Toronto Stock Exchange: Investors not smiling as market dips below

Wednesday close, Nov 19

We hear there’s a new disease running rampant on Wall Street these days on the heels of the Ivan Boesky insider trading scandal in New York. It’s called RAIDs and it stands for Reduced Annual Income Deficiency.

This joke is about the only smile investors are getting these days. The combination of this insider trading scandal south of the border and the tumbling gold price has had, to say the least, an unhealthy effect market-wise. Over the week the widely followed composite 300 index dropped a whopping 77.85 pts. There was no break in the momentum today as the 300 tumbled a further 18.81 pts to dip below the 3,000 level at 2,999.99 pts. Reacting to the drop in bullion on the commodity markets, the gold and silver index dropped 100.85 pts today to close at 5,051.11. The price of gold on the Montreal spot market was $388(US)-bid $390(US) ask. Metals and minerals fared no better with a 6.85 pt drop to 2065.24 pts. Oils were off 32.09 pts to 2828.37.

It’s round two for Lac Minerals and International Corona. The two are meeting this week and next in the Ontario court of appeal concerning the ownership of the Page- Williams Hemlo mine. Over the past week, Lac shares prices dropped $3.88 to $25.75, while Corona slipped $2.75 to $28.63. In today’s trading Lac was down 13 cents to $25.63 and Corona was down by the same amount to $28.50.

Meanwhile, at Lac’s Bousquet gold property near Noranda Quebec, a diamond drill hole is planned to be put down jointly with neighbor Dumagami Mines right on the boundary separating the two properties. The hole is expected to reach a depth of 3,500 ft. Dumagami, one of the Paul Penna companies, was trading unchanged over the week at $11.50, while today it dipped to $11.

Inco Ltd. and Golden Knight Resources are back at it on their Golden Pond property in the Casa Berardi area. A $2.8 million surface exploration program started last month and so far the first four holes have intersected wide well-mineralized sections within a strongly altered massive quartz vein zone. One hole of the program has cut 70.1 ft of 0.26 oz gold per ton.

Over the week the Knight charged ahead by $2.38 to $12.13. Today it lost a quarter to rest at $11.88. Inco, project operator, was down $1.13 on the week to $16.75, with trading unchanged on the day.

Its seems all the parties involved in the new Golden Giant public company are delighted with the new proposed amalgamation. Noranda Inc. has emerged with 62.4% of the new company, with Golden Sceptre and Golden Gold each with 14.2%. Hemglo Resources, a private company ends up with 9.2% of the new company. And through its 25% interest in Hemglo, Conwest Exploration will hold a 2.3% interest in the new company.

Investors will be able to share in this delight as Noranda expects to sell a portion of its shares to the public in a secondary offering. This will occur once market conditions are right and Noranda is thinking that might happen by the end of next January.

Over the week, Noranda was down 63 cents to $20.50. Today it was trading unchanged at $20.25. Golden Sceptre was off 38 cents on the week to $16.63 and today it closed at $15.75. Goliath fared well with a 50 cents gain on the week to $18.75, but today it closed at $17.63 after a drop of $1.13.

Conwest saw its A shares climb 38 cents on the week and 50 cents on the day for a close of $10.50, a new high.

Encouraging results are coming out of a recently completed trenching program at the California Lakes property in New Brunswick. Project operator is Lacana and partners are American Ore, Lynx Canada Explorations and TSE-listed Sparton Resources. Two subparallel zones, located about 600 ft nort hwest of the discovery trench #1, returned values of 5.7 oz silver per ton over a 24.8 ft width and 3.2 oz silver per ton over 23 ft.

Lacana was up 13 cents over the week to $9.63. It lost a quarter today to close at $9.38. Sparton was down 2 cents on the week, but gained 3 cents on the day to come out ahead at 24 cents .

A production decision has been announced by Canamax Resources on its Bell Creek joint venture gold property near Timmins. The operating plan includes the construction of a 350 ton per day onsite mill and the driving of an exploration ramp to evaluate the Marlhill desposit located 2,000 ft north of the mine shaft area. Over the week Canamax was off 13 cents to $6.88. Trading was unchanged today.

Joutel Resources was busy and better all week. Over half a million shares traded hands for a gain of a nickel to close at 32 cents . Today a penny was lost for a close of 31 cents . This company, under the control of John Arnold, Hugh Harbinson and Charles Page, are, among other projects, busy in the Pickle Lake area and the Mishibishu Lake belt area of Ontario