Vancouver Stock Exchange Market back in neutral territory

The Vancouver market has moved back into neutral territory following yesterday’s 16-point loss. By presstime, the VSE index was up marginally to 1,860.6 pts and most issues were trading within narrow ranges. A nice jump in gold prices would probably get things rolling again which seems possible given the situation in the Middle East. One missile attack on a U.S.-flagged tanker or warship could set things off and oil prices would also benefit. Reporting the largest volume at presstime was newly listed Micronesian Mineral Resources, which traded at $1.70 on a turnover of 1.75 million shares. Rex Silver Mines was also active, rising 17 cents to $2.40 and Celebrity Energy posted an 8 cents increase to 35 cents . A few weeks ago, Rex announced it had acquired a 50% interest in a gold property near Flagstaff, Ariz., which the company argues has a “potentially extensive accessible orebody.” Celebrity has ground in the Adams Lake area near Kamloops, B.C., where Minnova has reported a high grade polymetallic mineral discovery.

Several stocks posted strong gains today in light volume. Coastline Petroleum was ahead 40 cents to $1.80 and Silver Cloud Mines gained 20 cents to 80 cents . Coastline recently changed control and the new owners intend to invest in gold-mining joint ventures. Encouraging gold values have been reported from a major drill program on Silver Cloud’s Yellow claim on Vancouver Island. Reward Resources and Angle Resources are also involved. Consolidated McKinney was still halted at presstime and the last trade was $5.75

Delaware Resource Corp. posted one of the largest increases over our report period, climbing $1.88 to $8.13. Exploration is continuing with two diamond drills on Delaware’s Snip prospect north of Stewart, B.C. Brohm Resources, the controlling shareholder in Blackdome Mining, was 75 cents better at $11.75 and Indian River ended the week up 65 cents to $1.75. Echo Mountain was the volume leader with a turnover of 1.1 million shares. The stock was ahead 44 cents to $1.50

New listings for the week included New Fibers International (formerly Galilean Resources), Pacvest Capital (formerly Copconda York), Ram Aesthetic Materials, Alta Explorations (formerly Knie Resources), International Marketech (formerly International Royalon), Condor Precious Metals and Max Minerals.