Trading Summary (September 12, 2003)

The diversified miners, up 0.84 of a point to 157.75, led just three other Toronto Stock Exchange subindices higher on Friday. The gold headed the other way to the tune of 4.9 points, or 2.4%, to end at 200.18. Overall, the S&P/TSX composite index finished 18.41 points lighter at 7,580.07.

Gold major Kinross Gold ended the day atop the TSX, watching nearly 35 million shares fall 16 to $10.89 as the yellow metal shed US$4.30 to end the week at US$375 per oz. in New York. Fellow majors Barrick Gold and Placer Dome followed suit, shedding 96 and 39, respectively. Barrick ended at $26.90 while placed limped in at $19.04.

On Friday, NovaGold Resources announced that it has arranged a bought deal with a group of underwriters led by Salman Partners involving 5 million units at $5 apiece for gross proceeds of $25 million. The underwriters can buy up to another 2 million like-priced units for 2 days prior to closing. NovaGold will use the proceeds for development at the Rock Creek and Nome Gold properties.

Crystallex International continued to retreat from recent gains, falling 35 to $3.35. The company recently tabled a positive feasibility for a 300,000-oz.-per-year operation at the Las Cristinas gold project in Bolivar state, Venezuela.

Shares in aluminum giant Alcan jumped $4.64, or 10%, to a new 52-week high of $52.83, after French rival Pechiney agreed to a sweetened takeover bid valued at about 4 billion euro.

In the lower ranks, Breakwater Resources added 4, or about 14%, to make 33 with just short of 3.8 million shares traded. There was no immediate news out of the zinc miner.

Canada’s junior exchange closed the week with advancing stocks beating declining stocks, 403 to 347. The S&P Composite Index finished at 1374.55, up 5.83 points, or 0.43%, on a volume of 74.8 million shares.

Endeavour Mining Capital tacked on 4 $2.94 with 5.5 million shares traded. The company invests and partners with aggressive and focused management teams that hold quality mining projects. The company reported a net income of US$8.7 million or US$0.70 per share (or approximately CDN$0.97 per share) recorded for the 8-month period ended August 31, 2002.

American Bonanza Gold Mining closed the week up 2 to 35 with 1.78 million shares traded. The company reports that exploration work is scheduled to resume shortly at the Gold Bar Property located in the Battle Mountain/Eureka mineral belt in central Nevada. A drill rig will be mobilized as soon as possible.

Diagem International Resource closed down a penny to 35 with 1.5 million shares traded. Diagem reports that the first two week s of commercial mining operations yielded diamonds weighing 228 carat. The company is mining its Fazenda Chicoria diamondiferous gravel resource block in the Juina Diamond Province, in the state of Mato Grosso, Brazil.