The S&P/TSX Venture composite index continued to break 52-week highs, gaining 38.69 points over the Nov. 17-23 reporting period to close at 1,416.63. Strong commodity prices bolstered investor appetite for the mining sector. The price of gold pressed closer to US$1,200 per oz., while copper held above US$3 per lb. Translation of those prices to the Venture board meant a basket full of companies reached year-long share price highs. While 137 companies nipped at 52-week records on the upside, only 20 fell to 52-week lows. Another measure of investor hunger was high-octane volumes on the Venture board. Daily trading volume averaged 146 million and accelerated over the five-day period. It was 126 million on the first day of that period but 171 million on the last.
Quest Uranium made solid gains, up 49¢ to $3.11, on exploration news. The company followed up on its earlier discovery of a large magnetic anomaly 120 km south of its Strange Lake project. The anomaly, a concentric circle 6 km in diameter, produced a number of rare earth grab samples with compellingly high grades. One grab sample returned as much as 8.56% total rare earth oxides. The Strange Lake project, in Quebec, is 175 km northeast of Schefferville.
For Clifton Star Resources, the announcement of a sizable earn-in agreement helped boost its share price 69¢ to $3.80. Osisko Mining wants in on Clifton’s Duparquet project and may be willing to spend as much as $70 million by Jan. 1, 2013, in return for a 50% interest. As part of a newly formed joint venture on the project, in Duparquet Twp., Que., the first contribution Osisko has to make is $15 million by Jan. 1, 2010. Clifton had earlier announced that it was able to renegotiate terms of its option agreements on important concessions making up the Duparquet project. All told, Clifton is on the hook for $58.5 million by Dec. 1, 2017, on the Beattie-Donchester-Dumico properties that make up Duparquet.
Noront Resources saw its shares rise 77¢ to $2.30 on news of long intercepts with, among other metals, high-grade platinum and palladium. Drilling at the Eagle’s Nest target, on Noront’s McFauld’s Lake property, in the Ring of Fire, hit as much as 22.8 metres grading 4.41% nickel, 2.38% copper, 28.08 grams platinum per tonne and 7.95 grams palladium. Another 135-metre intercept graded 1.65% nickel and 0.8% copper with platinum and palladium results pending.
A resurgent interest in Merrex Gold helped push it up 30¢ to 75¢. Merrex has spent most of 2009 in the 25¢-range. Investors’ eyes are falling on its 800-sq.-km Siribaya project in western Mali on which Iamgold has an option to earn 50%. Iamgold must spend $10.5 million over four years and appears to be well on its way. In 2009 alone, Merrex says Iamgold has spent $3 million. So far, area 55 of the project has an indicated resource of 2.1 million tonnes grading 1.81 grams gold.
| TSX-V most active issues | |||||
| VOLUME | WEEK | ||||
| (000s) | HIGH | LOW | CLOSE | CHANGE | |
| RomarcoMnrls R | 23473 | 1.84 | 1.37 | 1.73 | + 0.30 |
| Freewest Res FWR | 19733 | 0.68 | 0.43 | 0.64 | + 0.17 |
| Terrane Metals TRX | 18354 | 1.80 | 1.17 | 1.66 | + 0.50 |
| San Gold Res SGR | 17881 | 3.99 | 3.24 | 3.83 | + 0.56 |
| Noront Res NOT | 17080 | 2.48 | 1.47 | 2.30 | + 0.77 |
| Avion Res AVR | 14541 | 0.49 | 0.40 | 0.41 | -0.07 |
| Canplats Res CPQ | 13246 | 3.62 | 3.43 | 3.54 | + 0.03 |
| MacDonald Mns BMK | 11991 | 0.17 | 0.11 | 0.14 | + 0.04 |
| KWG Res KWG | 10909 | 0.08 | 0.06 | 0.06 | 0.00 |
| US Silver USA | 10483 | 0.20 | 0.18 | 0.20 | + 0.01 |
| TSX-V greatest percentage change | ||||||
| VOLUME | WEEK | |||||
| (000s) | HIGH | LOW | CLOSE | CHANGE | ||
| Diamcor Mng | DMI | 185 | 0.38 | 0.20 | 0.38 | +111.1 |
| Hansa Res | HRL | 366 | 0.12 | 0.06 | 0.12 | +100.0 |
| Altoro Gold | ATG | 258 | 0.27 | 0.17 | 0.26 | + 73.3 |
| Nevada Sunrise | NEV | 150 | 0.12 | 0.07 | 0.12 | + 71.4 |
| Threegold Res | THG | 3039 | 0.20 | 0.12 | 0.20 | + 66.6 |
| J. A. G. Mines | JML | 2571 | 0.26 | 0.13 | 0.20 | + 66.6 |
| Merrex Gold | MXI | 1428 | 0.77 | 0.39 | 0.75 | + 66.6 |
| La Quinta Res | LAQ | 380 | 0.08 | 0.05 | 0.08 | + 60.0 |
| Northern Gld M | NGM | 1553 | 0.23 | 0.14 | 0.22 | + 57.1 |
| Skeena Res | SKE | 2191 | 0.17 | 0.09 | 0.14 | + 55.5 |
| Sola Res | SL | 915 | 0.02 | 0.01 | 0.01 | -50.0 |
| Senator Minls | SNR | 244 | 0.10 | 0.06 | 0.06 | -45.4 |
| Thunder Sword | THU | 10 | 0.05 | 0.05 | 0.05 | -37.5 |
| Paget Mnls | PGS | 52 | 0.13 | 0.10 | 0.10 | -37.5 |
| Decade Res | DEC | 8259 | 0.52 | 0.25 | 0.30 | -36.1 |
| Zinco Mng | ZIM | 14 | 0.10 | 0.10 | 0.10 | -33.3 |
| Canstar Res | ROX | 1385 | 0.17 | 0.10 | 0.10 | -33.3 |
| Leeward Capitl | LWC | 517 | 0.03 | 0.02 | 0.02 | -33.3 |
| Avanti Mng | AVT | 1418 | 0.30 | 0.16 | 0.17 | -32.0 |
| Geo Minerals | GM | 3485 | 0.18 | 0.12 | 0.13 | -27.7 |
| TSX-V greatest value change | ||||
| WEEK | ||||
| VOLUME | CLOSE | CHANGE | ||
| Noront Res | NOT | 17079951 | 2.30 | + 0.77 |
| Clifton Star | CFO | 585289 | 3.80 | + 0.69 |
| San Gold Res | SGR | 17881326 | 3.83 | + 0.56 |
| Terrane Metals | TRX | 18353517 | 1.66 | + 0.50 |
| Quest Uranium | QUC | 2107237 | 3.11 | + 0.49 |
| Merrex Gold | MXI | 1428164 | 0.75 | + 0.30 |
| Romarco Mnrls | R | 23473353 | 1.73 | + 0.30 |
| Amazon Mng | AMZ | 1508731 | 1.30 | + 0.30 |
| Quaterra Res | QTA | 1176445 | 1.44 | + 0.29 |
| Canadn Shield | EXP | 106390 | 0.99 | + 0.27 |
| Bear Creek Mng | BCM | 677533 | 3.98 | -0.18 |
| Decade Res | DEC | 8259017 | 0.30 | -0.17 |
| Adriana Res | ADI | 699700 | 0.55 | -0.15 |
| Chesapeake Gld | CKG | 104643 | 5.32 | -0.13 |
| Hathor Expl | HAT | 1927116 | 1.74 | -0.13 |
| East Asia Mnls | EAS | 1965131 | 1.86 | -0.13 |
| Soltoro | SOL | 316200 | 0.37 | -0.13 |
| Goldsource Min | GXS | 152035 | 1.49 | -0.12 |
| Andina Mnls | ADM | 3285081 | 1.70 | -0.12 |
| Intl Wayside G | WYG | 1178530 | 0.78 | -0.12 |
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