STOCK MARKETS — Broad market rises as golds and base metals tumble — Platinum falls back to earth as Noril’sk threat is abated

The bulls were riding high, as the Toronto Stock Exchange 300 composite index rose 59.30 points to close the report period ended June 17 at 6,532.34.

On June 13 the index hit 6,550.61 points, yet another record high.

The broad market’s strength was enough for the mining sector, as metal markets took a turn for the worse. Significantly, the full range of Canadian bond yields was below American yields for the first time in the history of the government’s bond program.

The Canadian dollar came in at par with the American greenback, with the Loony fixed at noon on June 18 at 72.1 cents. It gained ground, however, on all other major foreign currencies.

The gold and precious metals sub-index erased all gains made in the previous week, falling progressively lower throughout the report period. The index eventually landed at 9,081.21, for a loss of 285.85 points, or 3.1%.

Gold continued to languish in the US$340-per-oz. range, trading on the morning of June 18 at US$342.05 per oz., for a loss of $1.65. In contrast, silver gained 3 cents, remaining more or less fixed at US$4.80 per oz.

Platinum prices returned to earth as fears over a disruption in production at the Noril’sk deposit in Russian were put to rest. The rare metal dropped $44 from last week, to close at US$411 per oz. This represents a drop of $94 from the June 6 peak of US$505 per oz. In sync with its sister metal, palladium fell $16 to settle at US$196 per oz.

The woes of the yellow metal were also felt by the major producers. Barrick Gold dropped 65 cents to $33.55, while TVX Gold fell 75 cents to close at $8.20.

Franco-Nevada Mining was no exception to the rule. The royalty leader dropped $4.25, to finish the report period at $ 68.75, while sister company Euro-Nevada Mining also lost weight, shedding $3.05, for a close of $40.05.

In a reversal of last week’s rise, Placer Dome dropped 90 cents to close at $24.90, whereas Crystallex International moved in the opposite direction, gaining 95 cents to finish at $6.25. The two companies are currently in a legal dispute over which has the rights to the key portion of reserves at the Venezuelan gold deposit known as La Cristinas.

The TSE’s metals and minerals sub-index had a fairly steady ride but was down 63.96 points from the prior report period. It finished the week at 5,461.08, for a drop of 2.1%.

Copper was up 2 cents from the previous week, selling on the morning of June 18 at US$1.22 per lb.; nickel was down 3 cents to US$3.24 per lb.; and lead sold at US28 cents per lb. for a loss of a penny.

The announcement by Inco’s management team that it was returning to the bargaining table to settle a strike at Sudbury was not sufficient to shake off nervous investors. The issue fell 75 cents to $44.25.

Also down during the report period were Falconbridge, off 5 cents to $29.65, and Teck, which slipped $1.50 to $29.85. Bucking the trend was Cominco, which added 75 cents to close at $40.

Nervous holders of Pure Gold Resources continued to unload their stock, as 7.3 million shares passed hands. The issue lost 8 cents to close at 26 cents.

Pure Gold, which is joint-Venturing a diamond property in Alberta with Ashton Mining of Canada, recently revealed that scant macrodiamonds had been found in the latest pipes tested on the property. Ashton faired even worse on the news as its stock lost $2.20 in value.

The proud new owner of a Bulgarian manganese mine, Q.E.X. Resources was the volume leader on the Montreal Exchange. Some 3.5 million shares traded hands on June 11 as the stock plummeted from more than $4 in the previous week to 39 cents before trading was halted that afternoon.

The highest percentage gain was realized by Bolivar Goldfields, which climbed 15 cents to 40 cents, for a gain of 60%.