Key transactions & industry news Weekly Update 07/03/2025
Recent M&A Transactions
Metals & Mining
Jul 2, 2025 – Summit Royalty Corp, a private royalty company, agreed to acquire Eagle Royalties Ltd. (CNSX: ER) in a reverse takeover transaction valued at ~$26.6M. Upon completion, Summit will become a public company, with the resulting entity expected to be owned ~80% by existing Summit shareholders and ~20% by Eagle shareholders. (Yahoo Finance)
Jul 2, 2025 – Atlas FRM LLC, a private investment firm focused on industrial and manufacturing businesses, has signed definitive agreements to acquire Evraz Inc. NA, the North American steelmaking and infrastructure subsidiary of EVRAZ plc. EVRAZ is a multinational vertically integrated steel, mining, and vanadium company headquartered in the UK, with major operations in Russia, North America, and Kazakhstan. The transaction is valued at up to $500M. (Recycling Today)
Jun 30, 2025 – Lion Selection Group Limited (ASX: LSX), an investment company focused on the mining and exploration sector, acquired a minority stake in Koonenberry Gold Limited (ASX: KNB), a gold exploration company with tenements in New South Wales, from Datt Capital Pty Ltd for ~$656,000. (Gold Coast Bulletin)
Jun 30, 2025 – Brightstar Resources Limited (ASX: BTR), a gold exploration and development company, has signed non-binding indicative terms to acquire the Australian gold company Aurumin Limited (ASX: AUN) for ~$34.6M. (LISTCORP.)
Transportation & Logistics
Jul 1, 2025 – Keolis S.A., a global transportation operator headquartered in France, has entered into an agreement to acquire the remaining 49% stake in Keolis Downer Pty Ltd. from Downer EDI Limited (ASX: DOW) for ~$85.4M. The deal will bring Keolis’ ownership of the Australian joint venture to 100%. (MarketScreener)
Jun 30, 2025 – SBS Holdings, Inc. (TSE: 2384), a Japanese logistics and supply chain company, has agreed to acquire a 66.60% stake in Bridgestone Logistics Co., Ltd. from Bridgestone Corporation (TSE:5108) for ~$55.6M. (MarketScreener)
Jun 30, 2025 – Fox Brothers (Lancashire) Ltd, a UK-based haulage and infrastructure services company, completed its acquisition of J. Fisher & Sons Limited, a Manchester-based specialist in heavy haulage, road planing, and asphalt reprocessing. J. Fisher & Sons made ~$15.3M in revenue and processes over 200,000 tonnes of recycled asphalt planings (RAP) annually, aligning with Fox’s strategy to expand its circular construction materials platform. (Construction Wave)
Jun 29, 2025 – Mitsui & Co., Ltd. (TSE: 8031), a global trading and investment company, acquired the remaining 20% stake in Inversiones Mitta SpA, a Chile-based vehicle rental and fleet management company. The transaction brings Mitsui’s ownership to 100%, enabling it to further scale operations and respond to evolving customer demands across Latin America.
(MarketScreener)
Building Products & Materials
Jul 1, 2025 – Modine (NYSE: MOD), a global leader in thermal management technology and solutions, completed its acquisition of Climate by Design International (CDI), a Minnesota-based manufacturer specializing in desiccant dehumidification technology and critical process air handlers. This strategic acquisition builds on Modine’s capabilities in specialty commercial indoor air quality (IAQ) solutions, broadening the company’s ability to serve a wider range of customer needs. (PR Newswire)
Jul 1, 2025 – Limbach Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: LMB), a building systems solutions firm that partners with building owners and facilities managers who have mission-critical mechanical, electrical, and plumbing infrastructure, completed its acquisition of Pioneer Power, Inc. for $66.1M, financed through a combination of available cash and borrowings under the Company’s recently expanded revolving credit facility. (Business Wire)
Jul 1, 2025 – The Helpful Hardware Company acquired Jordan’s Ace Hardware in Union, South Carolina, marking its 20th location. Jordan’s Ace has operated as a community fixture in Union for 94 years. (HBSDealer)
Energy
Jul 1, 2025 – Charger Investment Partners completed its acquisition of Versa-Drill, a market-leading designer and assembler of premium drilling rigs used in water well, geothermal, and cathodic protection applications. (Business Wire)
Jun 30, 2025 – Design and consulting firm Westwood Professional Services Inc. acquired CSRS, an engineering business based in Louisiana. Westwood’s portfolio includes engineering support for wind, solar, energy storage, and power delivery projects. The addition of CSRS enhances Westwood’s capabilities in Public Infrastructure and Land Development. (PR Newswire)
Others
Jul 2, 2025 – British scientific instruments maker Spectris has agreed to a takeover offer from U.S. investment firm KKR (NYSE: KKR) valuing it at $6.5B. (Yahoo Finance)
Top News Stories
Metals & Mining
The aluminum processing industry PMI drops 9.7% in June. The composite PMI for China’s aluminum processing sector fell sharply to 40.1, down from the 50‑point expansion threshold—a 9.7 pp MoM drop. This contraction was broad-based, spanning plate, sheet, foil, wire & cable, extrusion, and secondary aluminum segments, driven by off‑season demand weakness, continued high prices, inventory build‑up, and trade uncertainties.
Electrolytic aluminum ingot inventory builds up in late‑June. SMM data show that as of June 30, aluminum ingot inventories at major Chinese consumption hubs reached 468,000 t, up ~5,000 t week‑on‑week. The increase reflects elevated late‑June production and weak downstream draw, with expectations for stable or slightly rising inventories into early July.
Copper’s tariff high fails to lift other LME metals. LME data show that in H1 2025, copper and tin outperformed on price gains due to U.S. tariffs and supply disruptions, but aluminum only saw modest gains (~+3%) amid elevated Midwest premiums. Nickel remained flat due to Indonesian oversupply, while zinc fell ~6% amid production strength.
Australia’s resource earnings face trade risk headwinds. Australia’s mining and energy export earnings are projected to decline to ~$242.5B in 2025–26 (from ~$272.5B in 2023–24), driven by trade policy uncertainty and weaker commodity prices. While iron ore and LNG earnings are expected to fall, gold, copper, and lithium exports may offer some offset.
Transportation & Logistics
Prepare for a hot, tight July 4th freight market. FreightWaves reports that as the July 4th holiday approaches, U.S. trucking spot rates are expected to increase due to seasonal constraints and reduced capacity, offering potential upside for carriers and pressure on freight brokers.
Trucking market stalls in first half of 2025 despite tumultuous trade environment. Contract and spot rates for U.S. truckload shipments remained flat year-over-year through June 28, signaling a prolonged freight market slowdown. Intermodal volumes are rising as carriers shift to lower-cost shipping modes. Despite sluggish demand, tightening capacity suggests a potential market inflection point later this year.
Energy
Oil softens on US tariff uncertainty and OPEC+ output expectations. Oil prices fell slightly on Thursday as the possibility of U.S. tariffs being reinstated raised demand concerns ahead of an expected supply boost by major producers. Brent crude futures fell 21 cents, or 0.3%, to $68.90. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude declined 15 cents, or 0.2%, to $67.30.
US natgas prices gain over 2% on mid-July heat forecasts, more cooling demand. U.S. natural gas futures rose over 2% on July 2, snapping two days of declines, as hotter mid-July forecasts are expected to lift air-conditioning demand, prompting power generators to burn more gas. Front-month gas futures for August delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) settled 7.3 cents, or 2.1%, higher at $3.49 per million British thermal units (mmBtu).
Others
Trump says he will put 20% tariff on Vietnam’s exports. The U.S. will place a lower-than-promised 20% tariff on many Vietnamese exports, Donald Trump said on Wednesday, cooling tensions with its tenth-biggest trading partner days before the U.S. president could raise levies on most imports. Vietnamese goods would face a 20% tariff and trans-shipments from third countries through Vietnam will face a 40% levy.
US dollar rises, British pound falls as markets weigh trade deals, Fed rate cut. The U.S. dollar rose against major currencies on July 2 as data supported market expectations of a Federal Reserve interest rate cut, while the pound sterling fell amid a selloff in British government bonds.
About RJM
RJM & Company is a specialized M&A and capital markets advisory investment bank. We provide boards and management teams of public and private companies with independent advice and expertise in a variety of sectors including road, rail and marine transportation, infrastructure, chemicals, energy, metals and mining, manufacturing, building materials, and other coverage areas of the industrial complex. RJM advises clients on all aspects of transactions including timing, structure, and pricing. RJM originates opportunities and helps negotiate and execute transactions already under evaluation.