Trading Summary (October 21, 2002)

A sliding bullion price sent the Toronto Stock Exchange’s gold stocks lower to start the week. The Gold Index dropped 1.74 points to 159.18. In New York, gold ended off US$1.90 at US$310.60 per oz. The base metal miners more than took up the slack leading the TSX’s subindices with a 5.11-point or 4.3% gain to 124.04 points. Overall, the S&P/TSX Composite Index edged up 35.7 points to 6,362.31 points.

Most of gains in the base metal realm came in the form of a 5.66-point, or nearly 22% gain by Fording Coal, which skyrocketed on nearly 7 million share after Sherritt International and its partner the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan announced a $1.6-billion takeover bid for the coal miner. For their part, Sherritt shares were off 9 at $4.15 on a trading volume of just fewer than 261,000 shares.

Breakwater Resources saw more than 1.5 million shares cross the floor on their way to 1.5 gain to a dime. Others making decent gains were: Cameco, plus $1.91 to $32.25; Inco, up 67 to $30.70; Falconbridge, up 42 to $14.92; and Swedish miner Boliden, which grabbed 30 or 15% to make $2.30.

Placer Dome was the lone gold major to put in a gain, climbing just 4 to $12.89. Most of the others finished in the red. Barrick Gold slipped 6 to $22.45; Kinross Gold fell a dime to $2.48; and Glamis Gold shed another 38 to hit $12.12. On Friday, Reuters reported that Glamis’ San Martin gold and silver mine in Honduras was the target of several hundred local protestors. The protestors claim the mine is destroying local forests, and threatening water supplies.

Canada’s junior exchange traded lower on the day with advancers loosing to decliners 214 to 299. The Venture Exchange S&P Composite Index closed down 0.72 of a point, or 0.08%, to 901.67 on a volume of 23.2 million shares.

Gallery Resources was the volume resource leader today with 418,000 shares changing hands. Investors are waiting for drill results from the company’s Bruce Pond property an epithermal gold prospect in Newfoundland. Earlier this month the junior kicked of a 5,000-metre, 30-hole drill program. The junior’s issue closed up 4 to 15.

Vedron Gold lost a penny and closed at 12 with 385,000 shares traded. The junior just announced that Placer Dome has commenced follow-up drilling on the Buffalo Ankerite property, on which Vedron holds a gold production royalty in the form of a Net Smelter Royalty. The Buffalo Ankerite property is situated directly south of the Fuller deposit property where Vedron established a 700,000 oz. gold resource from 1996-to-1998.

Marum Resources closed up 1 to 11 with 275,000 shares traded. The junior and its partner Ressourcees Appalaches have deepened hole F-21 on their B20 property located near Port Cartier, Quebec. This part of the hole, from 115-to-182 metres averaged 0.57% nickel and 0.47% copper over 18 metres and also hosted a 10.5 metre interval averaging 0.75% nickel and 0.57% copper.