MINING MARKETS & INVESTMENT NEWS – EASTERN MARKETS — TSE suffers mild setback, gold producers gain

The Toronto Stock Exchange 300 index fell 163.1 points during the report period Dec. 9-15, ending the week at 6,236.67.

Gold producers regained some investor confidence, as the gold and precious metals sub-group fell only 38.48 points to finish at 5,979.94. Similarly, gold bullion was off only 95 cents, trading at US$292.55 per oz. on the morning of Dec. 16. Silver bounced back 12 cents to US$4.94 per oz., while platinum shot up $4 to US$354 per oz.

Placer Dome got sacked on news of a proposed 2.45-for-1-share swap with American-listed Getchell Gold. Skeptical Placer investors, however, are arguing that the merger would forfeit value for production and reserves. The major fell $2.50 to $19.15.

Placer’s aggressiveness appeared to help rival Barrick Gold, which rose 70 cents to $29.95. Also up were: Goldcorp’s A-series, which rose 20 cents to $7.90 on the Toronto index and 40 cents to $8 on the Montreal index; Greenstone Resources, which added 18 cents to $1.72; and TVX Gold, which increased 15 cents to $2.93.

Making their debut as producers, royalty sisters Franco-Nevada Mining and Euro-Nevada Mining jumped, respectively, $1.70 to $29.50, and 75 cents to $24.50.

The metals and minerals sub-index dwindled 81.28 points to 3,041.50. With base metal prices continuing their precarious decent, producers were hit once again. Inco lost $1.30, finishing at $15.85; Teck B-series lost an equivalent amount, finishing at $9.70; Noranda dropped 85 cents to $18.90; and Falconbridge fell 70 cents to $16.10.

Diamond stocks proved to be a sound investment, with Dia Met Minerals’ A-series soaring $1 to $18. Coming in a close second, Namibian Minerals climbed 45 cents to $2.50, while Aber Resources and SouthernEra Resources each ascended a dime, to end the period at $8.20 and $7.80, respectively. Even Messina Diamond managed to coast through the period, despite announcing the possible sale of its South African mines and cessation of activities elsewhere in southern Africa. The junior ended the period at 7 cents.

Junior Tenke Mining enjoyed a 12 cents-boost on news that its advanced Tenke Fungurume copper-cobalt project has caught the eye of New York-listed Broken Hill Proprietary. While the project ranks as one of the best of its kind, it rests in politically unstable Democratic Republic of Congo. As a result, the junior has fallen from a 52-week high of $3.60 to 38 cents.

General Minerals increased 25 cents to $1.50, for a 9-day gain of 40 cents. The junior began rising after it announced that the top 377 metres in the first hole drilled at the Escalones porphyry prospect in central Chile averaged 0.63 cents copper. At presstime, the issue had gained another 3 cents.