Trading Summary (January 27, 2003)

The techs stocks led the Toronto Stock Exchange 108.38 points lower to 6,556.52 points on Monday. The mining issues followed suit with the golds slipping 5.44 points or 2.7% to 199.17, and the diversified miners shed 2.62 points or nearly 2% to 134.85. Gold grabbed another US$2 to reach US$369.70 per oz. in New York.

Kinross Gold fell 13 to $3.85 on about 10.6 million shares to rank as the nation’s most traded miner. Placer Dome and Barrick Gold each headed lower on just more than 3 million shares. Placer fell 44 to $17.53, and Barrick lost $1.15 to $24.85.

A few gold miners to end on the plus side were: Bema Gold made a penny to end at $2.19; Thistle Mining, did the same to make 64; Iamgold, up 22 to $8.17; and Eldorado Gold, 4 pennies to the good at $2.34.

Alcan was the most traded base metal miner dropping $1.45 to $42.55 on about 1.3 million shares. Most of the others put in similar losses. Noranda lost a quarter to finish at $15.02, after reporting a fire at its Brunswick lead smelter in Belledune, N.B. There were no injuries, and lead production will remain unaffected as the fire was contained to the operation’s silver refinery.

Fording fell 6 to $33.63. The Calgary-based coal miner will release its 2002 financial results on Feb. 10. Fording shareholders are slated to vote on the company’s latest multi-player deal involving Sherritt International and Teck Cominco, among others. For their parts, Sherritt shares ended a penny richer at $4.61, and Teck’s B series was 40 lighter at $12.15.

In diamond news, Tahera rose a penny or 4.5% of value to 23 on the backs of around 925,800 shares. On Monday, Tahera announced that it has submitted the final environmental impact statement for the Jericho diamond project in Nunavut. Canada’s junior exchange ended the day on a sour note dropping 11.85 points or more than 1% to 1,117.96. New Blue Ribbon Resources was the most active issue rising a penny to $3 on more than 1.2 million shares with no news issued.

Quaterra Resources retreated to the tune of 3 to close at 20 on just more than a million shares. The junior has been working the Duke Island nickel-copper-platinum-palladium project in Alaska.

Tri Origin Exploration climbed 2 pennies or nearly 17% to 14. The company recently reported assay results from drilling on its Overflow property. The drilling was highlighted by two holes that cut significant gold, silver and base metal mineralization at an average depth of about 85 metres below surface. Tri Origin says the drilling establishes continuity of the Booths zone discovered last year. The discovery hole returned 5 metres running 7.61 grams gold and 36 grams silver per tonne, plus 5.1% zinc at 160 metres below surface.