Trading Summary (March 14, 2003)

Bargain hunters pushed Toronto golds stocks 6.2 points or more than 4% higher to a 156.47-point close on Friday. The diversified miners lagged behind, but still managed to gain 1.43 points to 125.6. Overall, the S&P/TSX Composite Index ended the week 9.05 points higher at 6,304.49.

TVI Pacific shot to the head of the TSX’s top ten most traded list as nearly 17.3 million shares traded their way half a penny higher to 9.5. There was no news out of the company on Friday.

Major producers Kinross, up 68 to $9.08 on about half as many shares, and Placer Dome, 55 richer at $13.75 on short of 3.8 million shares, were the only other gold issues to make the list. Canada’s remaining major producer Barrick Gold managed to scrape together 78 to make $21.68 with fewer than 1.9 million shares changing hands.

Most of the remaining gold issues put in gains. Wheaton River Minerals finished 8 higher at $1.23. Wheaton will post its fourth-quarter and year-end 2002 financial results after business hours on Mar. 19

Inco led the base metal miners with more than a million shares finding their way 16 to $29.56. LionOre Mining International grabbed 2 pennies to reach $5.57 on about 620,000 shares. The two recently agreed to a "strategic alliance" to explore some of LionOre’s tenements in Australia. The deal also includes a life-of-mine off-take agreement on the junior’s nearby Maggie Hays nickel mine.

Canada’s junior exchange ended the week with a flurry of buying as investors went shopping for gold shares. The S&P-TSX Venture Exchange composite index gained 12.86 points, or 1.2%, and closed at 1,069.56.

Ecu Silver Mining was the most actively traded issue, losing 1 to close at 6 on nearly 1.5 million shares. In February, the junior reinitiated production at the Santa Juana mine in Mexico. Initial work is focussing on three veins; the ‘B’ vein where 45 samples returned an average of 3.48 grams gold over 1.16 metres, the ‘CC’ vein with 63 samples averaging 6.88 grams gold and 299 grams silver over 1.18 metres and the ‘G1’ vein with 90 samples grading 5.72 grams gold and 403 grams silver over 1.33 metres.

Spider Resources continued to attract the eye of traders, ending the day flat at 8, on just over 1 million shares. The junior and joint venture partner KWG Resources have launched a 1,000 metre diamond drilling program on their Spider #3 base metal prospect in the James Bay Lowlands of Northern Ontario.

American Bonanza Gold Mining recovered all the ground it lost earlier in the week, surging 3 to close at 27 with 823,000 shares traded. The junior is currently exploring the Copperstone gold project in Arizona from underground.

IMA Explorations lost 1 to close at 86 on 667,253 shares. Stock in the junior ran up to over $1 on news of a grassroots high-grade silver discovery in the Patagonia region of southern Argentina.

Goldminco continued to trade heavily with little impact on its share price. The Perth-based junior ended the day at 12, down a penny on a volume of 529,000. Initial results from the Balabag gold-silver property in the Philippines are expected any day now. At last report, the company was drilling the third hole.