TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE MAY 13-16

The TSX Venture Composite Index rose 35 points to 2,611.32 over the Victoria Day-shortened May 13-16 trading period, as stronger materials prices and speculation over a new coal source in Saskatchewan helped entice investors back into the fold.

The price of gold broke above the US$900-per-oz. mark once again, and was trading at US$919 per oz. at presstime. Copper, aluminum, lead and zinc prices all made gains over the week, while nickel and tin fell.

But the most significant driver for a group of companies was the ripple effect caused by two Goldsource Mines drill holes that cut Saskatchewan coal. The results from those holes, released on April 28, continued to move shares of North American Gem, Cloudbreak Resources and WestCan Uranium — the latest to make land grabs around the Goldsource find.

Saturn Minerals, one of the first to acquire land after Goldsource’s announcement, continued to trade on a heavy volume of 9.4 million shares but saw its share price dip slightly to 31 for the period.

North American Gem attracted the most attention on news that it had doubled its land position in the area to 3,700 sq. km. The stock gained 5 to finish at 27 on 80 million shares traded.

News that Cloudbreak Resources had submitted permit applications for land near Goldsource’s was enough to make the junior the period’s largest gainer by percentage. Cloudbreak finished the period up 166% at 8.

Goldsource Mines saw its shares skyrocket to $7.26 from just 30 in a matter of weeks after it announced it had struck a possible coal seam while exploring for kimberlites in the area.

Goldsource says the coal is likely from the Cretaceous age — structures from the period can encompass several thousand square kilometres.

But the trading session also showed the cooling of some of the initial euphoria that had carried companies like WestCan Uranium and Swift Resources to new heights. West-Can fell 40% to 6, while Swift Resources tumbled 36 to 43. Both companies had enjoyed significant spikes on the heels of the Goldsource news.

Keeping with coal, but moving south of the 49th parallel, West Hawk Development had a strong session, trading 13 million shares and gaining 7 to finish at 31. The increased activity reflected a busy week for the company as it announced a new acquisition of a coal mine and coal-bed methane gas operation in Oklahoma and Arkansas from a private company. It also announced it had come to terms with creditors over debt owed connected to its Figure Four natural gas property in Colorado.