Resource indices breach 7000 mark

Vancouver — The resource indices fueled the continued bull run on Canada’s junior exchange over the holiday-shortened week ended May 22. The Canadian Venture Exchange composite index soared 100.28 points, or 3.15%, to close at 3,281.46, while the mining index rocketed 461.65 points, or 6.9%, to finish at 7,073.51.

Shares in New Blue Ribbon Resources tacked on 4 to 33 on a volume of 1.9 million shares. Drill results from the Moose diamond property in Manitoba are expected shortly. The Edmonton-based junior’s stock previously had doubled on news that partner BHP had hit significant sulphides on the first two holes drilled into the property.

IBI found a penny and closed at 6 with 1.3 million shares traded. The junior is developing its wholly owned Namekara vermiculite project in Uganda.

International Barytex Resources added 7 to its value and closed at 22. The junior is working on a private placement financing worth $250,000. The financing will be brokered by IPO Capital on a best-efforts basis. Proceeds from the offering will be used for general purposes. The company holds a 100% interest in the Mel zinc-lead-barite property in the Yukon, subject to a 1% net smelter return to Toronto-listed Breakwater Resources.

Cantex Mine Development bounced off a 52-week low to close at 14, up 2 on a volume of 988,000 shares. The company recently announced that a major gossan formation was identified some 24 km north of the Suwar nickel-copper-cobalt prospect in Yemen. Assay results are pending. The junior is also in the process of raising a non-brokered private placement worth $1 million.

Madison Enterprises continued to climb upward despite the fact that no developments were reported. Over the past few years, the company has been drilling the Mt. Kare gold project in Papua New Guinea. Madison gained 2 and closed at 13 on 825,000 shares.

International Wayside Gold Mines tacked on 6 and finished the week at 30, with 825,000 shares traded. The company is drilling the Bonanza Ledge gold target near Wells, B.C.

National Gold jumped 9 and closed at 33, with 789,000 shares crossing the floor. The company recently announced it intends to place the high-grade Estrella zone, within the Mulatos deposit, into metallurgical test production. The zone consists of 11.5 million tonnes grading 3.16 grams per tonne, or 1.2 million contained ounces.

Leader Mining lost a nickel and closed the week at 30, with 749,000 shares traded. The company has kicked off a field sampling program over the large nickel-mineralized resource at the Cogburn mineral claims in southwestern British Columbia. The sampling is testing the potential for a spatial association between nickel, copper and platinum group metals.

Victoria Resource lost 2 and closed at 6 with 547,000 shares changing hands.