Market news: Toronto Stock Exchange

The Toronto stock market ended the trading week lower, with the S&P/TSX Composite Index losing 48 points to close at 12,768.83.

This downward trend continued with the S&P/TSX Capped Diversified Metals and Mining Index giving back roughly 10 points to 1,016.04, while the S&P/TSX Global Gold Index slid nearly a point to 279.99, despite the gold spot price gaining US$8.30 to end at US$1,667.60 per oz. gold.

White Tiger Gold was the week’s biggest percentage gainer, soaring 156% to 15¢, after announcing that it has built a new power line and commissioned a new crushing and screening unit for its Savkino gold mine in Siberia. The company says the power line will supply more reliable power to Savkino while the crushing and screening unit will boost the mine’s current processing capacity to over 9,000 tonnes per day from 4,000 daily tonnes. Last year, the open-pit heap-leach operation churned out 18,261 oz. gold. But with these improvements, the mine is expected to produce 48,000 oz. gold in 2013.

Positive drill results lifted Marathon Gold up 44% to 75¢. The junior released additional results from deep drilling at the Main zone on the Leprechaun gold deposit, where the best intercept returned 6.3 metres averaging 9.57 grams gold per tonne, including nearly a metre of 35 grams gold. The Leprechaun deposit is in the southwestern portion of Marathon’s wholly owned Valentine Lake project in Newfoundland, where it is working on a 10,000-metre winter drill program.

Northcliff Resources jumped after the company published a positive feasibility study on the Sisson tungsten-molybdenum project in New Brunswick. The study shows Sisson could produce 557,000 mtu of tungsten trioxide and 4.1 million lb. moly for 27 years. Initial costs to build the project are pegged at $579 million, with construction expected to start next year. Northcliff gained 39% to close at 39¢.

First Majestic Silver was one of the top gainers of the week, adding 74¢ to close at $18.34 on no news. The latest announced it made was on Jan. 25 announcing first silver production at its Del Toro mine in Mexico’s Zacatecas state. The mine is expected to ramp up to full production in late 2014. Once it does, it is projected to be the firm’s largest mine, producing at an annualized rate of 6 million oz. silver a year, along with lead and zinc by-products. First Majestic, which now has five mines in Mexico, is guiding 2013 production of 11.1 million to 11.7 million oz. silver.

“We view First Majestic as an emerging major primary silver producer [plus 16 million oz. annual silver production by 2015E] that offers one of the best [production and cash-flow] growth profiles in the silver sector,” Raymond James writes, adding that the company is one of its preferred silver stocks for 2013.

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