Trading Summary (October 03, 2003)

The Toronto Stock Exchange’s gold index plummeted 6.44 points, or 3.3%, to 187.41, as the yellow metal saw US$13.70 per oz. carved form its hide to end the week at US$368.70 in New York, its lowest level since late August. The diversified miners ended 0.87 of a point higher at 166.77. Overall, the S&P/TSX composite index shed 21.83 o finish at 7,519.59.

McWatters Mining remained a hot issue dropping another 0.5 to 4.5 with more than 10.2 million shares on the go. The Quebec miner has suspended mining at its Sigma-Lamaque open-pit gold mine to stop the outflow of cash.

Not great surprise, most of Canada’s gold stocks finished in the red. Bigger losses were seen by River Gold Mines, off 8.7% at $3.35, Pacific Rim Mining, minus 7.7% to 84, High River Gold Mines, off 62% to $$2.11, and Yamana Resources, which slid 18% to $2.05. Standing out on the plus side were Crystallex International, plus 8 to $3.15, and Homestake Canada, which made a nickel to reach $13.48.

Breakwater Resources stood out among the base metal issues with more than 2 million shares finding their way 5.5, or about 14%, higher to 45. The company has enjoyed a brighter outlook on zinc in recent weeks. Ivanhoe Mines was close behind rising 35 to $8.10. Inco gained a dime to make $38.55.

On Friday, the nickel giant cut the ribbon on a 1-to-10,000 scale pilot plant in Mississauga, Ont. The plant is designed to test the company’s hydrometallurgical processing technology, which it plans to use on concentrates from the massive Voisey’s Bay nickel-copper-cobalt project

Canada’s junior ended the trading week on a sour note gold-related companies selling off with the price of bullion. The S&P-TSX Venture Exchange composite index plunged 17.20 points, or 1.24%, and closed at 1,375.84.

Spider Resources added 1.5 to close at 12 on 4.6 million shares traded. The junior along with partner KWG Resources have been working the McFauld’s Lake massive sulphide project in the James Bay lowlands of Ontario. At last report, 6 new electromagnetic anomalies have been delineated by the AEM survey on the joint venture property in the immediate vicinity of the McFauld’s occurrence. KWG closed at 18, up 5.5 on 1.37 million shares traded.

Investors bid up shares in Lateegra Resources following news that the junior cut 2.4 oz gold per ton over 27.8 ft on the Clone property, located southeast of Stewart, British Columbia. Hole 2 was a re-drilled hole from a 1997 program. The first two holes of the current campaign are collared in an attempt to confirm historical results from two of the 140 holes drilled on the property during the period from 1995-97. DDH#CL-03-02 was sited close to the collar of, and with the same dip and attitude as, hole 110 (drilled in 1996) which returned 32.9 feet grading 1.28 oz gold. Lateegra ended the day at 29, up 2.5 on 1.9 million shares traded.

A falling bullion price dragged American Bonanza Gold Mines off a 52-week high. Shares in the junior fell 2.5 to close at 29.5 on a volume of 567,144. The company plans on mobilizing a second underground core drilling rig and a surface rig to its Copperstone gold project in Arizona. Work is also slated to resume on the junior’s Gold Bar property located in the Battle Mountain-Eureka mineral belt in central Nevada.