MINING MARKETS & INVESTMENT NEWS — U.S. MARKETS — Miners tarnish as gold falls

The Dow Jones industrial average slipped 97.2 points, or 0.01%, during the report period ended Oct. 26 to close at 10,302.13.

Mining issues tumbled as gold continued its fall to US$288.90 on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. Newmont Mining slumped $1.75 to close at US$22.38 on the New York Stock Exchange, while Anglogold plunged $3.38 to US$24.81. Homestake Mining dipped 62 cents to US$8.19, while Battle Mountain Gold was off just 12 cents at US$2.88.

Ashanti Goldfields climbed 50 cents to US$4.62, benefiting from the drop in gold price, which takes pressure off its troubled hedgebook.

Copper companies suffered as the red metal languished at US79 cents on the Comex. Class A and B shares of Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold slid 62 cents and 75 cents, respectively, to close at US$14 and US$16.12. Australia’s Broken Hill Proprietary dropped 25 cents to US$21.94.

Cyprus Amax Minerals picked up 31 cents to close at US$20.19, as it moved to complete its merger with Phelps Dodge, which edged up 75 cents to US$57.75.

Asarco settled at US$29.50, down 6 cents, as it accepted the US$29.75-per-share takeover offer from Mexico’s largest mining company.

Rio Tinto lost $1.75 to close at US$67, while Nasdaq-listed De Beers Consolidated Mines fell $1.08 to US$25.44. American Stock Exchange-listed Stillwater Mining was down $1.19 to US$20.06. Meanwhile, Apex Silver Mines slid 31 cents to US$13.88.

Among the juniors, Crown Resources fell 34 cents to close at US$2.91 and Golden Star lost 20% of its value, dropping 25 cents to US$1 in response to weaker gold prices.