The S&P-TSX Composite Index took another beating over the Nov. 18-24 trading period with the mining sector especially hard hit. The index fell 4%, or 355 points to 8,441 points for the week after stooping to a closing low of 7,725 points mid-session as federal lawmakers south of the border debated whether to rescue the failing auto industry.
The Capped Metals and Mining Index plummeted nearly 22% or 54 points to 196 as metal prices held steady at depressed prices.
A jump in gold, on the other hand, helped boost the Global Gold Index by nearly 28% or 52 points to close at 238. Gold advanced more than US$100 per oz. over the period to US$822.50.
Gold stocks were the big winners amidst all the losses. Royal Gold rose $9.41 to $47.01, Newmont Mining surged $9.13 to $37.91 and Barrick Gold was up $8.84 to $34.98.
Debt-ridden Teck was the most actively traded miner over the period with 61.1 million shares traded, pushing the stock down $2.23 to $4.41 per share, after plunging to a multi-year low of $3.35 per share on Nov. 20. Low base metals prices and the collapse in metallurgical coal prices have forced the company to find ways to cut its suddenly unmanageable US$10-billion debt in half within the next year. Teck’s US$14-billion takeover of Fording Canadian Coal Trust — the cause of the debt — has forced the company to cancel its annual dividend, lower spending and sell off projects.
A surprise — and unpopular — proposed merger between Lundin Mining and Hud-Bay Minerals resulted in active trading for the two companies with 56.4 million and 30.8 million shares changing hands, respectively. Risk-taking Lundin, which has recently come into debt and liquidity issues, fell 33 to 95 per share, while HudBay, a stable miner with lots of cash and a shrinking production profile, fell about 40% to $3.31. The deal gives Lundin shareholders a 32% premium over the company’s 30-day volume-weighted average share price.
Fertilizer producers Potash Corp. ofSaskatchewan and Agrium continued their descent to new lows. Potash Corp. fell $11.87 to $72.69 from a 52-week high of $246.29 on June 18, while Agrium tumbled $43.54 to $8.61 per share compared with its 52-week high of $116.15. At a TD Newcrest agricultural conference in Toronto, the two companies said they were on the lookout for acquisitions.
NovaGold Resources shares plunged nearly 72%, putting it among the top losers over the period on a percentage basis. Its shares closed at 72 apiece after the company said it was closing its Rock Creek gold mine near Nome, Alaska, and that it couldn’t meet its near-term financial obligations. NovaGold says it won’t be able to make a $1.9-million payment on the Galore Creek copper-gold project in northwestern B. C., a 50-50 joint venture with Teck.
| TSX most active issues | ||||||
| VOLUME | WEEK | |||||
| (000s) | HIGH | LOW | CLOSE | CHANGE | ||
| Teck B | TCKB | 61067 | 6.99 | 3.35 | 4.41 | -2.23 |
| Yamana Gold | YRI | 61012 | 6.63 | 4.47 | 6.43 | + 1.45 |
| Lundin Mng | LUN | 56398 | 1.42 | 0.92 | 0.95 | -0.33 |
| Uranium One | UUU | 48610 | 1.13 | 0.75 | 0.98 | + 0.01 |
| High River Gol | HRG | 46785 | 0.13 | 0.07 | 0.09 | + 0.02 |
| HoriznsGBull | HGU | 40942 | 9.35 | 4.67 | 8.27 | + 2.96 |
| Kinross Gold | K | 38822 | 19.18 | 13.39 | 17.70 | + 2.81 |
| Goldcorp | G | 38459 | 34.69 | 21.87 | 31.52 | + 7.27 |
| Barrick Gold | ABX | 35765 | 36.84 | 25.31 | 34.98 | + 8.84 |
| HudBay Minls | HBM | 30804 | 5.96 | 2.70 | 3.31 | -2.59 |
| TSX greatest percentage change | ||||||
| VOLUME | WEEK | |||||
| (000s) | HIGH | LOW | CLOSE | CHANGE | ||
| Avnel Gold | AVK | 260 | 0.04 | 0.03 | 0.04 | +100.0 |
| Claude Res | CRJ | 780 | 0.39 | 0.17 | 0.34 | + 88.8 |
| Silver Eagle | SEG | 1284 | 0.09 | 0.03 | 0.09 | + 80.0 |
| Silver Wtn wtA | SLW_TA | 28 | 0.75 | 0.30 | 0.75 | + 66.6 |
| Central Sun Mg | CSM | 913 | 0.20 | 0.08 | 0.15 | + 66.6 |
| Centerra Gold | CG | 2414 | 2.37 | 1.17 | 1.93 | + 64.9 |
| Horizns G Bull | HGU | 40942 | 9.35 | 4.67 | 8.27 | + 55.7 |
| Moneta Porcpn | ME | 1329 | 0.06 | 0.03 | 0.06 | + 50.0 |
| American Bonan | BZA | 1853 | 0.03 | 0.02 | 0.03 | + 50.0 |
| Vista Gold | VGZ | 36 | 1.52 | 1.02 | 1.45 | + 47.9 |
| North Atlc Res | NAC | 1313 | 0.11 | 0.03 | 0.03 | -78.5 |
| NovaGold Res | NG | 9734 | 2.82 | 0.47 | 0.72 | -71.8 |
| Cross Lake Mnr | CRN | 1206 | 0.02 | 0.01 | 0.01 | -66.6 |
| New Dawn Mng | ND | 10 | 0.10 | 0.05 | 0.05 | -66.6 |
| Moydow Mns Int | MOY | 171 | 0.15 | 0.05 | 0.06 | -60.0 |
| Horizns G Bear | HGD | 14658 | 11.38 | 3.84 | 4.45 | -55.8 |
| Carlisle Goldf | CGJ | 520 | 0.03 | 0.02 | 0.02 | -50.0 |
| Virgin Metals | VGM | 794 | 0.03 | 0.01 | 0.02 | -50.0 |
| Hard Creek Ni | HNC | 720 | 0.19 | 0.08 | 0.09 | -50.0 |
| BRC DiamondCr | BCD | 36 | 0.40 | 0.20 | 0.25 | -50.0 |
| TSX greatest value change | ||||
| WEEK | ||||
| VOLUME | CLOSE | CHANGE | ||
| IShCOMEXGTr | IGT | 61659 | 100.00 | + 10.88 |
| Royal Gold | RGL | 21086 | 47.01 | + 9.41 |
| Newmont Mng | NMC | 208376 | 37.91 | + 9.13 |
| Barrick Gold | ABX | 35765271 | 34.98 | + 8.84 |
| Goldcorp | G | 38458502 | 31.52 | + 7.27 |
| Agnico-Eagle | AEM | 10995089 | 41.75 | + 4.96 |
| Barrick Gd Inc | HCX | 11789 | 18.39 | + 4.40 |
| Central Gold-T | GTU_U | 22405 | 40.20 | + 4.10 |
| Pan Am Silver | PAA | 2279042 | 15.81 | + 3.66 |
| Horizns G Bull | HGU | 40942064 | 8.27 | + 2.96 |
| Potash Cp Sask | POT | 13095341 | 72.69 | -11.87 |
| Horizns G Bear | HGD | 14657514 | 4.45 | -5.63 |
| Agrium | AGU | 11339951 | 33.80 | -4.30 |
| Teck A | TCKA | 56516 | 8.61 | -3.54 |
| Inmet Mining | IMN | 2501783 | 16.19 | -3.36 |
| Russell Metals | RUS | 1822562 | 16.75 | -3.29 |
| Timminco | TIM | 8169987 | 3.19 | -3.18 |
| First Quantum | FM | 2926993 | 17.00 | -3.04 |
| Major Drilling | MDI | 779186 | 12.35 | -2.83 |
| HudBay Minls | HBM | 30803669 | 3.31 | -2.59 |
Be the first to comment on "TORONTO STOCK EXCHANGE – NOV. 18-24"