Wheaton-Iamgold wedding steals show

The S&P-TSX Composite Index gathered 246.78 points to end the March 31-to-April 6 report period at 8,832.71. The gains were not a result of the golds, which fell 3.43 points to 226.44. The price of the yellow metal fell US$5.80 and finished the period at US$418.50 per oz. in New York on April 6.

The diversified metals & mining index managed to gain 5.8 points, or 2.6%, to 228.83, mostly on the strength of nickel, which gained US$240 to finish as US$14,125 per tonne.

Still, it was gold miners Wheaton River Minerals and Iamgold that finished atop the TSX’s most-traded list after the pair announced plans to merge and become Canada’s fourth-biggest gold miner. Wheaton fell 14 over the period to come in at $4.34, while Iamgold dropped 21 to $8.37. Wheaton was trading at $4.12, and Iamgold, at $9.35, on March 30, the day before the deal was announced. Shareholders will vote on the all-stock deal in June.

Toronto’s diamond crowd was busy, with Tahera leading the way in terms of volume. The issue ended 3 higher at 38 with nearly 13 million shares traded. Tahera recently appointed Daniel Johnson as executive vice-president of operations. He will oversee construction and development of the Jericho diamond project in Nunavut, which is expected to be up and running as early as 2005.

Fellow diamond issue Rex Diamond Mining was less fortunate, falling as low as 57 at mid-period; the shares recovered slightly to end a nickel lower at 67. The government of Sierra Leone recently cancelled the company’s mining leases. Rival DiamondWorks jumped 20 to $3.10 after picking up one of those licences.

Also heading south was diamond explorer Mountain Province Diamonds, which dropped 5 to finish at $2.35. The company recently cancelled more than 16 million of its shares held by subsidiary Mountain Glen Mining. The move is part of the amalgamation of the subsidiary with Glenmore Highlands in 2000. MPV now has around 51.2 million shares issued and outstanding.

Turning to the diversified miners, Teck Cominco resumed shipping lead from its Trail smelter in British Columbia. Deliveries had been suspended after an explosion damaged a furnace and boiler in early February. The company’s B series gained 21 to make $24.68.

News that uranium giant Cameco will bring the Inkai uranium mine in Kazakstan into commercial production in 2007 sent shares $1.03 higher to $66.26. In Canada, Cameco has agreed to subscribe for up to 2 million shares in uranium explorer UEX at 50 per share. Cameco already has a 28.4% stake in UEX, which was formed with Pioneer Metals in late 2001 to explore the Athabasca Basin of Saskatchewan. UEX rose a dime to 84, while Pioneer edged a penny higher to 32.

Among the remaining uranium issues, International Uranium retreated 30 to $2.58, while Dension Mines lost a quarter to settle at $7.95. There was no immediate news regarding either company.