TSX Venture Exchange August 22-28

On steady base and precious metal prices, the S&P-TSX Venture Composite Index delivered an impressive 2.9% gain over the Aug. 22-28 trading period to close up 75.81 points at 2.692.88. Average daily trading volumes on the heavily junior-mining-weighted index surged over the session to 63.9 million.

Market sentiment took a definite bullish turn on the week with 39 companies rising to new annual highs, while just 24 explorers slipped to 52-week lows.

Plexmar Resources again topped the most-active board surging 29% to close the week at 97 with almost 36.6 million shares changing hands. Investor excitement in the company’s Bolsa del Diablo gold project in northern Peru has increased with the acquisition of the Escondida project, across the border in southern Ecuador.

Uranium hunter International Arimex Resources lodged just under 11.5 million shares of volume, gaining 90% to close at 19. Geophysical surveys on its Key Lake project in northern Saskatchewan’s Athabasca basin have lit up three conductor trends on the claims optioned from CanAlaska Ventures.

Shares of Silver Fields Resources rallied 62%, or 6.5, to close the week at 17 apiece on volume of over 7.7 million. Exploration programs are in progress on the company’s silver projects in northern Idaho and Montana.

Patrician Diamonds plummeted 39% to close the trading session down 11 at 17 per share on volume of 7.5 million. Drill results from the Hillside diatreme on its Sahtu diamond project in the Northwest Territories disappointed investors, delivering a number of picroilmenite grains, but no other indicator minerals or diamonds.

Wide silver intercepts from the Hoag zone at its Nuestra Senora project in Sinaloa state, Mexico fuelled trading of over 6.9 million shares in Scorpio Mining, which gained a penny to close at $1.19.

Goldmarca remained even on the week at 67 per share, trading over 6.1 million shares. Its Eccolmetals property in southern Ecuador has excited investors due to its proximity to Aurelian Resources’ Fruta del Norte project.

An intercept of 0.79 gram gold per tonne and 0.55% copper over 136 metres from its Pinaya project in southern Peru pushed Acero-Martin Exploration up 26%, gaining 20 to close at 96 per share on volume of 4.8 million.

Shares in aspiring junior nickel producer Crowflight Minerals rallied 27% on almost 4.8 million shares of volume to close at 45. Development of its Bucko Lake nickel deposit in Manitoba has entered the 30-day public review stage.

UC Resources notched up 9 to close at 61 on trading of 4.7 million shares. The company entered an agreement to acquire Mexican company Minera El Alizal, which holds the La Dura project in the Copalquin mining district of Durango state, close to its existing exploration project. La Dura hosts a past-producing gold-silver operation that has left significant tailings and stockpiles containing good gold and silver grades.

TSX-V greatest percentage change

		VOLUME(000s)	HIGH	LOW	CLOSE	CHANGE
Intl Arimex R	IEA	11494	0.24	0.11	0.19	+90.0
Macarthur Mnl	MMS	92	2.90	1.55	2.50	+66.6
GWR Res	GWQ	747	0.46	0.29	0.43	+65.3
Silv Fields Rs	SF	7724	0.20	0.10	0.17	+61.9
Terraco Gold	TEN	1057	0.49	0.285	0.49	+50.7
Wave Expl	WA	122	0.09	0.06	0.09	+50.0
EurOmax Res	EOX	1094	0.64	0.33	0.48	+50.0
Bravo Vent	BVG	3517	1.35	0.89	1.35	+50.0
Red Dragon Res	DRA	1578	1.46	1.00	1.38	+48.3
Gossan Res	GSS	56	0.29	0.22	0.29	+45.0
Patrician Diam	PXC	7584	0.305	0.14	0.17	-39.2
Profile Res	PFL	119	0.03	0.02	0.02	-33.3
Q-Gold Res	QAU	164	0.21	0.15	0.15	-30.2
Puma Expl	PUM	292	0.285	0.15	0.20	-29.8
Luxor Ind	LRL	20	0.11	0.10	0.10	-28.5
Amex Expl	AMX	58	0.365	0.255	0.26	-25.7
Canstar Res	ROX	1039	0.19	0.125	0.125	-24.2
Citadel Gold	CGM.H	71	0.105	0.08	0.08	-23.8
Hudson Res	HUD	508	1.28	0.95	0.98	-21.6
Linear Metals	LRM	483	0.72	0.60	0.60	-20.0

TSX-V greatest value change

		VOLUME	CLOSE	CHANGE
Aurelian Res	ARU	2746305	29.90	+8.00
Macarthur Mnl	MMS	92290	2.50	+1.00
Osisko Explora	OSK	344682	7.15	+0.84
Norsemont Mng	NOM	462497	2.93	+0.73
Mansfld Mnrls	MDR	265376	3.50	+0.65
Pac Booker Min	BKM	62535	7.99	+0.59
Aranka Gold	ARK	53675	2.90	+0.55
Klondex Mns	KDX	696202	2.86	+0.51
Red Dragon Res	DRA	1578190	1.38	+0.45
Bravo Vent	BVG	3516923	1.35	+0.45
Arizona Star	AZS	18614	11.74	-0.51
Energy Fuels	EFR	722810	2.15	-0.42
First Majestic	FR	505616	4.00	-0.35
Birch Mountn	BMD	340535	4.19	-0.35
Primary Metals	PMI	114500	2.56	-0.34
Rockvale Res	RR	620588	2.70	-0.32
Intl Tower Hil	ITH	31350	2.81	-0.29
Hudson Res	HUD	508105	0.98	-0.27
Northern Dyn M	NDM	247077	8.90	-0.24
Chesapeake Gld	CKG	31550	4.48	-0.22

TSX-V most active issues

		VOLUME(000s)	HIGH	LOW	CLOSE	CHANGE
Plexmar Res	PLE	36599	1.01	0.76	0.97	+0.22
Intl Arimex R	IEA	11494	0.24	0.11	0.19	+0.09
Silv Fields Rs	SF	7724	0.20	0.10	0.17	+0.065
Patrician Diam	PXC	7584	0.305	0.14	0.17	-0.11
Scorpio Mining	SPM	6906	1.26	1.10	1.19	-0.01
Goldmarca	GML	6126	0.77	0.65	0.67	0.00
Bishop Gold	BSG	5427	0.045	0.03	0.045	-0.01
Acero-Martin E	ASD	4805	1.02	0.75	0.96	+0.20
Crowflight Mnl	CML	4776	0.475	0.38	0.45	+0.095
UC Res	UC	4719	0.68	0.51	0.61	+0.09