For gold bugs, it was a sweet, sweet report period ending Sept. 19, as spot gold prices surged more than US$20 to breach the US$470-per-oz. barrier.
Various factors helped push the yellow metal up: higher projected U.S. budget deficits owing to reconstruction after Hurricane Katrina; steeply higher energy prices; and the Washington Agreement countries having maxed out their allotted gold sales for the year.
Gold miners dominated the most-active list, with Newmont Mining jumping US$3.79 to US$46.11, Coeur d’Alene Mines rising US24 to US$4.19, DRDGold adding US18 to US$1.47 and Placer Dome tacking on US$1.25 to US$16.93.
One hot junior was U.S. Gold, which shot up 31% to US$2.55, and had hit a new high of US$2.67 at presstime. On July 29, Goldcorp’s Robert McEwen bought 11.1 million shares, or 33.3%, of U.S. Gold, for US$4 million, and became chairman and CEO. Prior to that day, the stock had spun its wheels for a year below US50. The junior has the Tonkin Springs project in Nevada’s Cortez trend.
After the period’s close, Venezuela’s President Hugo Chavez announced that “Las Cristinas belongs to Venezuela, and we are going to create a national mining company there.” Crystallex International, which has been advancing the large Las Cristinas gold project, had its shares hammered following Chavez’s statement, falling almost 50% to US$1.40 on the Amex and C$41.65 on the Toronto Stock Exchange. With its Brisas gold project right next door, shares in Gold Reserve slumped 24% to US$2.56 and C$3.12. Chavez also said he is leading Venezuela away from capitalism and toward a new “socialism of the 21st century” that will increasingly involve cooperatives and emphasize “collective property.”
Be the first to comment on "Gold hits US$470"