U.S. markets were fragile in the Nov. 15-19 trading week

Nov. 15-19 was not a great trading week for U.S. equities. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added just 10.97 points or 0.10% to finish at 11,203.55, while the S&P 500 gained 0.52 point or 0.04% to close at 1,199.73. Just four companies on the New York Stock Exchange reached new 52-week highs: Arch Coal, HudBay Minerals, Internal Coal Group and Natural Resources PT.

As a group, coal stocks stood out and it’s no surprise if you believe a new report from Standard Chartered that identifies coal as one of the best bets (along with copper) during the current super-cycle. The report argues that the global financial crisis delayed roughly 33 million tonnes of supply from new coal mines, which means there will be a global deficit of as much as 30 million tonnes by 2018. This shortage will push up coal prices, the British financial services group claims.

Alpha Natural Resources gained US$2.18 to close at US$50.80, while Massey Energy advanced US$1.89 to US$49.01. On Nov. 18 Massey announced construction had begun on its new Pineville processing plant, which is part of its Marianna property located in Wyoming County. Peabody Energy gained US$1.59 to end the week at US$59.24, Patriot Coal rose US$1.26 to US$15.98, Arch Coal advanced US$1.20 to US$30.30 and Natural Resources PT inched up 95¢ to close at US$31.63. International Coal Group jumped 14.5% to US$7.01 per share.

Cliffs Natural Resources enjoyed the largest gain of the week, climbing US$2.54 to US$69.92 per share, on no news. The company declared a quarterly cash dividend on its common shares of 14¢ per share on Nov. 9. Compass Minerals claimed the second-highest gain, jumping US$2.23 to US$81.80. On Nov. 11 the company announced plans to use less water than it had requested to expand its solar evaporation pond system at its Great Salt Lake operation in Utah. The cornerstone of the water reduction is the company’s patent-pending technology, which increases the efficiency of its solar evaporation ponds by 60%.

Gold stocks performed poorly. The price of gold dropped US$14.70 per oz. or 1.07% to close in New York at US$1,354.10, while the Philadelphia Gold and Silver index shed 3.73 points or 1.74% to 212.37. Randgold Resources lost US$1.84 to finish at US$96.67, Agnico-Eagle Gold Mines ended the week down US$1.64 at US$78.18, and Royal Gold dropped US$1.22 to US$50.67.