Net Asset Value(s)

RNS Number : 7661N

Baker Steel Resources Trust Ltd

03 February 2021

 

BAKER STEEL RESOURCES TRUST LIMITED

(Incorporated in Guernsey with registered number 51576 under the provisions of The Companies (Guernsey) Law, 2008 as amended)

3 February 2021

31 January 2021 Unaudited NAV Statement

Net Asset Value

Baker Steel Resources Trust Limited (the "Company") announces its unaudited net asset value per share at 31 January 2021:

Net asset value per Ordinary Share:  94.8 pence

The NAV per share has decreased by 0.7% against the NAV at 31 December 2020, primarily due to falls in the listed precious metal shares held in the portfolio and an increase in the Sterling exchange rate against the currencies in which the Company's investments are held.

The Company had a total of 106,462,502 Ordinary Shares in issue with a further 700,000 shares held in treasury as at 31 January   2021 .

Investment Update

The Company's top 12 investments were as follows as a percentage of NAV:

	31 January 2021	31 December 2020
Bilboes Gold Limited	17.0%	16.9%
Futura Resources Ltd	16.4%	16.5%
Cemos Group plc	14.4%	14.6%
Tungsten West Limited	12.6%	12.6%
Polar Acquisition Ltd	11.2%	11.2%
Mines & Metals Trading Peru PLC	4.5%	4.5%
Anglo Saxony Mining Limited	4.0%	4.0%
Nussir ASA	3.5%	3.5%
Azarga Metals Corp	2.9%	2.8%
Sarmin Minerals Exploration	2.8%	2.7%
Metals Exploration plc	2.1%	1.9%
Black Pearl Limited Partnership	1.3%	1.3%
Listed Precious Metal Shares	3.5%	3.9%
Other Investments	2.8%	2.8%
Net Cash, Equivalents and Accruals	1.0%	0.8%

Silver

The rise in silver prices to an 8-year high this week, driven primarily by speculators, is a significant development for the sector. While the metal has pulled-back somewhat since Monday's highs, we believe the silver price remains underpinned by a number of strong fundamental factors.

Silver rose to around USD 30/oz earlier this week as the metal became the focus of the retail trading phenomenon which has seen small-scale investors, fuelled by social media and online forums, buying companies and investments which they perceive to have been the targets of short selling by institutions. Major silver ETFs experienced record inflows while a surge in purchases of physical silver left many dealers out of physical stock, as investors piled into the metal. While the impact of this surge in retail buying on the silver price was less extreme than for an industrial stock, such as GameStop, due to the deep and liquid nature of the silver market, the metal's rapid price movements over the past few days demonstrates that momentum can build quickly when it is driven by the reach and power of the internet and social media.

Sentiment towards silver is recovering from its 2019 lows and it has appeared undervalued for some time. The outlook for the metal is increasingly positive and is supported by two key demand drivers. The first of these is the recovery of the precious metals sector, driven by a range of macroeconomic factors, most notably low and negative real interest rates, rising debt levels and unprecedented levels of economic stimulus enacted by policymakers in response to the COVID-19 crisis. Having lagged gold for much of the past few years and with the gold/silver ratio having reached an historically high level of some 120 ounces of silver equivalent to one ounce of gold during early-2020, silver's price recovery is perhaps overdue.

The second key driver for higher silver prices is rising industrial demand projections. Industrial demand already accounts for over 50% of silver demand and a significant potential growth area relates to the metal's applications in green technology, most notably in the manufacturing of photovoltaic cells for use in solar energy production. This represents an increasingly influential source of demand.

The Company is well positioned should the upward movement in silver be sustained having  exposure through the Polar Acquisition royalty on the Prognoz silver project, Azarga's Unkur silver/copper project and Mines & Metals Peru's Silver/Lead/Zinc Recuperada mine in Peru as well as a bias towards silver generally in its listed precious metals part of the portfolio.

Further details of the Company and its investments are available on the Company's website www.bakersteelresourcestrust.com  

Enquiries:

Baker Steel Resources Trust Limited   [phone]

Francis Johnstone
Trevor Steel

Numis Securities Limited  [phone]

David Benda (corporate)

James Glass (sales)

The Net Asset Value ("NAV") figure stated is based on unaudited estimated valuations of the underlying investments and not necessarily based on observable inputs. Such estimates are not subject to any independent verification or other due diligence and may not comply with generally accepted accounting practices or other generally accepted valuation principles. In addition, some estimated valuations are based on the latest available information which may relate to some time before the date set out above.

Accordingly, no reliance should be placed on such estimated valuations and they should only be taken as an indicative guide. Other risk factors which may be relevant to the NAV figure are set out in the Company's Prospectus dated 26 January 2015.

 

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