STOCK MARKETS — Kookaburra copper holdings attract investor

Apparently little affected by constitutional matters, the dollar or interest rates, the Vancouver Stock Exchange drifted lower during the week ended Oct. 6, with the composite index losing 6.99 points to finish at 556.78 and the resource index losing more than 11 points to close just above the 560 level.

The Alberta Stock Exchange composite index gained 2.83 points to finish at 876.89.

Stock market and currency uncertainty helped gold edge above the US$350-per-oz. level, while gold bugs made renewed calls of a pending bull market in the yellow metal.

More concerned with the fortunes for copper, Kookaburra Gold continued its run, hitting a year’s high of $2.10 before finishing at $2.08 for a gain of 38 cents. Rennie Blair, president of the company, tied the price increase to expanding investor interest in the company’s prospects as a potential copper producer at Longshot Ridge in Nevada and the Chaucha project in Ecuador. The company recently reached an agreement with AG Armeno Resources to acquire up to a 65% interest in that company’s Chaucha copper project in Ecuador in return for up to $6 million in expenditures and $2.9 million in cash payments. The property hosts a large porphyry copper system containing preliminary leachable copper reserves of 60 million tons grading 0.5% copper. AG Armeno finished the period up 30 cents at $1.20.

Taseko Mines did well, jumping $2.25 to close at $13.63. The company is accelerating its feasibility, engineering and permitting program at its Fish Lake property southwest of Williams Lake, B.C.

The company reports that drilling is continuing in order to define a giant gold-copper deposit which is expected to significantly exceed one billion tons in size.

Taseko hopes to find a buyer for the property, with proceeds to be split between Cominco and the company according to a scaled formula. Trading in Commonwealth Gold remained frenzied as the issue topped the most active list once again with more than 7.8 million shares changing hands. The share price touched a high of 97 cents before settling at 84 cents for a gain of 15 cents.

Partners Aber Resources (51%), SouthernEra Resources (25%) and Commonwealth (24%) announced that drilling by Kennecott intersected a kimberlite intrusion on company ground in the Lac de Gras area of the Northwest Territories. The size of the intrusion and its diamond content are not known. Kennecott is earning a 60% interest in each of Aber and SouthernEra holdings while Commonwealth retains its 24% working interest.

Seine River Resources jumped 55 cents to $1.80 following the announcement of a US$5-million private placement in the company by K.B. Resources. The placement includes five million shares priced at $1.25 per share, plus 2.5 million warrants exercisable at US$3 per share and 2.5 million warrants exercisable at US$5 per share, each for a period of two years. K.B. Resources is a private Nevada company owned by Seine River directors Bernard Brynelsen and Mervin Davis.

Seine River plans to use the funds for several company projects, including the Plumas gold project in California, as well as possible mining and petroleum acquisitions in Latin America.

Although details of the deal were not available, Quinto Mining announced it expects to sign a $4-million joint venture agreement shortly. The issue nearly doubled on the news, finishing the week at 62 cents.

Western Copper Holdings edged up 15 cents to close at $1.80. The company expects recent drilling on its 50% owned Williams Creek copper project in the Yukon to significantly boost reserves from current estimates of about 11 million tons grading 1.08% copper. The company is also in the process of reviewing past data from its recently acquired Copper Basin project in southeast California. Preliminary reserves at Copper Basin are estimated at about 12.5 million tons grading 0.55% copper.

ASE-listed Thermal Exploration, which owns the remaining 50% interest in the Williams Creek project, lost a dime to close at 50 cents.