The Telegraph: Andy Burnham has been hit with a warning from the City of London that he risks market turmoil unless he slashes spending. Investors and economists said Britain would face a fresh surge in borrowing costs unless the Prime Minister outlined credible plans to rein in the size of the state.
Lord O’Neill, a former adviser to Mr Burnham, and Sir Charles Bean, a former official at the Office for Budget Responsibility, both called for the state pensions triple lock to be scrapped after a surge in bond yields in recent days. Mohamed El-Erian, the former boss of bond giant Pimco, cautioned that Mr Burnham “cannot borrow his way out of this” and warned that Britain was increasingly vulnerable to recession.
Comment: There are a couple of things I have noticed over the past 50 years. Predictions regarding the housing market are always wrong, and predictions of doom based on the bond market are usually wrong. The latter is because someone blinks. In this case it should be Burnham. This is even though his bread and circuses goodwill campaign since he became PM is not that expensive. But paying people with welfare to vote Labour is.
Bezant Resources Plc (BZT), the copper-gold exploration and development company, announced the following update on the development of the Hope & Gorob copper-gold project in Namibia and the associated Tsoaxaub Metals Processing Plant. The Board believes that the continued progress at site, together with the Phase II expansion review, represents an important step in positioning Hope & Gorob as a long-life copper-gold development asset. The Company will provide further updates as commissioning, ore sorting and development optimisation work advances.
Comment: Another day, another RNS from BZT. And it is clear that here that the company is understandably excited about the prospects for Hope & Gorob, not least because it is a company maker. At the same time we see the share price finally starting to build on last year’s 4x gain. 0.2p as a year end target versus 0.15p currently, seems to be a modest target.
Sunda Energy Plc (SNDA), the AIM-quoted exploration and appraisal company focused on hydrocarbon assets in the Asia-Pacific region, notes the announcement released today by Tetragon Energy Ltd (ASX: TET) of a material increase in Prospective Resources for the Halcon exploration prospect, in Philippines Service Contract 80. Mid Case (2U) Prospective Resources for Halcon are now reported by Tetragon as 8.0 Tcf gross (3.0 Tcf net to Sunda’s working interest). Tetragon also report a geological chance of success of 24%.
Comment: Although 24% may not sound like a high chance of success, it is actually par for the course, and given the lay of the land and sentiment towards SNDA improving, one would feel happy to take such odds on. Above resistance at 3.5p, one can see as much as 5p early in the autumn for the shares.
East Star Resources Plc (EST), the Kazakhstan-focused gold and copper exploration and development company, is pleased to announce the results of the induced polarisation (“IP”) survey from the Snowy Epithermal Target in Central Kazakhstan. These lines are approximately 1km east of the IP lines completed in 2025. The 2026 IP lines were completed over an intensely altered tuff unit with numerous quartz veinlets noted.
Comment: Now that we know that a celebrity London investor is on the shareholder register at EST, it may be that announcements like today are all the more sweet. It may also be the case that they cause the share price to be rather more perky than it has been historically, given the weight and scale of the prospects for the company in its chosen jurisdiction. Above recent broken resistance at 6p, a year end share price target on a charting basis at 10p seems more than achieveable.
Strategic Minerals (SML), an international mineral exploration and production company, is pleased to provide an update on the final sale of Leigh Creek Copper Mine Pty Ltd, South Australia, to South Pacific Mineral Investments Pty Ltd trading as Cuprum Metals. SML said “The structure of the sale is highly commercial for the Company, combining upfront cash with ongoing copper exposure through layered consideration comprising shares, royalties and earn-out. Proceeds from the transaction, a non-dilutive source of funding for our shareholders, will be used to further support the continued advancement of our flagship Redmoor Tungsten-Tin-Copper Project in southeast Cornwall.”
Comment: Given that Cornwall is the new Nevada, at least in the UK, it is not surprising that we see SML move to go all in as far as this part of the world is concerned. The deal done as far as Leigh Creek appears solid, and one would imagine it will be supportive to the SML share price in coming days.
Zinc Media Group plc (ZIN), the award-winning television, brand and audio production group, is pleased to announce that it has been commissioned to produce a 90-minute feature film for a leading institution in the Middle East, with a contract value of $6.1m. Revenue is expected to be recognised across the current and next financial year. The film is a one of the largest single productions the Group has undertaken in the region. Zinc will lead on all aspects of the production delivery. The client and the nature of the work remain confidential ahead of the film’s public release.
Comment: The London market still has not got over its trepidation regarding media stocks, and perhaps never will. Nevertheless, ZIN has in the recent past shown that it can get the big deals with the big numbers. This has finally been shown in terms of the ZIN share price in recent months, although there is still a long way to go.
Kazera Global plc (KZG), the AIM-quoted investment company, announced that it has agreed terms for the full and final settlement of amounts claimed by Fujax South Africa (Pty) Ltd under the prepayment arrangements entered into with the Company’s subsidiary, Whale Head Minerals (Pty) Ltd, in December 2024. Following this positive development and the grant of the Mining Right over Sea Concession 2A, as announced by the Company on 2 September 2026, the Board is also considering an equity fundraising of a minimum of £500k to further strengthen the Company’s balance sheet and provide additional financial flexibility in relation to potential new investments in the critical minerals space.
Comment: After the recent stellar share price run it would have been rude not to raise some cash to scale up this investment company. Indeed, one wonders that with sentiment so positive towards the company why it is not thinking of raising rather more than half a bar to fulfil its intended strategy?
Tungsten West (TUN), the mining company focused on restarting production at the Hemerdon tungsten and tin mine in Devon, UK, announced its audited results for the year ended 31 March 2026. TUN said, “The financial year ended 31 March 2026 was a period of significant progress for the Company. The Company is now fully funded, following a funding journey that began during this reporting period and culminated in recent weeks with the National Wealth Fund’s landmark investment of up to £71 million. We have achieved strong progress and remain on-track and on budget for full commissioning in Q1 2027, most importantly, with no lost time injuries. We have also achieved the significant milestone of first production from our restart project already in Q3 2026.”
Comment: With the government investing our hard earned money, it is evident that TUN is enjoying its lap of honour update today, and no doubt there will be many more. That said, it is will be interesting to see whether there are any operational bumps in the road / the share price, ahead of full commissioning early next year.
Talon Resources plc (TAR), the North American gold exploration company, announced that its maiden diamond drilling campaign has commenced at the Eagle Lake gold project in Ontario, Canada. TAR said, “We are delighted to have the drill turning at Eagle Lake ahead of schedule. This is a fully funded programme, targeting some of the strongest gold prospects recognised in this part of the Wabigoon Subprovince, identified through our own exploration work and MINML’s proprietary PRISM machine learning platform, which has been used to refine target selection and optimise drill hole placement. We believe the programme provides an important opportunity to test these targets and potentially advance our understanding of the Project’s gold potential.”
Comment: “Talon who?” is the message here at the moment, judging by the share price action, and the relatively lack of awareness in the market. Indeed, if the company is not on the radar of yours truly, the profile must still be low. That said, this could be deliberate. In the meantime one would humbly suggest that the mix of gold and Ontario should merit more than the current falling knife trajectory of the shares.
Disclaimer & Declaration of Interest:
The information, investment views, and recommendations in this Zaks Traders Cafe interview are provided for general information purposes only. Nothing in this interview should be construed as a promotion or solicitation to buy or sell any financial product relating to any companies under discussion or referred to or to engage in or refrain from doing so or engage in any other transaction. Any opinions or comments are made to the best of the knowledge and belief of the commentator but no responsibility is accepted for actions based on such opinions or comments. The commentators may or may not hold investments in the companies under discussion.
