Trading Summary (July 25, 2003)

The Toronto Stock Exchange finished the week marginally higher on Friday; the TSX Composite index rising 11.18 points to 7,262.62. Most market sectors were little changed; only the telecommunications sector advanced strongly, and only information technology and real estate fell significantly.

The golds pressed a little higher, supported by another rise in the price of bullion. The London afternoon fix, at US$363 per oz., held in later trading in the North American afternoon. The TSX Gold index was up a fraction of a point at 184.71.

There was no news out of the sector, so the week’s trends stayed largely in place. Bema Gold turned in the best percentage gain, rising a dime to $2.32 with 2.6 million shares changing hands. Wheaton River Mines, sunning itself in the light of a US$5 silver price, put on another 6 to close at $1.94 and was the most active on the index, with 6 million shares moving.

Placer Dome was also heavily traded, finishing 3 lower at $17.97 on a volume of just over 5 million shares.

Off the index, Cambior gave back some recent gains, finishing 13 lower at $2.37. Another Abitibi miner, McWatters Mining, was up 1 at 16.5; chief executive Claire Derome announced she was leaving office.

Junior explorer International Curator Resources was up half a cent at 8, but with a sudden increase in trading volume; 2.3 million shares were traded. There has been no recent news from International Curator’s gold project at Assean Lake, Man.

Base-metal issues mostly advanced, but a dive in the price of Noranda shares pulled the TSX Mining and Metals index down half a point to 139.83. Noranda announced a large capital issue, $500 million in shares and $300 million in debt, and a cut in its quarterly dividend to 12 from 20. The shares fell $1.79 to close at $12.75. Noranda was also the most actively traded of the base metal stocks, with 9.2 million shares on the move.

The big gainer on the day was Aur Resources, which was up 21 at $3.95. Cameco, which announced the Bruce Power nuclear-generation operation (in which it owns a 31.6% stake) would contribute $17 million in pre-tax earnings in the second quarter, was up 19 at $43.80.

The nickel miners also did well, and the smaller ones did better. Inco rose 30 to $32.60, Falconbridge was up a quarter to $19.25, Sherritt International gained 15 to close at $4.80, and LionOre Mining International tacked on 21 to finish the week at an even $6.

Canada’s junior exchange tacked on gains every day this week closing at a new yearly high. The S&P-TSX Venture Exchange composite index ended Friday with a gain of 7.77 points, or 0.67% and closed at 1,159.53.

Ross River Minerals dropped 2 to close at 22 on over 1.07 million shares traded. The junior arranged a $600,000 non-brokered financing and recently reported the discovery of new mineralized zones onits El Pulpo property in Mexico. Dubbed La Trucha and Papaya, the latter returned samples yielding up to 30.66 grams gold per tonne.

Anooraq Resources popped back onto investors radar screens, adding 7 to close at 69 on 700,082 shares traded. The Hunter Dickinson-led junior has been drilling the southern portion of its Platreef platinum-palladium property in South Africa.

Pan Asia Mining resumed trading after clearing up various document requirements from the TSX. The junior managed to add 1 to close at 11 on 511,500 shares traded. Pan Asia holds four joint ventured properties in the Shandong Province of China. Three of which are diamond projects and one is copper-gold related.