TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE – DECEMBER 2-8

It was another tough week for the S&P-TSX Venture composite index over the Dec. 2-8 trading session. One day of gain did little to offset four days of losses, leaving the board down 40.94 points at 698.18 at the end of the week. The last time the index fell below 700 points was in August 1998. Daily trading volumes were strong, averaging out to 86.2 million.

If anyone needed more evidence of the market’s bearish nature of late, 472 juniors fell to new share prices lows over the week, while only two climbed to new highs.

One of the juniors that hit a new high did so for the second week in a row. Macarthur Minerals gained as much as 37¢ to $2.49 during the period, still riding news that LPD Holdings is paying $100 million to up its stake in Macarthur’s Lake Giles iron ore project to 80% from 30%. MacArthur closed the week at $2.20.

Despite news that it produced its first million tonnes of coal at its Ovoot Tolgoi mine in Mongolia ahead of schedule and below budget, SouthGobi Energy Resources lost more over the week than any other junior. The company’s shares fell $1.20 to $5.30. For those first million tonnes of coal, the production cash cost came in at US$8.20 per tonne, more than 30% under budget. South-Gobi expects to produce 2.9 million tonnes of coal in 2009.

Investors did not take well to a scoping study for Rocky Mountain Resources’ Gibellini vanadium project, pushing the company’s share price down 45¢ to 50¢. The study predicted an 8.5-year mine life, a 27% internal rate of return, and a capital cost of $88 million for the Nevada project.

Goldsource Mines– the diamond-seeking junior that instead hit coal in Saskatchewan this summer and saw its share price jump an incredulous 6,000% to $19 — seems to be regaining investor interest. The junior’s share price had settled to the $1-mark in recent months, but over the trading week gained 24¢ to close at $1.52.

News that Archangel Diamond notified its partner-to-be in the Verkhotina diamond project in Russia, OAO Lukoil, of a termination event, sent the junior’s shares plunging 60% to 12¢. If Archangel has not rescinded its termination notice within 30 days, it can cancel the joint-venture arrangement, which would have seen it pick up 49.9% of Verkhotina for $100 million up front, plus $75 million on a development decision and $50 million at the start of commercial production. Archangel failed to close a US$172.4-million private placement in October, leaving it short on funds for the initial payment.

Hathor Exploration stayed hot over the week, gaining 23¢ to close at $2.73 on 3.3 million trades. The junior, which is preparing for a winter drilling program at its high-grade uranium discovery in Saskatchewan, didn’t release any news.

And a 70-metre intercept grading 6.1 grams gold per tonne lifted Bravo Venture Group’s share price 11¢ over the week to close at 54¢.

TSX-V greatest value change
WEEK
		VOLUME	CLOSE	CHANGE
Pac Booker Min	BKM	32765	4.30	+ 0.43
Goldsource Min	GXS	186396	1.52	+ 0.24
Hathor Expl	HAT	3322633	2.73	+ 0.23
Rare Elemnt Rs	RES	113930	0.46	+ 0.16
Bear Creek Mng	BCM	891800	0.93	+ 0.15
Bralorne Gold	BPM	13450	0.71	+ 0.11
Bravo Vent	BVG	971155	0.54	+ 0.11
Olivut Res	OLV	651300	0.27	+ 0.11
Empire Mng	EPC	46080	0.15	+ 0.10
Quaterra Res	QTA	457550	0.70	+ 0.10
SouthGobi Engy	SGQ	36650	5.30	-1.20
Rocky Mtn Res	RKY	40500	0.50	-0.45
Exeter Res	XRC	136928	1.47	-0.28
Whitemud Res	WMK	76920	1.08	-0.27
Maudore Minls	MAO	50500	1.28	-0.18
Archangel Dia	AAD	425150	0.12	-0.18
Alder Res	ALR	14500	0.23	-0.17
Antares Minls	ANM	206400	0.44	-0.16
Petromin Res	PTR	43700	0.10	-0.16
Dundarave Res	DDX	23649	0.22	-0.14

TSX-V greatest percentage change
		VOLUME	WEEK
		(000s)	HIGH	LOW	CLOSE	CHANGE
Chilean Gold	CHN	18	0.06	0.04	0.06	+200.0
Ross River Mnl	RRM	720	0.04	0.01	0.03	+200.0
Empire Mng	EPC	46	0.15	0.05	0.15	+200.0
Durango Cap	DGO	360	0.06	0.03	0.05	+150.0
Prospctr C Res	PRR	1286	0.06	0.02	0.05	+150.0
Alto Vent	ATV	212	0.03	0.01	0.02	+100.0
Am Copper	AJ	305	0.03	0.02	0.02	+100.0
Kenrich-Eskay	KRE	843	0.05	0.03	0.04	+100.0
Northrock Res	NRK	12	0.10	0.10	0.10	+100.0
Intl PBX Vent	PBX	118	0.06	0.04	0.06	+100.0
Great Quest Me	GQ	87	0.03	0.02	0.02	-71.4
Island Arc Exp	IAX	272	0.04	0.01	0.01	-66.6
Williams Creek	WCX	50	0.04	0.01	0.01	-66.6
E-Energy Vent	EEV	969	0.05	0.01	0.03	-62.5
Petromin Res	PTR	44	0.10	0.02	0.10	-61.5
Archangel Dia	AAD	425	0.30	0.05	0.12	-60.0
Rio Cristal Zn	RCZ	405	0.02	0.02	0.02	-60.0
Lomiko Res	LMR	87	0.06	0.02	0.05	-58.3
Halo Res	HLO	355	0.04	0.01	0.03	-57.1
Aura Silver Rs	AUU	24	0.05	0.03	0.03	-57.1

TSX-V most active issues
	VOLUME	WEEK
	(000s)	HIGH	LOW	CLOSE	CHANGE
WSR Gold WSR	12655	0.04	0.03	0.03	0.00
Continuum Res CNU	11965	0.03	0.03	0.03	0.00
Patrician Diam PXC	9761	0.01	0.01	0.01	0.00
Axmin Inc AXM	9475	0.05	0.03	0.04	-0.01
Largo Res LGO	8094	0.08	0.05	0.08	+ 0.01
MacDonald Mns BMK	7365	0.05	0.03	0.04	-0.01
Dynamite Res DNR	6607	0.05	0.02	0.04	-0.01
Zoloto Res ZR	5768	0.05	0.04	0.04	-0.01
MBMI Res MBR	5337	0.04	0.03	0.04	0.00
Ecometals EML	5220	0.04	0.03	0.03	0.00