U.S. markets, Oct. 14-18

A last-minute deal to prevent a U.S. default — along with the reopening of government offices — sent the S&P 500 into record territory, helped by a growing consensus that Washington would not taper quantitative easing until at least next year, and Chinese economic data showing accelerating growth. For the week the S&P 500 jumped 2.43% — striking record highs of 1,733.15 on Oct. 17, and 1,744.50 on Oct. 18. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 1.10% to 15,399.65 and the Philadelphia Gold & Silver Index advanced 6.25% to 92.17.

Shares of Randgold Resources vaulted US$3.52 per share to US$71.73, buoyed in part by a press conference the week before in which CEO Mark Bristow noted that the company’s recently opened Kibali gold mine in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has been producing 1 million tonnes of ore per month and that management would provide a production forecast for the quarter that would likely surpass its previous estimate of 30,000 oz. gold, thanks to its early start-up in September. Randgold owns 45% of Kibali and is the operator.

Scandinavian-focused explorer Tasman Metals posted the largest percentage gain of the week, climbing 31% to US90¢ per share. The company announced on Oct. 10 that it had expanded its critical metal portfolio by acquiring tungsten projects in Sweden. The projects in Sweden’s Bergslagen mining district include several of the largest known tungsten occurrences in Scandinavia, the company noted, including the former Yxsjoberg mine, which accounts for more than 90% of the tungsten previously produced in Sweden. The projects lie 200 to 300 km north of Tasman Metals’ flagship Norra Karr rare-earth project.  

Brigus Gold notched the second-highest percentage gain, advancing 25% to US65¢ per share after releasing a headline hole of 40.71 grams gold per tonne over 26.8 metres that extended the vertical mineralization depth at its Black Fox mine in Ontario by 400 metres to 700 metres. The hole confirmed that the orebody extends to depth and bears some similarity to other mines in the Timmins camp, where orebodies often surpass depths of 1,000 metres.

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