Gold miners take a beating

Denver — The Dow Jones industrial average climbed 281.69 points, or 2.8%, during the report period ended July 31 to close at 10,522.81, while spot gold on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange slipped to US$266.20 per oz.

Gold issues took it on the chin, with Newmont Mining dipping $1.94 to close at US$18.70. South Africa’s AngloGold fell $1.29 to US$17.76, despite posting higher earnings in the second quarter; Ashanti Goldfields shed 30 to US$3.45 off the previous week’s 12-month high; Nasdaq-listed Gold Fields sunk 20 to US$4.13; Harmony Gold Mining lost 37 to US$5.08; and Durban Roodepoort Deeps plunged 14 to US79. Homestake Mining dropped 36 to US$7.60, and Glamis Gold gave up 26 to close at US$2.87. Meridian Gold bucked the downward trend, jumping $1.13 to US$8.89 after posting strong second-quarter earnings.

Class A and B shares of Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold fell 98 and $1.14, respectively, to close at US$9.76 and US$10.76, after nervous investors balked at the company’s plan to extend bank debt. Phelps Dodge picked up 59 to close at US$40.40, despite weak copper prices at US68 per lb. BHP Billiton gained 30 to close at US$9.85, while Rio Tinto rose $2.41 to US$67.21.

Further weakness in silver held down Apex Silver Mines, which dropped 45 to US$9.63, while New York Stock Exchange-listed Coeur d’Alene Mines fell 12 to US93. Platinum-miner Stillwater Mining advanced $1.10 to US$25.80, while Nasdaq-listed junior Royal Gold slumped 22 to US$4.53.