Market news

Toronto Stock Exchange

The S&P/TSX Composite Index continued its up-and-down trend, climbing 212 points to 12,237.75 for the period. The rebound came as investors balanced strong earnings reports from a group of companies against data showing the U.S. economy grew more slowly than expected in the first quarter.

Despite volatility in equity markets, the price of gold held ground and the metal climbed US$22 to finish at US$1,664.80 per oz. Gold’s strength led investors to the companies that mine the metal, and the Global Gold Index shot up 6 points to 312.78 points. 

The diversified miners also enjoyed a better period on the back of stronger base-metal prices. The S&P/TSX Capped Metals & Mining Index was up 35 points to 1,045.35 as the prices for copper, aluminum, nickel, tin, lead and zinc were all higher. 

Agnico-Eagle Mines earned its way back into investors’ hearts. Stellar first-quarter results showed the company moving past its Goldex mine troubles, and its stock price gained 17% to finish at $38.66. Agnico stock had fallen into ill-favour last year after Agnico indefinitely suspended operations at Goldex, but its remaining five mines have compensated for the lost production. This first quarter Agnico produced more gold than it did for the same period last year, when Goldex was in full operation. Gold production for the quarter came in at 254,955 oz. compared to 252,362 oz. in last year’s  first quarter. Cash costs rose slightly to US$594 per oz. from US$531 per oz. for the same period last year.

Midas Gold was another favourite for gold investors after the company released solid drill results. Highlight intercepts included 17 metres grading 1.69 grams gold and 0.91% antimony, and 47 metres grading 1.39 grams gold and 0.09% antimony. The assays helped lift shares by 16% to $3.68. The results came from the Scout Prospect on its Golden Meadows project in the Stibnite-Yellow Pine district of Idaho. 

A seeming end to a coup d’état in Mali and strong first-quarter production had Avion Gold riding high again. The company’s shares were up 15% to 98¢ after news that coup leaders would relinquish control to an interim government. (At presstime, the coup leaders were re-seizing power.) Meanwhile Avion set a company record for gold production during the first quarter with its Tabakoto-Segala gold mine in Mali producing 26,260 oz. gold.

The dust had hardly settled on a proxy fight with its largest shareholder, but Baja Mining shareholders could be faced with another battle. The current management team won the last proxy fight, but only narrowly. Since then Baja has suffered the resignation of four of its directors, and a big funding shortfall announced at its flagship copper project. The news made Baja the period’s biggest loser by percentage points, as shares fell 57% to 39¢.

TSX most active issues

VOLUME			WEEK
			HIGH	LOW	CLOSE	CHANGE
Baja Mng	BAJ	44979	.83	.34	.39	-0.52
Cline Mng	CMK	23368	1.07	0.81	1.05	+0.06
Kinross Gold	K	22342	8.97	8.61	8.89	-0.12
Eldorado Gold	ELD	17049	14.10	12.94	14.09	+0.24
Goldcorp	G	16430	40.55	37.57	38.38	-2.66
Lundin Mng	LUN	15667	5.00	4.36	4.88	+0.20
Yamana Gold	YRI	12213	14.63	13.59	14.53	+0.37
Lake Shore Gld	LSG	11258	0.98	0.74	0.98	+0.11
Barrick Gold	ABX	10951	39.92	38.36	39.88	-0.08
Potash Cp Sask	POT	10012	44.16	41.28	41.85	-1.76

TSX greatest percentage change

VOLUME			WEEK
			HIGH	LOW	CLOSE	CHANGE
Levon Res	LVN	1586	0.59	0.43	0.56	+24.4
Pac Rim Mining	PMU	530	0.11	0.0750	.105	+23.5
Atna Res Ltd	ATN	3168	1.18	0.89	1.17	+20.6
Mawson Res	MAW	299	1.64	1.23	1.47	+18.5
Dalradian Res	DNA	570	1.30	0.89	1.30	+18.1
Namibia RareE	NRE	29	0.50	0.405	0.50	+17.6
Agnico-Eagle	AEM	4283	39.24	31.91	38.66	+17.4
Midas Gold	MAX	283	3.68	3.04	3.68	+16.0
Anaconda Mng	ANX	1796	0.11	0.09	0.11	+15.7
Avion Gold	AVR	4016	1.00	0.78	0.98	+15.2
Baja Mng	BAJ	44979	0.83	0.34	0.39	-57.1
Calvista Gold	CVZ	896	0.30	0.15	0.18	30.7
Lipari Energy	LIP	1038	0.395	0.24	0.29	-26.5
Liberty Mines	LBE	818	0.13	0.10	0.10	-23.0
Yukon-Nev Gold	YNG	2956	0.33	0.255	0.255	-22.7
St Augustine	SAU	1267	0.23	0.185	0.19	-22.4
White Tigr Gld	WTG	1317	0.365	0.295	0.30	-20.0
INV Metals	INV	496	0.16	0.125	0.13	-18.7
Renaissance Gd	REN	36	0.83	0.78	0.78	-17.8
Red Cresc Res	RCB	1360	0.09	0.055	0.07	-17.6

TSX greatest value change

VOLUME			WEEK
			CLOSE	CHANGE
Agnico-Eagle	AEM	4283236	38.66	+5.74
Franco-Nevada	FNV	2497740	43.89	+1.87
Walter Energy	WLT	11050	65.84	+1.38
Tahoe Res	THO	1746363	19.15	+1.20
Agrium	AGU	2897200	87.15	+1.14
Royal Gold	RGL	31959	60.82	+1.02
Golden Mnls	AUM	80632	6.91	+0.60
Detour Gold	DGC	2426408	24.49	+0.59
Alamos Gold	AGI	1302958	18.06	+0.58
Aurizon Mines	ARZ	1808141	5.36	+0.57
Goldcorp	G	16429880	38.38	-2.66
Seabridge Gold	SEA	69660	16.61	-2.00
Potash Cp Sask	POT	10011865	41.85	-1.76
Imperial Metal	III	327666	15.76	-0.98
Ivanhoe Mines	IVN	5119325	11.89	-0.76
Baja Mng	BAJ	44979209	0.39	-0.52
Gabriel Res	GBU	3015831	2.67	-0.46
Northern Dyn M	NDM	227417	5.36	-0.36
Faircourt Gold	FGX	11210	7.88	-0.32
Central Fund	CEFA	294172	20.87	-0.32

TSX Venture Exchange

The final week of April brought some relief to the S&P/TSX Venture Composite Index, with a 14.81-point climb to 1,412.76 after three weeks of significant losses. The slight turnaround came after the index hit a 2012 low of 1,363.32 in the period. Volume was up significantly with an average of 102.3 million shares traded daily, and 140 million shares traded on the final day of the period.

The late activity owed largely to news that Iamgold would take over Trelawney Mining and Exploration in a $608-million deal, leading to 59 million Trelawney shares traded during an 86¢ climb to $3.27. And while the deal was welcomed as a sign of optimism, it was also a reminder of a steep, general slide in recent weeks — the 37% premium found in the $3.30-per-share bid happens to be where Trelawney traded as recently as mid-February. For its all-cash investment Iamgold will gain control of the Côté Lake deposit in northern Ontario, which hosts 930,000 oz. gold indicated and 5.9 million oz. inferred.

Gold Standard Ventures also had a good week, taking the highest value-gaining title ahead of Trelawney with a 96¢ climb to $2.74 on 4.9 million shares traded, after releasing two more drill results from its Railroad project in Nevada. The latest results from the North Bullion zone of the project included hole 12-1 that hit 164 metres carrying 3.38 grams gold per tonne from 237 metres downhole, while hole 12-2 hit 15 metres averaging 1.16 grams gold from 256 metres depth, plus several short intercepts grading less than a gram gold. Hole 12-1 was a 91-metre stepout from hole 11-16, which hit 56 metres carrying 4.29 grams gold from 169 metres in early April.

Uravan Minerals was up sharply after striking a deal with Cameco for the major to earn a 70% interest in its Halliday and Stewardson uranium projects in northern Saskatchewan, by spending $22 million on exploration. Cameco can earn 51% by spending $7 million over four years, and a further 19% by spending the remaining $15 million. The Halliday project spans 21.7 sq. km and the Stewardson property spans 213.5 sq. km. Uravan climbed 8¢, or 80%, to end at 18¢.

Roxgold had the biggest value drop, falling 52¢ to $1.02 with 12.7 million shares traded, after releasing results from its Yaramoko project in Burkina Faso. Results from 21 drill holes included numerous high-grade hits, such as 1 metre carrying 113.04 grams gold, 3 metres averaging 47.34 grams gold and 3 metres carrying 43.25 grams gold, all true widths. The longest interval was 3 metres carrying 11.60 grams gold, while the 81 total intercepts pulled at Yaramoko to date average 4 metres true width, with a weighted average grade of 20.72 grams gold.

TSX-V most active issues

VOLUME			WEEK
			HIGH	LOW	CLOSE	CHANGE
Trelawney M&Ex	TRR	56915	3.29	2.15	3.27	+0.86
Roxgold	ROG	12567	1.56	0.90	1.04	-0.52
New Guinea Gld	NGG	8775	0.015	0.01	0.015	0.00
Calibre Mng	CXB	8167	0.24	0.20	0.225	-0.01
Oro Mining	OGR	7159	0.075	0.055	0.065	0.00
Galway Res	GWY	6110	1.30	0.97	1.15	-0.10
Aurcana Corp	AUN	5669	0.95	0.77	0.95	+0.15
NWM Mng	NWM	5297	0.075	0.05	0.07	+0.01
Stellar Pac Vt	tSPX	4872	0.11	0.055	0.065	+0.01
Gold Standard	GV	4867	2.80	2.20	02.74	+0.96

TSX-V greatest percentage change

Archean Star RASP12850.0750.0350.075+114.2

Coronado ResCRD540.1950.160.16+77.7

Uravan MinlsUVN3160.1850.100.18+71.4

Stratabd MnrSB1010.0850.070.085+70.0

Unique ResUQ100.310.310.31+55.0

Gold StandardGV48672.802.202.74+53.9

Noram VentNRM150.200.170.20+53.8

Sanatana DiamSTA3790.3250.210.32+52.3

Argentex MngATX10100.4650.270.395+51.9

REBgoldRBG43990.060.030.05+42.8

Mukuba ResMKU1900.060.030.03-50.0

Martina MnlsMTN130.0550.040.04-46.6

Endurance GoldEDG3250.060.040.04-42.8

Iconic MnlsICM1650.110.080.08-42.8

IGC ResIGC250.0450.0350.035-36.3

Canadn Silvr HAGH250.1850.1550.155-35.4

Indigo ExplIXI8430.090.060.065-35.0

Dianor ResDOR7510.020.010.01-33.3

Dentonia ResDTA650.010.010.01-33.3

Baroyeca Go&SiBGS5010.0650.050.05-33.3

TSX-V greatest value change

Gold StandardGV48674342.74+0.96

Trelawney M&ExTRR569145953.27+0.86

Pac Booker MinBKM8649412.30+0.80

Lumina CopperLCC24339013.47+0.42

Atac ResATC6170422.66+0.40

Mirasol ResMRZ1264992.83+0.37

Gold CanyonGCU18069471.53+0.36

Probe MinesPRB12101791.30+0.28

Eurasian MinlsEMX2462652.33+0.26

Maudore MinlsMAO625304.15+0.26

RoxgoldROG125671041.04-0.52

Ascot ResAOT1518681.01-0.27

Luna GoldLGC3701192.70-0.24

Zimtu CapitalZC650811.05-0.23

Cliffmont ResCMO1933600.65-0.22

Gentor ResGNT245000.50-0.20

Flinders ResFDR5347612.09-0.16

American VanadAVC2700420.52-0.16

Salazar ResSRL784870.46-0.16

Hana MngHMG11111851.39-0.13

U.S. markets

U.S. equities posted four straight days of gains during the trading week despite 2.2% gross domestic product growth in the first quarter — down from 3% in the fourth quarter
of 2011 — and renewed concerns about Spain as Standard & Poor’s cut the country’s debt rating and gave it a negative outlook. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.53% to close at 13,228.31, while the S&P 500 Index climbed above the 1,400 level and rose 1.80% to finish the week at 1,403.36. The Philadelphia Gold and Silver Index crept up 1.03% to 165.81. 

Strong financial results sent Agnico-Eagle Mines to the top of the list of percentage gainers, leaping 18.7%, or US$6.21 per share, to US$39.36. The company reported a first-quarter profit of US$78.5 million, or 46¢ per share — up from US$45.3 million, or 26¢ per share, in the year-ago quarter. 

Aurizon Mines rose 13.4% to US$5.49 per share on drill results at the Marban property in Quebec, where it can earn up to a 65% interest. High-grade intercepts from shallow infill drilling included 20.5 grams gold per tonne over 2 metres at a vertical depth of 180 metres, and  36.7 grams gold over 1 metre at a vertical depth of 155 metres.  

Shares of Mosaic advanced US$1.73 to US$53 after it noted that crop nutrient markets have “strengthened significantly,” based on a strong first half in North America and increasing shipments to South America. Mosaic believes its fourth-quarter fiscal 2012 volumes will be in the upper end of its guidance range of 1.7 to 2.2 million tonnes of potash, and 2.3 to 2.7 million tonnes of phosphates. 

Intrepid Potash climbed US$1.52 to US$25.04 on news that after a three-year review, the Bureau of Land Management has approved its HB Solar Solution mine in New Mexico. Intrepid expects cash costs between US$60 and US$80 per ton, which boosts the company’s potash production by 25%. The mine has 5 million tons of proven and probable reserves and an estimated 28-year mine life. Annual production is estimated to be between 150,000 and 200,000 tons of potash. First production is expected in late 2013, ramped up to full production by 2015.

U.S. most active issues

Alcoa*AA923739.909.479.75+0.05

Freeport McMo*FCX7210938.44536.0338.13+0.56

Alpha Nat Res*ANR5762516.8615.3315.87-0.28

Arch Coal*ACI468199.829.059.46+0.06

Kinross Gold*KGC450879.148.629.04-0.03

Goldcorp*GG4345941.2538.1739.12-2.25

Newmont Mng*NEM3821848.9745.2247.86+0.61

Potash C Sask*POT3778744.8442.0342.68-1.25

Barrick Gold*ABX3710040.6938.4640.66+0.40

Peabody Enrgy*BTU2902930.9028.6530.20+0.40

U.S. greatest percentage change

Agnico-Eagle*AEM1522939.9831.9839.36+18.7

Habanero Res*HBNRF100.0610.0610.061+15.0

Lake Shore Gd*LSG32831.000.751.00+13.6

Timmins Gold*TGD3272.442.052.42+13.6

Aurizon Mines*AZK31955.554.635.49+13.4

North Am Pall*PAL101493.012.522.98+12.8

Xtra-Gold Res*XTGR2521.371.151.33+12.7

Primero Mng*PPP832.782.502.78+9.8

Legend Intl H*LGDI2880.1250.110.125+9.6

Tasman Mtls*TAS4272.101.702.05+8.4

Golden Phoen*GPXM199400.0290.010.015-48.2

Elray Res*ELRA18380.0050.0040.004-20.0

Li3 Energy*LIEG7840.0950.080.081-19.0

Infrastrc Mat*IFAM760.0410.0320.032-17.9

Lake Vict Mng*LVCA610.090.0150.09-16.6

Tombstone Exp*TMBXF930.030.0250.025-16.6

Anooraq Res*ANO14380.340.110.30-11.7

Stillwater Mg*SWC1073411.2610.4010.64-7.4

Molycorp*MCP1297029.5427.5027.77-7.4

Uranerz Energ*URZ16361.931.771.81-7.1

U.S. greatest value change

Agnico-Eagle*AEM1522910639.36+6.21

Randgold Res*GOLD270929991.40+4.27

Alliance Rs P*ARLP51878063.33+2.86

Franco-Nevada*FNV83814144.81+2.47

Agrium*AGU60381288.80+2.22

Walter Energy*WLT274167166.99+1.97

Royal Gold*RGLD236100762.01+1.73

Mosaic*MOS2054466653.00+1.73

Intrepid Pots*IPI116749325.04+1.52

AngloGold Ash*AU977198834.28+1.41

Cliffs Nat Rs*CLF1958619062.15-4.53

Goldcorp*GG4345858539.12-2.25

Molycorp*MCP1296989527.77-2.22

Potash C Sask*POT3778741842.68-1.25

Consol Energy*CNX2397203032.68-1.04

Stillwater Mg*SWC1073426310.64-0.86

OM Group*OMG129669524.16-0.77

Ivanhoe Mines*IVN1846041112.14-0.64

Mesabi Trust*MSB64122930.63-0.59

Vale*VALE2240800622.49-0.49