Trading Summary (December 30, 2003)

The Toronto stock market retreated Tuesday after the previous day’s big gain, with the TSX Composite index down 46.79 points at 8,213.75. The resource equities led the market downward, as the TSX Gold index lost 4.72 points, or 2% of value, to finish at 229.31, and the TSX Metals and Mining index 4.04 points to finish at 230.30.

The profit-takers presumably didn’t hear much about the bullion market, which was making another new high even as the gold equities were falling. London bullion dealers fixed gold at US$416.25 per oz. in the afternoon session, up US$4.25 from the previous day, and Comex trading closed at US$416.40. Silver also had a good day, with the London fix set at US$5.91 per oz. and Comex trading finishing at US$5.97.

Big decliners among the golds were Placer Dome, off 98 at $23.07, Wheaton River Minerals, down 16 at $3.87, and Golden Star Resources, back 40 at $9.32. Wheaton was the volume leader, with 4.1 million shares changing hands, and Placer was runner-up with 2.8 million shares moving.

Base metal prices in the London Metal Exchange ring were mostly lower; nickel was off US$140 at US$16,530 per tonne and copper down US$14.50 at US$2,278.50.

The base metal stocks mainly fell back; Inco was down $2.11 at $51.52 while Noranda slid 47 to $20.53.