J.S. Bach’s Coffee Cantata is a musical reminder that coffee has long been one of our gastronomic delights. The cantata (BWV 211) tells the story of a young German maiden, Liesgen, and her love of coffee. “It is”, she declares “more delicious than a thousand kisses, milder than muscatel wine.” This panegyric may seem to us today to be just hyperbole, but there’s no doubt that the Western world is fond of coffee. For about 250 years, we have been congregating in establishments named after the beverage. There are few places in the world you will not find a café. Moreover, today our love affair with this titillating drink continues with delightful beverages like Caffe Protein Coffee from Laguna Blends (CSE : LAG) (OTC : LAGBF) (FRANKFURT : LB6A.F).

Coffee, originally from North Africa, is thought to have played a vital role in improving Europe’s industriousness and increasing prosperity from the seventeenth century onward. At least since the Middle Ages, beer had been the beverage most widely consumed at breakfast. A famous 12th century abbess, Hildegard of Bingen, recommended beer as a safer drink than water, as water supplies then were notoriously polluted. However, beer in the morning is unlikely to foster diligence. No doubt, our forefathers started their days very slowly until, of course, coffee was introduced. But it wasn’t welcomed with all open arms at first.

The National Coffee Association USA relates that coffee critics dubbed the potion ‘the bitter invention of Satan’. In Italy, the seat of the Church, its use was regarded with suspicion since it originated from countries with large Muslim populations. The clamor against it grew until the Pope of the day, Clement VIII, was petitioned to ban its use. However, after sampling a cup, much to the chagrin of its detractors, he gave it his blessing. Some have argued that another reason for the prejudice against coffee was its potential to stimulate sedition. Whereas consumption of alcohol leads to singing and dancing, a coffee drinker ‘thinks too much: such men are dangerous’.

Research published by Gallup in July 2015 (http://nnw.fm/tTv0L) showed that ‘just under two-thirds (64%) of U.S. adults drink at least one cup a day’ and that they average about 2.7 cups per day. A quarter felt they were, perhaps like Liesgen, somewhat addicted, but only 10 percent wanted to drink less. ‘Coffee drinkers tend to be older; with 74 percent of adults aged 55 and older consuming it daily, versus 50 percent of those aged 18 to 34.’ The more you earn, the more likely you are to drink coffee. About 66 percent of Americans with incomes exceeding $75,000 are coffee drinkers, while just 58 percent of those earning less than $30,000 drink coffee.

Laguna Blends’ Caffe Protein Coffee, the company’s leading product, ‘is loaded in proteins: both whey and hemp’. Over one year of research went into the development of what is now a distinctly proprietary product protected by intellectual property rights. With Caffe Protein Coffee, Laguna Blends has achieved its goal of creating a delicious, healthful beverage that is served hot as an instant coffee. Approximately 20 percent of the 6.2 grams per package contain whey and hemp protein, and this makes Laguna’s product very different from that of its competition. In addition, there is room in the market for a product like Caffe Protein Coffee. The only large company with a protein coffee beverage is Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX), against which Caffe Protein Coffee may have a winning edge. The Starbucks product comes as ‘coffee in the can’ and may tap just the away-from-home market, while Laguna’s product is similar to instant coffee and is better for home use, where the most coffee is consumed. A report by the Small Business Administration (SBA) (http://nnw.fm/2EcUt) indicates that ‘75 percent of the cups of coffee brewed daily are consumed at home’.

Laguna Blends, with headquarters in British Columbia, Canada, markets products based on the nutritional health benefits derived from hemp. Laguna Blends is a network marketing company, also known as a multi-layer marketing company, that generates retail sales through independent affiliates.

For more information, visit www.lagunablends.com

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Founded in Shenzhen, China, Moxian, Inc. (OTCQB: MOXC) has provided companies worldwide with the opportunity to advertise and promote their services and products to a range of targeted audiences through social media marketing and promotion platforms. The company has at its core the aim to enhance the interaction between customer and merchant by using data compiled from user activities and various forms of analytics. Moxian, Inc. now has two applications: Moxian+ User and Moxian+ Business.

But, Moxian is currently pulling out all the stops for a Nasdaq move in order to make the most of the related opportunities that James Tan, Moxian CEO, believes are better for the company at this point in its development. The fact that the company is now trading in New York and able to show its future earning potential to a broader group of investors is not its only asset. Moxian, Inc.’s team has over 100 years of combined experience in a range of industries and technologies.

Moxian’s board of directors is made up of the CEO and chairman, James Tan Meng Dong, and directors Liew Kwong Yeow, Hao Qing Hu, Yang Nan, and Ajay Rajpal. Between them, the board has experience in managing both private and public companies based in the U.S. and Asia. In addition to this, CEO and chairman James Tan served as a director on the board of Pacific Internet Ltd, which was a Nasdaq-listed company.

Aside from the board of directors, Moxian has a specialized management team which includes all the above as well as a legal director, a vice president, a creative marketing manager, a chief financial officer, a chief operations officer, a chief technology officer, a vice president of business development, a director of product development, and a deputy director of infrastructure.

In October 2013, Moxian launched its Moxian App 1.0 beta in China and Malaysia. By September 2014, the company started developing Moxian+ User and Moxian+ Business Apps, which were made available to the public in October 2015. Thanks to a wealth of knowledge from its management team, board of directors, and other employees, the company is able to evolve year after year. In addition to all of the above, Moxian recently announced that its board of directors has approved a reverse stock split of the company’s issued and outstanding shares of common stock.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.Moxian.com

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First recognition of sulfide zinc mineralization in the Balmat region of upstate New York was in the early 1800s. In the early 1900s, production began. Since then, the greater Balmat-Edwards-Pierrepont district has produced more than 43 million tons of ore. The average grade ranged from 8.5 percent zinc to 16.4 percent. Unfortunately, in the early 2000s, zinc prices crashed and mining in the area stopped. The mine reopened briefly from 2006 to 2008, when it was placed on care and maintenance status due to a new fall in the price of zinc and the general economic downturn.

However, Star Mountain Resources (OTC: SMRS), a junior exploration and mining company whose operations are currently focused on base metals and precious metal mining acquisitions in North America, is aiming to recommence mining activities in the Balmat zinc mine. The company is now the full owner of the mine, which is fully permitted and in compliance with all federal and state mining regulations.

Historically, the Balmat zinc mine produced up to 30.7 million tons of 8.6 percent grade zinc. Star Mountain Resources, Inc. has put together an eight and half year plan whereby it will be using modernized mechanisms to perform underground mining using room, pillar, and long hole stoping. The mine is said to have a 4,000 tons per day hoisting capacity, with a mill able to produce 5,000 tons of zinc concentrator per day.

SMRS is currently undertaking the necessary steps toward restarting the Balmat zinc mine in order to transform the company from a junior explorer into an active producer. Not only this, the transaction brings SMRS a high quality mining asset and new professionals to its board of directors and senior management. The reopening of the mine is expected to boost the economy of the region and provide new jobs. SMRS expects the mine to be running by the end of 2016.

For more information, visit www.starmountainresources.com

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Before the opening bell, Laguna Blends, Inc. (CSE : LAG) (OTC : LAGBF) (FRANKFURT : LB6A.F) announced its entry into an agreement with ISO International, LLC through which it has acquired the exclusive right to market, promote and distribute seven cannabidiol (CBD) skin care products produced by Cannaceuticals of California, USA (“Canna”). Under the terms of the agreement, Laguna will be required to pay a one-time licensing fee of $100,000 and place a minimum purchase order of $1.5 million during the first two years of the initial term.

“We are excited to announce the closing of this transaction, which firmly roots Laguna in the $121 billion global skin care industry,” Stuart Gray, chief executive officer of Laguna, stated in this morning’s news release. “The pairing of our rapidly growing affiliate network with a revolutionary and clinically proven product line creates a powerful opportunity of growth and expansion.”

With the finalized deal now in place, Laguna will turn its attention toward incorporating Canna’s skin care products into its established affiliate marketing network. According to Ray Grimm Jr., the company’s president, Laguna’s management aims to have the associated products available to members of its affiliate marketing network before the end of next month.

Since announcing its intention to acquire exclusive distribution rights associated with Canna’s Swiss-Made CBD skin care line in early July, Laguna has offered prospective shareholders a number of insights into the market potential afforded by this licensing deal. In particular, the company announced highlights from the clinical studies of Canna’s skin care line, which were conducted by BioScreen Testing Services, Inc., an independent, FDA-approved lab located in the U.S. These highlights included a 100 percent overall improvement to the appearance of skin within a two-week period, with an impressive 85.71 percent of subjects noticing an improvement during the first seven days.

The clinical data supporting the efficacy of Canna’s skin care line could play a vital role in Laguna’s efforts to market the products in the U.S. and, pending regulatory approval, in Canada, Asia, Europe and Mexico. The U.S. skin care market is currently in a period of steady growth, with research forecasting a total market value of $10.7 billion by 2018. The global skin care industry, on the other hand, is expected to climb to $121 billion later this year. For Laguna, this robust market performance could foreshadow an opportunity to achieve sustainable financial growth over the coming months.

“Over the past three weeks Laguna has sent samples of the Cannaceutical skin care products to some select affiliates and within 3-7 days we received some overwhelmingly positive feedback,” Grimm stated in the news release. “Women are noticing changes in skin texture and skin tone and are eager for the skin care line to become available for purchase.”

For more information, visit www.lagunablends.com

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US Nuclear Corp. (OTC: UCLE) specializes in the design, development and manufacture of radiation detection instrumentation. Through subsidiaries Overhoff Technology Corp. and Optron Scientific Company, Inc., UCLE harbors over a century of experience addressing the unique instrumentation needs of the nuclear energy industry, as well as industries associated with emerging technological processes, such as thorium and molten salt reactor technologies, both domestically and internationally. The company’s customers include a variety of United States government agencies, the U.S. military, Homeland Security, scientific laboratories, universities, hospitals and nuclear reactor facilities located around the world.

UCLE’s roots in the nuclear power industry are extensive. Optron Scientific Company, doing business as Technical Associates (TA), was founded in 1946 as a spinoff from the Manhattan Project, the research and development program that led to the production of the first nuclear weapons during World War II. The company’s founders are credited with the design and construction of the first industrial grade radiation monitors, which were used to safeguard the scientists charged with building the world’s first atomic bomb. In the more than six decades that followed, TA established a position at the head of the industry for its custom-tailored radiation measurement and safety instruments.

Similarly, Overhoff Technology has maintained a reputation as the world’s leading manufacturer of tritium monitors for nearly 40 years. Since its founding, Overhoff has been awarded contracts by the United States Department of Defense and has sold tritium equipment to nuclear power facilities in China, South Korea, Canada, Argentina and the United Kingdom, among others.

With the combined expertise of these two operating divisions leading the way, UCLE has continued to post strong international growth in recent quarters. For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015, the company reported sales revenues in excess of $2.6 million, marking an increase of 62 percent from the previous year. Likewise, UCLE successfully rebounded from a net loss of $321,505 in 2014 to record net income of $399,416 for 2015. Capping off the solid results, the company’s gross margin rose by eight percent in 2015, and its general and administrative expenses fell by 5.3 percent. Robert Goldstein, the company’s president, CEO and chairman, spoke about these results in a May news release.

“We started off strong in 2015 and kept up the momentum throughout the entire year, as demonstrated by our vigorous increase in sales revenue and earnings per share,” he stated. “The recognition and quality of our tritium monitors has allowed us to capture new opportunities in the rising nuclear power and research sectors, while continuing to service our world-wide base of existing customers.”

Looking to build on its 2015 momentum, UCLE has continued to expand its foothold in the international nuclear power industry in recent months. After reporting profitable annual results, the company announced the reception of a new order totaling $235,000 from its representative in Canada, Radiation Measurement Systems. This order is particularly noteworthy, because the Canadian government has allocated several billion dollars toward refurbishing a number of existing reactors dispersed throughout the country. As one of the original suppliers for many of these reactors, UCLE is strategically positioned to capitalize on this investment as work proceeds.

UCLE has also continued to innovate and push the industry forward, as Goldstein alluded to in an interview with SNNLive (http://nnw.fm/6J5ir). The company recently implemented drones in order to improve the flexibility of its radiation detection instrumentation. Among the advantages offered by this technology, Goldstein points toward location and rapid deployment as game changers. By offering the capability to measure radiation levels directly above an impacted area, such as a burning hospital or overturned railcar, mere moments after a potentially dangerous chemical or radiation related accident has occurred, users can access critical data that would be otherwise unavailable, effectively protecting the wellbeing of both first responders and the general public.

For more information, visit www.usnuclearcorp.com

One of Aesop’s Fables concerns The Tortoise and the Hare and provides lessons for us even today, some 2,500 years after it was written. One of those precepts is that the swiftest do not always win the race. The hare in that allegory, undoubtedly, had all the alacrity that members of its genus are capable of; yet it lost to the sure and steady tortoise. Like Aesop’s fabled world, the corporate world has its hares and tortoises, too. Not always do those first out of the gate touch the tape of success.

The rapidly expanding racecourse of alternative lodging has its hares that appear to have the race wrapped up with their large number of listings. However, Monaker Group, Inc. (OTCQB: MKGI) is on a surer and steadier course, because it is focusing on return rather than just reducing channel costs. Its extensive video portfolio can enhance the research process for would-be vacationers by starting the holiday virtually… before it actually begins.

CEO Bill Kerby has described the alternative lodging market as ‘the hottest space in travel’; here’s why. Alternative lodging rentals (ALRs) are whole-unit vacation homes or timeshare resort units that are fully furnished, privately owned residential properties, including houses, condominiums, villas and cabins, that property owners and managers rent to the public on a nightly, weekly or monthly basis. Recent estimates by Research and Markets indicate that this market will grow by a whopping 70 percent over a four-year period from $100 billion in 2015 to $169.7 billion in 2019.

However, this alternative lodging sub-segment is just part of the larger online travel agency (OTA) segment of the giant global travel market. Online travel agency or travel booking revenues, as they are also referred to, are currently about $340 billion with a projected growth rate of 12 percent, while global international tourism revenue in 2014 was $1.25 trillion, according to Statista. Online travel agencies (OTAs) expand their reach much wider than their traditional counterparts do. They offer information and access to airlines, hotel and alternative lodging, car rentals, cruise, rail and a combination of any of the above, referred to in the industry as packaged travel.

The prospects of the industry are indeed promising and, at present, it appears that that promise has already been harvested by the privately-held Airbnb and HomeAway, now a subsidiary of Expedia, Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE), with their myriad listings. But there’s more to this than meets the eye. A comprehensive report from investment bank Evercore ISI points out:

“While we are seeing larger online demand channels expand their inventory of vacation rentals listings, this still has not translated to bookings fully shifting to online. In fact, these listings are largely utilized to drive leads for renters, while actual bookings continue to occur via cash, check, PayPal, etc. whereby the original demand channel is not involved. For instance, while 2012 data indicates that vacation rental listing sites are responsible for nearly 60% of reservations, only 8% of reservations come from booking sites, demonstrating that we still see a fair amount of leakage whereby transactions occur through different means or even offline, potentially skirting a booking commission. Closing this gap between leads and transactions could prove to be another potential tailwind for the industry.”

Listings are great, but they aren’t everything.

Monaker Group is differentiating itself by enhancing its listings with a rich array of video-centered marketing and itinerary technology for travel customers. The website VIRTUETS Video Marketing for Real Estate provides data that shows why this is crucial to success. Video can increase click-through rates by more than 90 percent, and 90 percent of users say that seeing a video about a product is helpful in the decision process. Forbes writes that 59 percent of executives would rather watch video than read text, and, according to an Australian Real Estate Group, real estate listings that include a video receive 403 percent more inquiries than those without.

Monaker is forging ahead with listings, too. Since the launch of its flagship NextTrip platform in February 2016, it has listed some 250,000 units of vacation rental inventory. It has about one million additional alternative lodging units under contract that will soon be added to the platform. This will position the company to challenge industry leaders Airbnb and HomeAway.

For more information, visit www.monakergroup.com

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Earlier today, Laguna Blends, Inc. (OTC: LAGBF) announced the appointment of Bryan Loree to the positions of chief financial officer and corporate secretary. He will also join the company’s board of directors, effective immediately. Loree has roughly a decade of experience providing chief financial officer, accounting, financing and management services to a number of issuers on both the TSX Venture Exchange and the Canadian Securities Exchange, as well as a selection of private businesses. Loree will replace Stuart Gray, Laguna’s founder and chief executive officer, who formerly served as the company’s acting chief financial officer.

“It’s a pleasure to have Mr. Bryan Loree join our management team,” Gray stated in today’s news release. “His financial and accounting experience is impressive and will strengthen Laguna’s ability to seek quality business opportunities, financings and increase sales to profitability.”

In recent weeks, Laguna has remained focused on its overall growth strategy, including its strengthening position in the $63 billion global functional beverage market and its highly-anticipated entry into the $121 billion global skin care industry. Last month, the company signed a non-binding letter of intent to acquire the exclusive license brand name and existing inventory of CannaCeuticals of California, USA (“Canna”), a Swiss heritage firm leveraging cosmeceutical-grade cannabidiol (CBD) in a line of revolutionary skincare products. Upon closing of this transaction, Laguna will look to introduce these products to its existing affiliate marketing network, which accounted for unaudited sales of $105,000 during the 11-week period ended May 31, 2016.

The efficacy of Canna’s CBD face serum was studied in a recent clinical trial. The results, which were highlighted by Laguna, included a 100 percent overall improvement to the appearance of skin within 14 days of use. An impressive 85.71 percent of test subjects noted an improvement to their skin’s appearance within the first week. Adding a product of this quality to Laguna’s existing offerings, Caffe and Pro369, is expected to accelerate its existing sales strategy and strengthen the company’s overall brand exposure, and the Canna acquisition could foreshadow a number of other promising milestones for Laguna in the months to come. Ray Grimm Jr., president of Laguna, reiterated this optimism in a recent news release.

“The momentum we have gained in the last 30 days is testament to our commitment to the Laguna Blends brand, our affiliates, and our shareholders,” he stated. “With regard to our negotiations with Canna, we have a lot more potential and milestones on deck, and we look forward to updating our shareholders in the near future.”

For more information, visit www.lagunablends.com

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Giggles N’ Hugs (OTCQB: GIGL) is an award-winning, health-oriented, family restaurant company based in Los Angeles. Aside from serving healthier options to both children and adults, the company’s restaurants offer play areas for kids, meaning that adults can sit back and relax while children play games, join in with activities, and so on. So far, GIGL has been voted the “Number 1 Party Place” and was given the award for “Best Pizza in Los Angeles” by Nickelodeon. It was also awarded “Best Indoor Playspace” by Red Tricycle and was listed “Best Family & Indoor Kid-Friendly Restaurant” by CitySearch & GoCityKids.

As it stands, Giggles N’ Hugs has two locations in the top premier malls in Los Angeles. Not only this, four of the largest mall owners in the U.S. have offered GIGL up to 75% discount on rent as well as up to three quarters of a million dollars of cash upfront for each location in order to get GIGL into their malls across the country. The major mall operators interested in the relationship include: Westfield Group (OTC: WEFIF), which owns 55 properties across the country; Macerich Group (NYSE: MAC), which owns 62; General Growth Properties (NYSE: GGP), which owns 135; and Simon Properties (NYSE: SPG), which owns over 300. Mall owners are offering these opportunities because GIGL has proven to help turn malls into family destinations and increase traffic from this market.

In addition to the above developments, GIGL recently announced its engagement of Kiddos, Inc. and Michelle Steinberg of dOMAIN Integrated in order to elevate its marketing and PR strategies. Both organizations are highly trained and have a number of success stories in marketing, PR and investor relations, as well as the restaurant industry and merchandising. dOMAIN and Steinberg will help GIGL at a base level to expand and build partnerships on a nationwide scale.

There is also a growing demand for Giggles N’ Hugs franchise opportunities from both large multi-unit franchise operators and individuals. This has led to the opportunity to further expand on a global level. So far, the company has received interest from potential franchisees in Canada and nearly every major city in the U.S. Other operators have come from as far as Asia, Australia, Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East – all key international markets.

Last but not least, Giggles N’ Hugs has been offered huge licensing and merchandising opportunities to provide the company with additional forms of revenue. dOMAIN Integrated offers expertise in extending IP into licensed products, bringing in celebrities, encouraging new forms of income, publishing relations, and reaching out to new target markets. The company has therefore decided to encourage Giggles N’ Hugs to expand into branded products for a fuller customer experience. These products will be sold in stores and at a variety of retail outlets. Some merchandise opportunities include: organic food products, children’s clothing and accessories, drink and snack ware, coloring books and stickers, and vitamin water for kids.

Learn more by visiting www.gigglesnhugs.com

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In late May, Singlepoint, Inc. (OTC: SING) acquired an interest in DraftFury, a daily fantasy sports (DFS) company that’s widely recognized as the first cash flow positive enterprise in the DFS space. With this transaction, Singlepoint immediately grabbed a foothold in an industry that’s been on fire in recent years. According to data from the Fantasy Sports Trade Association (http://nnw.fm/TpI8p), roughly 57.4 million players will participate in fantasy sports in 2016, with DFS activities accounting for the lion’s share of spending. As recently as 2012, DFS accounted for just over six percent of fantasy sports spending. Its rapid emergence and subsequent overtaking of traditional fantasy sports contests have created opportunities for fast-moving companies operating in the space. Singlepoint’s decision to acquire an interest in the DFS sector demonstrated its flexibility to capitalize on market opportunities by leaning on the experience of its management team.

With this in mind, it came as little surprise when, earlier this week, Singlepoint turned its sights toward the latest trend to take the country by storm – Pokémon Go. On Tuesday, the company announced that its board of directors has approved an initiative to build a mobile app that caters to bringing like-minded Pokémon Go players together and offering reward-backed communication opportunities. Singlepoint has already initiated discussions with programmers under contract to develop this app, which will reportedly reward users for performing a variety of geo-targeted actions while playing Niantic’s immensely popular mobile game.

Since its release on July 6, Pokémon Go has effectively rewritten the mobile record books. Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) recently reported that the game was downloaded more times during its first week than any other app in the history of the App Store. User data supports these statistics. As of July 18, Pokémon Go had an active user base of 21 million people spanning 35 countries. Despite adhering to a free-to-play model, the app has also been extremely successful in generating revenue. According to analysts from Needham and Company, Pokémon Go’s ratio of paid users to total users is roughly 10 times that of Candy Crush, the smash hit from Activision Blizzard’s (NASDAQ: ATVI) King Digital Entertainment that raked in more than $1 billion in revenue for two consecutive years from 2013 to 2014. Even Nintendo (OTC: NTDOY), which released a statement confirming that the income it will receive from Pokémon Go is expected to be “limited,” saw its share price nearly double in the days following the game’s release.

Alongside the popularity of Pokémon Go, a number of developers have demonstrated the viability of companion apps that improve its play experience. GoChat, for example, is currently available for both iOS and Google’s (NASDAQ: GOOG) Android mobile operating system. Because Pokémon Go lacks an in-game chat feature, GoChat has proven extremely successful in riding in the game’s wake. Jonathan Zarra, a first-time developer and creator of GoChat, told The Verge that, within five days of launch, his free app was approaching one million users and hitting servers with 600 requests per second. Still, GoChat is just one of many available companion apps for Pokémon Go players. The Verge estimates that about 10 percent of the individuals who have downloaded the game have also downloaded at least one third-party chat app to go along with it (http://nnw.fm/mM82M).

The early successes of companion apps reiterate the viability of Singlepoint’s plan to capitalize on the growing Pokémon Go craze. By integrating message boards with additional features that enhance the play experience, the company’s upcoming app could help it establish a sustainable foothold in the next big wave in digital entertainment. Greg Lambrecht, chief executive officer of Singlepoint, confirmed this vision in a recent news release.

“We are perfectly aligned in the mobile app space to take advantage of the current phenomenon that is Pokémon Go, along with similar scenarios in the gaming world across the board moving forward,” he stated. “We are to the point where technology has demonstrated the ability for gaming to bring players to the outdoors: engaging, exploring and with a camaraderie among players like never before. We intend to capitalize on this in a big way.”

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.Singlepoint.com

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Star Mountain Resources, Inc. (OTC: SMRS) is a minerals exploration company focused on acquiring and consolidating mining claims, mineral leases, producing mines and historic mines with future growth potential. In November 2015, the company leveraged this strategy when it acquired Northern Zinc and Balmat Holding Corporation, including St. Lawrence Zinc Company, LLC and its mining operations in the Balmat mining district of St. Lawrence County, New York. Notably, the Balmat mining complex includes a permitted and equipped zinc mine, a 5,000 ton per day floatation mill, an office complex and all of the necessary infrastructure to commence operation of the mine.

Earlier this year, Star Mountain gave prospective shareholders some additional insight into the potential of the Balmat mine property when it released results from its Industry Guide 7 Mineral Reserve Report. In addition to supporting the company’s initial reserve estimates and reflecting 585,000 tons of proven and probable reserves with 9.2 percent grade zinc – a haul that could generate roughly $80.8 million in revenue over an initial 2.5-year mine plan – the report also suggests that the Balmat property could contain the reserves needed to support a larger, 8.5-year mine plan moving forward. Upon release of these findings, Mark Osterberg, president and chief operating officer of Star Mountain, noted that the company’s management was “very encouraged” and looking forward to “developing a strategy to move forward in a timely, cost effective and profitable manner.”

In large part, the recommencement of mining operations at the Balmat property depends on the zinc market. Despite ongoing market turbulence affecting commodity values, predominantly oil and natural gas, indicators for base metals have been promising in recent weeks. July saw a surge in the values of nickel, copper and zinc as a result of rising Chinese demand, monetary stimulus and supply cuts. Zinc prices, in particular, have risen nearly 45 percent since the beginning of 2016, climbing to a 14-month high of more than $1.02 per pound to close out the month. These gains follow a series of mine shutdowns and closures in China, Australia and Peru.

Andrew Michelmore, CEO of Australian-Chinese global resources firm MMG, reiterated the bullish conditions of the zinc market in an investor conference call last Thursday (http://nnw.fm/5Y3wI). “There’s so little zinc around,” he told attendees of the call. “We are very positive about the zinc industry and we’re keen to be involved with more of it.” However, despite favorable conditions, the zinc market has remained relatively quiet in terms of new projects, a fact that can be attributed to a serious lack of viable production projects on the global stage.

For Star Mountain Resources, the acquisition of the Balmat mining project opens the door for a promising transition from a junior exploration firm to full-fledged production in the coming months. With zinc running in deficit since at least 2012, according to Credit Suisse, and the base metal’s market value climbing, the time to capitalize on the foresight of the company’s management team appears to have arrived.

For more information, visit www.starmountainresources.com

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