Toronto Stock Exchange Hair curling pace of trading gives way to

After the hair-curling pace of trading in the first six weeks of the year when prices and volume were pushed to record highs, the market took a breather this week as investors paused for some profit taking. The composite 300 netted 37.52 on the week to close at 3,485.69. The gold and silver index won 233.51 pts to close the week at 6,454.88, while the price of the yellow metal closed on the Montreal spot market today at $401.75(US)-bid $402.75(US) ask. Metals and minerals gained 33.70 to 2,339.80.

Grinding the rumour mill to a halt, Murray Pezim has made it official. He has no plans to acquire control of International Corona Resources.

He made the announcement this afternoon. Earlier in the day, however, he told reporters at the Corona annual meeting that he and his associates plan to acquire control of Corono on the open market. But this was simply his frustration talking, he says, after two of his associates failed to get re-elected to the Corona board.

Corona ended the week at $36.25, up $1.63. Mr Pezim’s flagship Galveston Resources which was to be used as the instrument to take over Corona, gained $2.75 on the week to $20.88.

Royex Gold Mining Corp which has a 38% stake in Corona won 50 cents on the week to $4.55. The company has acquired control of Lacana Mining for $52.3 million. Lacana closes at $10, down 75 cents on the week.

Corona, meanwhile, is still awaiting the decision from the court of appeal as to the ownership of the Hemlo Page-Williams mine. The orginal decision transferring the mine from Lac Minerals was handed down March 7, 1986 just prior to the start of annual Prospectors and Developers Association convention. Not to say that there is any sort of connection between these two events, but this year’s PDA convention starts on March 8.

Lac closed the week at an even $36, up a $1.38. Campbell Red Lake which has an approximate 4% stake in Lac closed unchanged at $30.50. Parent company of Campbell, Dome Mines was busy and better all week with a jump of $1.25 to $13.

That Echo Bay Resources. With 480,000 oz of gold estimated to be produced this year from six mines, the company has come a long way from the 118, 000 oz poured back in 1983 from its then only operation, the Lupin. Up $2.26 on the week, its shares ended the week at $38.50.

Nuinsco Resources, Echo Bay’s partner on the Cameron Lake gold project, fared well over the week by netting 14 cents to close at $2.68.

A $5 million underground exploration program is planned on the Golden Pond West Zone in the Casa Berardi area by partners Inco Ltd and Golden Knight Resources. Details are still to be announced, but Golden Knight says it has entered into a flow-through private placement for total proceeds of up to $2 million to finance its 40% share of the program.

These two companies are currently reviewing the completed feasibility study on the Golden Pond East zone where reserves stand at 8 million tons of 0.23 oz gold per ton. Geological resources at the West zone stand in excess of 2 million tons of 0.21 oz gold per ton.

Inco ended the week at $18.75 up a dollar, while the Knight lost 63 cents , despite a 75 cents charge on the day, to close at $16.50. Teck Corp which holds 30% of Golden Knight was up 75 cents on the week to close at $28.

Hemlo Gold Mines, which holds as its asset the Hemlo Golden Giant mine, starts to trade on the TSE tomorrow (Feb 12) at which time Goliath Gold Mines and Golden Sceptre Resources will be delisted. They will be replaced by two new companies New Goliath Minerals and New Golden Sceptre Minerals.

The old Goliath and Sceptre end their stay on the TSE with a bang. Over the week, Goliath won 75 cents to close at $24.25, while Sceptre was up 26 cents to $21.75.

Noranda Inc has put 12.2 million shares of Hemlo Gold for sale thereby reducing its stake in the company to 50.1% from 62.4%. Noranda traded unchanged this week at $25.25.

Nickel producer Falconbridge Ltd was the week’s most active trader with a gain of 88 cents to close at $18.25. It has netted $75 million (US) from the sale of its stake in Western Platinum, a South African platinum group metals producer. TSE SHORT POSITIONS

Semi-monthly report as of Jan 31 showed 15,131,220 shares of 668 issues compared with 13,267,266 shares of 638 issues of Jan 15. Larger individual positions include:

Atlas Yellowknife 50,000 up 30,000; Aur Res. 39,593; Bow Valley Inc. 434,173 up 85,768; Cambior 102,400 up 100,800; Campbell Res. 115,000; Dome Mines 41,400 up 34,700; Dome Pete. 391,269 down 32,400; Dynamar 65,000; Echo Bay 31,200; Falconbridge 314,700 up 85,300; Goldex 38,435; Inco 251,200 up 233,900; Intl Corona 33,400 up 17,200; Lytton 40,500 up 40,500; Muscocho 167,500; Northumberland 45,000 up 28,500; Nu-West 96,100; Placer 147,900; Poco 76,700 up 74,400; Pure Gold 58,900 up 29,500; Scarboro 85,500; Seabright A 88,500; Sullivan 63,000; Terra 176,600 up 42,300; Turbo 51,500.