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BMR Morning Market Musings returns tomorrow.

1. Gold has traded between $1,279 and $1,288 so far today…as of 7:00 am Pacific, bullion is down $5 an ounce at $1,279 as the metal continues to digest last week’s sharp gains (the best week for Gold since June of last year)…the North Korea problem isn’t going to go away anytime soon, and investors remain nervous ahead of the first round of presidential elections in France this Sunday…meanwhile, the U.S. dollar is coming under additional pressure this morning, down nearly half a point at 99.89…the prospect of 2 more Fed rate hikes this year is being questioned given delays in President Trump’s fiscal agenda after Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin conceded that tax reform won’t happen by August as previously hoped…there’s also the key issue of Congressional votes given Democratic resistance and splits on the Republican side…Trump has also had some success in talking the dollar down since the beginning of the year as he correctly sees a lower dollar being better for trade…

2. Oil prices hit their lowest in nearly 2 weeks this morning, but have since rebounded, after news that U.S. shale Oil output in May is expected to post the biggest monthly increase in more than 2 years, fueling concerns that U.S. production growth is undermining efforts to cut global oversupply…U.S. government drilling data showed shale production next month was set to rise to 5.19 million barrels per day (bpd), with output from the Permian play, the largest shale region, expected to reach a record 2.36 million bpd.  “The battle between the ‘sheiks and the shale Oil producers’ is far from decided…with all attempts by OPEC to achieve a lasting production deficit on the Oil market being torpedoed by non-OPEC producers, first and foremost the U.S.,” analysts at Commerzbank wrote…

3. Camino Minerals (COR, TSX-V) has soared 25 cents to 60 cents through 30 minutes of trading after releasing results from the first 2 drill holes of a 5-hole Phase 1 program that’s scheduled to resume next month at its Los Chapitos Project in southern Peru…the first 2 holes confirmed the down dip extension of the Adriana Zone surface oxide mineralization, with one hole intersecting a zone of high-grade sulphide mineralization at depth, returning 106 m grading 1.30% Cu (188 m to 294 m) including 2.12% Cu over 38 m…the Adriana Zone is one of 5 known zones located along the northeastern trend of Chapitos…COR has only about 37 million shares outstanding…

4. The Venture is flat as of 7:00 am Pacific, though some individual issues are making some noise…Spearmint Resources (SRJ, TSX-V), playing closeology with Barkerville Gold Mines (BGM, TSX-V), is up a penny at 3.5 cents on total volume (all exchanges) of 24 million shares…BGM has eased off a nickel to $1.12 after jumping 40 cents over the last 3 sessions…Castle Silver Resources (CSR, TSX-V), which broke out to a new multi-year high last week, is up half a penny at 27 cents as of 7:00 am Pacific…a powerful set of dynamics are coming together for CSR on the ground in northern Ontario at its high-grade Silver-Cobalt projects…

5. Freeport McMoRan (FCX, NYSE) has received preliminary approval to resume Copper concentrate exports from its Indonesian unit and is now in the process of obtaining an export permit, according to news reports…Indonesia halted Freeport’s Copper concentrate exports in January under new rules that require the Arizona-based company to adopt a special licence, pay new taxes and royalties, divest a 51% stake in its operations and relinquish arbitration rights – such a wonderful place to do business!…

6.  It’s easier to do business in the Dominican Republic, but GoldQuest Mining (GQC, TSX-V) is nonetheless beefing up its lobbying efforts to assist with the permitting and developments of its assets there…the company announced this morning that it has appointed Georges Boisse, Canada’s Ambassador to the Dominican Republic between 2012 and 2014, as a “special adviser”, while Robert Crowley has been engaged as the full-time corporate and social responsibility (CSR) manager…Crowley is based in the DR and has 30 years of international leadership and management experience across 15 Latin American, Caribbean and Central Asian nations…GoldQuest says the appointments “reinforce (the company’s) commitment to active engagement with the Dominican communities at both a national and local level as it advances the permitting process of the Romero Gold/Copper Project and the regional exploration programs.”

7. Is marijuana less harmful than sugar and fat?…the National Post reports this morning that a survey of 1,109 Canadians between April 3 and April 7 found that 1 in 4 Canadians has used marijuana recreationally in the past year, and another 19% would use it if it were legal…just 18% of respondents to the Dig Insights survey thought marijuana is “very harmful” – lower than the 19% who said that about alcohol, 25% who felt processed sugar was “very harmful” and 33% who said that about saturated fat…about 6 in 10 Canadians said they support marijuana legalization, according to the survey…Dig director Rory McGee, perhaps revealing a bias, stated:  “What we are seeing is the law to legalize marijuana in Canada couldn’t come soon enough. Perceptions and attitudes about marijuana use have become more relaxed. The fact that Canadians see marijuana use as less harmful than sugar and fat suggests that old stereotypes no longer ring true.” 

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