BHP’s nearby Spence mine to optimise low-grade ore processing.