Trading Summary (July 09, 2002)

The gold stocks left the rest of the Toronto Stock Exchange in the dust on Tuesday vaulting 10.39 points or 5.6% to 196.61 points. The base metal miners weren’t able to tag along falling 1.16 points to 142.99. Overall, the S&P/TSX Composite Index lost 57.14 points to 7,034.84.

Spurred on by the yellow metal, which grabbed US$4.10 to reach US$316.10 per oz. in New York, Kinross Gold jumped 34 to $3.46 on nearly 9 million shares to rank as the TSX’s second most traded issue. Placer Dome gained 59 to $17.24, South American Gold & Copper fell 4 to a nickel on 7.2 million shares, and Barrick Gold made $1.27 to settle at $29.50.

On Tuesday, South American Gold & Copper, reported disappointing drill results from the Meseta project 60 km southeast of Copiapo, Chile. The holes failed to identify any economic copper deposits. The company says it will wind up the project.

TVI Pacific made some noise growing by 2.5 to 10.5 with nearly 2.4 million shares on the move. Assay results from reconnaissance sampling on its Shuikoushan gold project in Hunan Province, China, have confirmed mineralization along a substantial northwest-trending gold belt in the project’s Central District Target area. The company has also turned up three new Porgera-type high-grade (better then 4 grams gold per tonne) targets.

Bema Gold gained 14 or 6.7% to $2.24 after announcing that the Julietta mine in Russia enjoyed its best month of gold and silver production in June. Underground drilling at the mine has also discovered two new high-grade gold and silver veins and extended an existing vein.

Staying in Russia, High River Gold Mines has inked a deal to acquire the Berezitovoye gold project in the Amur region of southern Siberia, from a Russian company, Khaikta Ltd. The news sent the company’s stock up 22 or 13.5% to $1.85.

There was less glitter among the base metal miners. Teck Cominco’s B series was the most traded falling a quarter to $13.43 on a volume of 821,830 shares. Most of the others performed similarly. Boliden swam against the stream to an 11 gain to $6.01. Aur Resources tacked on a penny to hit $4.70.

Cameco dropped 51 to $38.67 in thin trading. The company reported a pit failure at its one-third-owned Kumtor mine in Kyrgyzstan on Tuesday. One worker is presumed dead after the incident involving a 200-metre-high section of the pit wall. Mining operations have ceased and rescue efforts begun.

The S&P TSX Venture Exchange composite index finished the day up 12.12 points or 1.06%, and closed at 1,157.40 with a volume of 25 million shares.

American Bonanza Gold Mining closed up 2 to 21 on 2.45 million shares. The company has $2 million set aside for advancing the Copperstone project in Arizona, which hosts an estimated total resource of 2.1 million tons grading 0.58 oz. gold per ton.

Gallery Resources added 2 to its value and closed at 20 on 729,000 shares. The junior recently signed an option agreement with BHP Billiton Diamonds for an opportunity to earn an interest in a number of Ni-Cu-PGM resource opportunities identified by BHP Billiton in eastern Canada.

Diagem International Resource lost a penny and closed at 25 on 486,500 shares. The junior has recovered 112 diamonds from surface gravels and kimberlitic material located on its 1000 property in Brazil. Thirty-five diamonds, including one stone weighing 4.2 carats, were recovered from a 25 cubic meter sample from surface gravels immediately overlying the ARP-1 kimberlite. The 1000 property is held 51% by Diagem and 49% by its partner Juina Mining.

Bitterroot Resources closed up 1 to 11 on 450,000 shares. The company announced that it will issue up to 800,000 units priced at $0.10 per unit by way of a non-brokered private placement. Each unit will consist of one common share and one non-transferable common share purchase warrant which will entitle the holder to acquire one common share within two years at $0.10 per share. The money will be used to conduct diamond indicator mineral sampling, geological mapping and geophysical surveys on Bitterroot’s claims in the Otish/Mistassini region of Quebec and for working capital.