STOCK MARKETS — VSE suffers anti-climax over Voisey Bay results

Trading activity on the Vancouver Stock Exchange eased off somewhat as investors began paying more attention to the quality of work being done by juniors in Labrador. The initial excitement from the Voisey Bay discovery is starting to wane, and it is no longer enough just to have ground in the region.

Market reaction to preliminary exploration results coming out of the Voisey Bay area of Labrador was somewhat less strong than expected during the report period ended July 25.

The VSE composite index slid 23.65 points to close at 815.87, while the resource index fell 27.51 points, finishing at 1,306.82.

United Compass Resources fell to a low of $1.16 before pulling out of its tailspin to close at $1.80, resulting in a loss of $1.65. The company, along with joint-venture partner Layfield Resources, reported that a broad electromagnetic anomaly on its claim block, situated 40 km northwest of Voisey Bay, may be linked to the occurrence of disseminated graphite flakes in gneissic rocks. Field geologists, however, were unable to explain coinciding magnetic and electromagnetic anomalies found elsewhere on the property. Layfield closed at 57 cents, down 4 cents.

The market was quick to react to International Enexco, which holds an adjacent property to the east of the claim block of United Compass and Layfield. While geochemical sampling is following up an extensive gossanous zone, the company feels a ground geophysical survey will be necessary in order to identify potential drill targets. Enexco dropped 52 cents to close at 93 cents.

Two of three holes have been completed on the Niatik joint venture of Goldnev Resources and Starcore Resources. The first hole failed to reach the target horizon, intersecting just a narrow zone of massive sulphide material. The second hole is reported to have intersected massive sulphide layers of pyrrhotite-chalcopyrite mineralization, ranging from 5 cm to 1 metre in thickness over a 30-metre interval of drill core. Goldnev dropped to a low of $1.46 before closing at $1.74 (a decrease of 46 cents), while Starcore lost 40 cents to finish at $1.20.

An application to have its common shares listed on the Alberta Stock Exchange was finally approved for Columbia Yukon Resources. The company traded more than half a million shares on its opening day, hitting a high of $2.49 before closing at $2.15. The company’s holdings include about 12,000 claims either owned or optioned in the Voisey Bay area.

NDT Ventures announced that it has made a second discovery on the joint-ventured claim block of Takla Star Resources, immediately south of Nain.

Field crews have identified oxidized gossans associated with a 2.4-km-long, airborne, electromagnetic conductor. Grab samples returned assays of up to 4,100 parts per million (ppm) nickel, 1,500 ppm copper and 0.07% cobalt. NDT slipped 35 cents to $3.85, while Alberta-listed Takla Star closed at $7.13, down 62 cents.

ERI Ventures has agreed, in principal, to a brokered private placement of 1.5 million special warrants priced at $1.40 each. Proceeds will be used for mineral exploration with respect to its property interests in the Voisey Bar area. ERI finished up 45 cents at $2.10.

Pacific Bay Minerals managed to reverse the trend as well, by gaining 12 cents to close at 77 cents. The company added to its stable of four fully owned mineral properties in Labrador by acquiring a block of 123 claims in the Letitia Lake area of central Labrador. The property is reported to cover a number of sulphide and rare earth element showings. A geological evaluation of the five properties is expected to commence shortly.

The acquisition of an approximate 85% interest in five Bolivian gold projects covering an area of 53,000 hectares was greeted by a 67 cents jump for Essex Resource, closing at $1.50. The company is required to pay a total of US$750,000 plus 1.1 million shares, as well as spend US$1 million on exploration over a period of 18 months. Essex is also involved in a joint venture with NDT Ventures concerning 17 claim blocks covering 95,237 acres in the Voisey Bay area.