The Toronto Stock Exchange recovered strongly from the previous week’s woes, as favourable Canadian and U.S. economic news and firmer commodity prices combined to put stocks in a good light. The TSE 300 composite index was up 263.18 points, or 4.2%, to 6,488.37, over the five trading days ended March 9.
Most of the sectors were strong, but the base metals sub-group lagged behind the broad market, rising only 1.3% to finish the period at 2,985.96. Except for nickel, which tacked on 4 cents to finish the period at US$2.26 per lb., base metal prices were lower or unchanged.
Inco resumed its upward trend during the report period, adding 90 cents to close at $18.60 on March 9 on a volume of 7.3 million shares. Heavily traded over the same period was Boliden, which was up 11 cents to $1.49, with 5.5 million shares changing hands.
Falconbridge also racked up a gain, adding 80 cents to close at $16.65, but this didn’t filter through to parent Noranda, which was 30 cents lower at $15.70. Cominco didn’t share the joy either, sliding 30 cents to $19.95, but Rio Algom was up 75 cents to $16.55 and Aur Resources added 8 cents to close at $2.
The golds outpaced the rest of the market, with the TSE gold and precious minerals index up 386.24 points to 5,749.04, for a gain of 7.2%. Gold was significantly stronger on the London bullion market, adding $4.85 over the five trading days to finish at US$291.50 per oz. on the morning of March 10. The other precious metals were all lower, though, with silver off 11 cents at US$5.24, platinum $2.50 lower at US$370.50, and palladium down $5 at US$345.
The most active gold was Placer Dome, which surged $2.10 to close at $18.85 on a volume of 15 million shares. Barrick Gold was up $1.80 to $28.60 as the market digested its takeover of Sutton Resources. Sutton was up 75 cents at $12.85, partly pulled by Barrick’s gains.
Also healthier were Kinross Gold, up 18 cents to $3.52, TVX Gold, which added 31 cents to close at $2.34, and Goldcorp, whose B-series shares were 70 cents higher at $10. Euro-Nevada Mining, always sensitive to rallies in the gold price, saw a $1.95 gain to end at $23.70, and stablemate Franco-Nevada Mining was $2.65 better at $26.
On the Montreal board, junior Plexmar Resources was 9 cents higher at 15 cents, on news that it had acquired a property in the Lac Rocher area of Quebec. VenCan Gold was down 16 cents to finish the period at 20 cents. VenCan, which leased its Edwards gold mine in north-central Ontario to River Gold for an advance royalty plus half of all operating profits, announced in January that it was submitting a dispute over the mine’s earnings to arbitration. River was up 20 cents at $3.75.
Among the Toronto juniors, Metallica Resources was up 36 cents to close at 91 cents on news of a successful drill hole at its El Morro project in Chile, which intersected 192 metres grading 0.64% copper and 0.22 gram gold per tonne.
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