Trading Summary (July 08, 2004)

The gold stocks provided nearly the only glimmer of light on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Thursday, ending 2.9 points, or 1.4%, higher at 206.1. The climb was powered by the yellow metal, which gained US$5.60 per oz. to end at US$407.90 per oz. in New York. The only other subindex to end in the black was the utilities sector, which managed to scrape together 0.13 of a point to reach 142.19. In the end, the S&P-TSX Composite Index ended Thursday’s trading session 61.56 points lower at 8,420.38.

Recent regulars Wheaton River Minerals and Iamgold led the way among the miners, gaining 11 and 17 to end at $3.79 and $8.48. Iamgold shareholders recently put the kibosh on the pair’s plan to wed. Cambior was next in line advancing 18 to $4.08 on about 5.2 million shares. Cambior recently completed its acquisition of Sequoia Minerals, thereby consolidating ownership of Niobec niobium mine in St-Honore, Que. The company also signed workers at the mine to a new 4-year collective agreement.

Making a splash on Thursday were partners Bema Gold and Vancouver-listed Arizona Star Resource. The pair have threatened to take back Placer Dome‘s 51% stake in the Cerro Casale gold-copper project in northern Chile, claiming that Placer is in default of an agreement that requires the major to use reasonable efforts to establish whether financing can be found for the project. They also contend that Placer failed to deliver a report it received in April 2004 from a major international mining bank regarding the project’s financeability. Bema’s shares finished off 15, or about 4%, at $3.55; Placer dropped 3 pennies to $22.43.

Newly minted First Nickel jumped a nickel, or 11%, to 51 on about 3.2 million shares. The company completed its initial public offering for gross proceeds of $11.5 million in late June. Falconbridge was issued 18.4% of First Nickel’s issued and outstanding shares in connection with the transfer of its Dundonald property to First Nickel. First Nickel also has the right to earn up to a half-interest in 12 unpatented mining claims northwest of Timmins, and has formed a strategic alliance with Falconbridge to explore for nickel in the western Abitibi Belt.

Shares in Cumberland Resources jumped 18, or 9.4%, to $2.10 on some impressive infill drill result from the Meadowbank gold project, 70 km north of Baker Lake, Nunavut. Likewise, Claude Resources rose 12, or 9.5%, to $1.38. The company recently cut a new gold zone on the east limb of the Porky Lake anticline, 1.5 km northeast of the Main zone at the Porky Lake property in northern Sask.

Zinc miner Breakwater Resources stood out among the mostly lower base metal miners, adding a nickel to make 47. On Thursday, Breakwater wrapped up its acquisition of Boliden Westmin (Canada) from Swedish based Boliden. To do so, Breakwater forked over 18 million shares, with a value of approximately $7.5 million, and 5 million warrants exerciseable at $1 apiece until Jan. 27, 2009. Key to the deal is the Myra Falls zinc-copper mine on Vancouver Island. For their part, shares in Boliden fell 35, or 7.2%, to $4.50.

Overall, the diversified mining group dropped 2.22 points, or nearly 1%, to 222.15.