Moody's Downgrade Triggers Yet Another Gold Rally--Are Miners the Next to Pop?

Equity Insider News Commentary

Issued on behalf of RUA GOLD Inc.

VANCOUVER, May 20, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Equity Insider News Commentary – After a Moody's downgrade of the US government's credit rating, the price of gold once again rebounded, further solidifying why 2025 is shaping up to be a monumental year for the precious metal. Already the major gold miners have reported their greatest financial quarter in history, despite many analysts touting how deeply undervalued gold stocks continue to be. The majors aren't alone in making progress on their best gold projects, as juniors and mid-tiers alike have also been making headlines with their developments, including from RUA GOLD Inc. (TSXV: RUA) (OTCQB: NZAUF), i-80 Gold Corp. (NYSE-American: IAUX) (TSX: IAU), Freeman Gold Corp. (TSXV: FMAN) (OTCQB: FMANF), Integra Resources Corp. (TSXV: ITR) (NYSE-American: ITRG), and Perpetua Resources Corp. (NASDAQ: PPTA).

Moving forward, Goldman Sachs continues to forecast gold prices to rise to new record highs. Gold fever has even caused Costco to put strict limits on gold bar purchases, all while bullion banks are being alleged to attempt to "smash" gold prices to cover shorts, according to analyst Ed Steer. Both industry heavyweight Rob McEwen and billionaire investor John Paulson are expecting gold to nearly hit $5,000 within the next few years, which could set the stage for a major rally in gold mining equities.

RUA GOLD Inc. (TSXV: RUA) (OTCQB: NZAUF) is a gold exploration company with a rare dual-island footprint in New Zealand—one of the Southern Hemisphere's most historically prolific mining regions. With the largest land position in the Reefton Goldfield on the South Island, RUA is also advancing early-stage exploration in the North Island's Hauraki district, near one of the country's most closely tracked development projects.

The company recently completed its second round of surface work at the Glamorgan project, outlining multiple high-priority targets. Key findings include three distinct zones marked by overlapping gold-arsenic soil anomalies, rock chip samples grading up to 43 g/t gold, and deep resistive features often linked to quartz-rich vein systems. These geological markers are consistent with other known epithermal systems in the area—including the nearby WKP project (owned by OceanaGold), located less than 3 km away.

Glamorgan sits within a goldfield known for heavyweight discoveries. The Waihi Mine, still active today, has produced over 10 million ounces to date. Just up the road, the WKP project hosts an indicated resource of 1.4 million ounces grading 17.9 g/t gold—and remains open in multiple directions.

To sharpen its target precision, RUA's technical team deployed a multi-layered approach that combines drone magnetics, clay alteration mapping, and CSAMT geophysics. Of four gold-arsenic anomalies identified—each stretching more than four kilometres—three have been prioritized for initial drilling. An access agreement is expected to be submitted before the end of May. Meanwhile, the full exploration dataset is being analyzed through VRIFY's DORA platform, an AI-assisted discovery tool RUA is using to help rank and refine next-stage targets. Glamorgan is just one part of a much larger push to revive New Zealand's gold legacy with modern tools and technology.

On the South Island, RUA controls approximately 95% of the historic Reefton Goldfield—an area that has yielded more than 2 million ounces of gold from exceptionally high grades ranging between 9 and 50 g/t. This dominant land position gives RUA a strategic edge in a district known for its underexplored upside.

Drilling continues at the company's Auld Creek project, where high-grade gold-antimony mineralization is being intercepted below the existing resource envelope. Recent results include 9.0 metres at 5.9 g/t gold equivalent and 1.25 metres at 48.3 g/t gold equivalent. Importantly, only two of the four known mineralized shoots are currently captured in the resource model, leaving significant room for potential expansion. The combination of traditional mapping with modern predictive modeling has already produced standout hits, including 12 metres at 12.2 g/t gold equivalent, featuring a 2-metre interval grading 54.8 g/t.

RUA is also progressing work at the nearby Gallant prospect, located just 3 kilometres from the past-producing Globe Progress mine. That operation delivered over 610,000 ounces between 2007 and 2016, with historical records showing another 424,000 ounces produced before 1950—underscoring the broader potential of the district.

The Gallant prospect was originally highlighted through AI-assisted analysis of more than 170,000 historical data points, processed using VRIFY's advanced discovery platform. Follow-up work is now assessing the potential extension of a 20.7-metre vein that previously returned 62.2 g/t gold—including a standout 1-metre interval grading 1,911 g/t. Just a few kilometres away at Murray Creek, visible gold has been observed in the majority of drillholes, with VRIFY's algorithm continuing to prioritize zones that show the strongest geological indicators.

While gold remains the core focus, it's not the only opportunity in play.

In early 2025, the New Zealand government officially classified antimony as a Critical Mineral, acknowledging its growing importance in global supply chains. At Auld Creek, surface samples have returned antimony grades exceeding 40%, with multiple drill intercepts above 8%—placing RUA in rare company among Western-listed explorers with potential scale in this increasingly strategic metal with prices now trending above US$50,000 per tonne.

UA GOLD is led by a team with more than $11 billion in collective mining exits, and is now backed by $5.75 million in fresh capital. Their mission: to apply modern tools and data-driven targeting across two of the most overlooked—but historically rich—gold belts in the Southern Hemisphere.

CONTINUED… Read this and more news for RUA GOLD at:  https://equity-insider.com/2025/04/24/others-found-1911-g-t-here-before-now-a-proven-11b-mining-team-is-back-to-finish-the-job/

In other industry developments and happenings in the market include:

i-80 Gold Corp. (NYSE-American: IAUX) (TSX: IAU) recently closed a US$173 million bought deal public offering, which closed within two weeks after reporting Q1 results that included a 67% year-over-year revenue increase. The company is advancing its Nevada-based development plan, with gold output at Granite Creek expected to reach steady-state by late 2025 and economic studies now filed for all five gold projects.

"These improvements should allow us to ramp-up to steady state of gold output in the second half of 2025," said Richard Young, President and CEO of i-80 Gold. "We've mapped out a credible and staged development plan supported by preliminary economic assessments for all five gold assets."

Freeman Gold Corp. (TSXV: FMAN) (OTCQB: FMANF) is advancing its 100%-owned Lemhi Gold Project in Idaho, where a 2023 PEA outlined a high-grade, low-cost open-pit operation averaging 80,100 ounces of gold annually over the first eight years. The updated economic model shows a US$329 million after-tax NPV (5%) and 28.2% IRR at US$2,200 gold, with life-of-mine cash costs of just US$925/oz.

"The Lemhi PEA outlines a simple, low-cost operation with strong economics, and positions us to advance toward development," said Dean Besserer, VP Exploration of Freeman Gold. "With a high-grade oxide resource and straightforward metallurgy, we believe Lemhi represents one of the most attractive undeveloped gold assets in the western U.S."

With over 525 drill holes and nearly 93,000 metres of drilling completed to date, Freeman is progressing toward a production decision in one of the U.S.'s most mining-friendly jurisdictions.

Integra Resources Corp. (TSXV: ITR) (NYSE-American: ITRG) just posted its first full quarter of gold production, reporting over 19,500 ounces sold from the Florida Canyon Mine at an average realized price of $2,888 per ounce. The company generated $16.1 million in operating cash flow and ended Q1 with $61.1 million in cash, marking its strongest financial position to date.

"Solid performance from Florida Canyon this quarter resulted in an increased cash balance to $61.1 million at the end of the quarter, marking the Company's strongest financial position ever," said George Salamis, President, CEO and Director of Integra Resources. "The mine continues to demonstrate its ability to generate cash flow to support Integra's growth strategy."

With optimization programs underway, a major heap leach pad expansion scheduled, and permitting progress across DeLamar and Nevada North, Integra is advancing its strategy as a multi-asset gold producer in the Great Basin.

Perpetua Resources Corp. (NASDAQ: PPTA) entered 2025 with a major milestone: the Final Record of Decision (ROD) issued by the U.S. Forest Service for its Stibnite Gold Project in Idaho.

"Perpetua Resources began 2025 with the biggest milestone in the company's history – a favorable Final Record of Decision for the Stibnite Gold Project," said Jon Cherry, President and CEO of Perpetua Resources. "In April 2025, our project was selected as a Transparency Project by the White House, which I believe underscores the immense strategic value of our asset to our country."

The project is now one step closer to construction, backed by federal recognition as a White House "Transparency Project" and support for domestic antimony supply under U.S. critical minerals policy.

Article Source: https://equity-insider.com/2025/04/24/others-found-1911-g-t-here-before-now-a-proven-11b-mining-team-is-back-to-finish-the-job/ 

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