STOCK MARKETS — Markets little changed after nervous week

The Toronto Stock Exchange was fortunate in having a day off this past Thanksgiving holiday as Monday brought panic to the board of its New York counterpart. Fortunately, by the time the TSE reopened on Tuesday, a rally was well under way and the TSE 300 composite index suffered comparatively little.

Monday’s selloff on the New York Stock Exchange saw the Dow Jones industrial average fall 42.99 points or 0.9%, and the NASDAQ 27.3 points or 2.7%. Software and high-technology stocks were the biggest losers, following reports of disappointing third-quarter earnings from several companies in the category.

On Tuesday, the TSE 300 opened 56.86 points lower than its Friday close but clawed back half of that loss over the course of the day. Tuesday’s closing index was 4,472.30, down 23.14 points from Friday. The Tuesday close made for a weekly decline of 27.19 points, or 0.6%, in the composite index.

Following last week’s strong showing, the Canadian dollar declined slightly on international currency markets to US74.89 cents from US75.27 cents the previous week. The Loony also was weaker against the major European currencies and the Japanese yen. The Bank of Canada moved to support the dollar at the Tuesday treasury bill auction, forcing the T-bill yield to 6.38 and the bank rate to 6.63, up 13 basis points from the previous week.

The Tuesday morning fix on the London bullion market saw stronger prices for gold, which was fixed at US$384.70 per oz. (up US$2.10), and silver, which was fixed 8 cents higher at US$5.42 per oz. The Toronto gold issues were fractionally higher, mirroring the strength in the gold price. The TSE gold subindex gained 50.22 or 0.5% to finish Tuesday at 10,326.73.

TVX Gold was the most active trader among the golds, and rose 50 cents to close at $9.63. Barrick Gold, at $34.75, was 75 cents higher, and Royal Oak Mines ended on a positive note, edging up by 13 cents to close at $5.63. Placer Dome tacked on 25 cents to finish Tuesday at $33.75.

Losing issues among the golds were: Cambior at $13.75, down 50 cents; Kinross at $10.87, down 13 cents; and Euro-Nevada, which fell $3 to $47.25.

Base metal prices continued to soften, with nickel down 10 cents to US$3.49 per lb. and copper off 5 cents to US$1.25. The zinc price was 2 cents lower at US43 cents, and lead was unchanged at US27 cents. The large miners saw fractional losses, with the TSE metals and minerals subindex falling 72.54 points or 1.6% to 4,599.15. Inco was the most heavily traded of the group, falling 63 cents to $43, while Falconbridge was unchanged on the week at $28. Among other nickel-sensitive issues, Sherritt was down 38 cents at $17.25.

Noranda lost 75 cents on the week, closing at $25.75. Both Teck at $26 and Inmet at $9.63 were unchanged. Rio Algom was alone in bucking the trend, picking up 12 cents on the week to close at $26.25.

High-flying Nuinsco Resources has agreed to place 2 million treasury shares and warrants to buy another 2 million shares with Diamond Fields Resources. The shares are valued at $1.11 while the warrants, exercisable for a 1-year period from closing, are priced at $1.25. Total proceeds could amount to $4.72 million. More than 2.4 million Nuinsco shares changed hands as the stock managed to gain 5 cents to close at $1.85. Diamond Fields shares closed $21, down $1.63.

After rocketing ahead and doubling last week, Montreal-listed Diadem Resources plunged back to earth and shed more than half its value. More than 3.9 million shares changed hands as the stock lost $1.80 to finish at $1.45.

Diamond explorer SouthernEra Resources announced recent valuations of diamonds recovered from the SUF-1 kimberlite dyke in South Africa. The four valuations averaged US$85.29 per carat. SouthernEra shares failed to sparkle, shedding 10 cents to close at $3.35.