STOCK MARKETS — Bumpy ride for golds as TSE moves higher — No end in sight to gold-price agony; index loses another 6%

The Toronto Stock Exchange made strong gains during the report period Dec.

3-9, led by the banks and media stocks. The TSE 300 index composite index closed at 6,766.99 on Dec. 9, adding 99.53 points, or 1.4%. Daily trading volumes were moderate, generally a little more than 100 million shares.

The Canadian dollar fell 31 basis points against its U.S. counterpart, to trade at noon Dec. 10 at US70.22cents. The Loony gained ground on the other major foreign currencies.

There seems to be no end in sight for gold’s devaluation. The London mid-morning fix on Dec. 10 was US$285.05 per oz., a loss of $6.05 over the previous week. Platinum continued to ride the see-saw, losing $10 to trade at US$377 per oz. Palladium was off a quarter at US$207.75 per oz. The real star was silver, which gained an astonishing 52cents to top US$5.84 per oz.

The TSE gold and precious minerals sub-group was down 360.53 points, or 6.5%, finishing at 5,199.24 on Dec. 9. On the same day, the sub-index saw yet another new low for 1997 — 5,185.18.

Barrick Gold ended the week $1.80 lower at $21.70, on a volume of 8.7 million shares. Placer Dome was off $2.05 to close at $15, with 6.8 million shares changing hands. Mid-tier producers fared little better: Greenstone Resources suffered the heaviest loss, $1.30, to close at $4.95; Kinross Gold was down a quarter at $3.90; Royal Oak Mines slid 21cents to $1.68; and TVX Gold fell 15cents to $3.40. Bucking the trend was Cambior, which rose 10cents to $7.20.

The base metals had a mixed week on the London Metal Exchange. Nickel rose 4cents to US$2.70 per lb., and zinc was steady at US50cents per lb. Copper, at US81cents, and lead, at US23cents, each lost a penny.

The metals and minerals sub-group shed 60.05 points, or 1.4%, to finish the report period at 3,945.42. Inco dropped 75cents to $26.45, whereas Falconbridge, down an equal amount, finished at $17.50. Up 30cents each were Rio Algom, which closed at $26.70, and Noranda, which finished at $25.30.

Westmin Resources, up 5cents to $5.80, continued to be the most active issue, with 15.3 million shares riding the tape. The price had been sliding until news that Cominco is considering bidding against Boliden, which earlier offered $5.40 per share for all outstanding shares of Westmin.

Cominco was off $3.50, closing at $21.25, and Boliden fell 55cents to $3.60.

The Toronto junior market was lively this week, with five companies gaining 50% or more in share value. In the spotlight was San Andreas Resources, which climbed 19cents, or 76%, to 44cents. Golden Queen Mining, which is poised to become a producer, took the runner-up position, gaining 41cents to 96cents. In November, the company received a government permit allowing for construction and operation of its proposed open-pit and heap-leach Soledad Mountain project in Nevada. At last report, the project hosted 47.7 million tonnes grading 0.87 gram gold and 12.8 grams silver per tonne, equivalent to 1.3 million contained ounces gold and 19.7 million contained ounces silver.

The operation is expected to produce 125,000 oz. gold and 1.5 million oz.

silver annually at a cash cost of US$200-210 per oz. A final feasibility study is still being compiled.

Cobre Mining continued to trade actively, with 5.1 million shares moving.

The issue was up 10cents to $5.25; Phelps Dodge, which is not a car dealership, has bid US$3.85 ($5.48) for each outstanding share of Cobre.

On the Montreal exchange, Goth Resources gained 60%, or 30cents, to end the report period at 50cents. The company owns several properties in Quebec.