The TSX Composite Index fell slightly over the May 22-28 trading period, but stayed near all-time highs as it finished at 14,024.07, down just 81.27 points.
Expectations of mergers in the metal sector moved the Metals and Mining Index higher; it was up 11.45 points to 802.75 despite falling prices for copper, aluminum, nickel, tin and zinc.
The Global Gold Index didn’t fare so well. It fell roughly 8 points as the yellow metal lost some lustre and shed roughly US$3 to close the period at US$655.30 per oz.
On the base metal side, Alcan rejected Alcoa’s US$28-billion hostile takeover offer, calling it “inadequate in multiple respects.” Reports surfaced that Alcan is in discussions with BHP Billiton, and that Norsk Hydro and Rio Tinto are considering making separate bids.
Alcan hasn’t ruled out launching its own bid for Alcoa. Its shares were up $5.70 to $94.25 apiece for the period.
The bidding war for LionOre Mining International also gathered steam. Russia’s Norilsk Nickel countered Xstrata’s most recent bid, totalling $6.2 billion, with a $6.8-billion offer. Xstrata has until June 1 to make a better offer. LionOre shares finished the period at $28.80 on 31.7 million shares traded.
The period’s most popular miners were Starfield Resources, Equinox Minerals and Dynatec.
Starfield — which saw trading volume of 47.6 million shares — was also the period’s second largest gainer by percentage. The Vancouver-based company gained over 43% to $1.46 over the session after announcing positive results from a petrological study at its Ferguson Lake palladium-platinum-nickel-cobalt-copper project in Nunavut.
Sherritt International says if its $1.6-billion takeover of Dynatec goes through, the mining company’s share of annual production from the Moa nickel project, in Cuba, and the new Ambatovy mine, in Madagascar, should reach 50,000 tonnes of ore by 2012.
Opawica Explorations was the largest gainer by percentage after announcing it had settled the terms of a private placement, option and joint-venture agreement with Northgate Minerals.
Opawica shares were up nearly 59% to 14 on 13.4 million shares traded. Northgate is taking 10 million shares of Opawica at 7 and can now earn 55% of the mineral rights at the company’s Matachewan properties in Ontario. Many of the claims are contiguous to Northgate’s Young-Davidson gold property.
Freegold Ventures rounded out the top three, gaining 31% to $1.18 on 18.2 million shares traded. The company announced high-grade intersects from its Golden Summit project, outside Fairbanks, Alaska, including highlights of 36.7 grams gold per tonne over 1 metre, 22.2 grams gold over 1 metre, and 13.4 grams over 2 metres.
TSX most active issues
VOLUME(000s) | HIGH | LOW | CLOSE | CHANGE | ||
Starfield Res | SRU | 47694 | 1.59 | 1.01 | 1.46 | +0.44 |
Equinox Minls | EQN | 37101 | 3.10 | 2.78 | 3.08 | +0.31 |
Dynatec Corp | DY | 32951 | 5.14 | 4.68 | 5.13 | +0.28 |
LionOre Mng In | LIM | 31714 | 28.69 | 26.75 | 28.08 | +0.44 |
Rio Narcea Gld | RNG | 28117 | 5.76 | 5.25 | 5.55 | +0.10 |
South Am Gld&C | SAG | 22178 | 0.065 | 0.04 | 0.055 | +0.005 |
Breakwater Res | BWR | 20902 | 2.54 | 2.21 | 2.42 | +0.01 |
Eastern Platin | ELR | 20617 | 2.70 | 2.27 | 2.36 | -0.09 |
Paladin Res | PDN | 19838 | 8.40 | 7.53 | 7.88 | -0.05 |
SXR Uranm One | SXR | 16665 | 17.30 | 16.04 | 16.38 | -0.20 |
TSX greatest percentage change
VOLUME(000s) | HIGH | LOW | CLOSE | CHANGE | ||
Opawica Expl | OPW | 13402 | 0.14 | 0.08 | 0.135 | +58.8 |
Starfield Res | SRU | 47694 | 1.59 | 1.01 | 1.46 | +43.1 |
Freegold Vent | ITF | 1828 | 1.29 | 0.92 | 1.18 | +31.1 |
Peru Copper | PCR | 896 | 7.52 | 5.73 | 6.66 | +19.5 |
Moneta Porcpn | ME | 51 | 0.14 | 0.13 | 0.14 | +16.6 |
Brazilian Diam | BDY | 38 | 0.23 | 0.175 | 0.19 | +15.1 |
Formation Cap | FCO | 4769 | 0.92 | 0.76 | 0.88 | +14.2 |
FNX Mining | FNX | 5558 | 35.16 | 29.81 | 34.71 | +14.1 |
Grandview Gld | GVX | 170 | 0.55 | 0.45 | 0.46 | +12.2 |
Equinox Minls | EQN | 37101 | 3.10 | 2.78 | 3.08 | +11.1 |
New Gold wt | NGD_T | 64 | 0.42 | 0.27 | 0.30 | -33.3 |
Ascendant C wt | ACX_T | 81 | 0.10 | 0.07 | 0.07 | -22.2 |
Energem Res | ENM | 177 | 0.50 | 0.385 | 0.41 | -18.0 |
Ontex Res | ONT | 32 | 0.22 | 0.205 | 0.205 | -16.3 |
Australn Solom | SGA | 129 | 1.26 | 0.91 | 1.10 | -15.3 |
Spur Ventures | SVU | 916 | 0.72 | 0.62 | 0.62 | -15.0 |
Virgin Metals | VGM | 1073 | 0.71 | 0.56 | 0.60 | -14.2 |
Glencairn G wt | GGG_T | 70 | 0.14 | 0.125 | 0.125 | -13.7 |
Laramide Res | LAM | 1995 | 13.65 | 10.91 | 11.06 | -12.8 |
Golden China R | GCX | 503 | 0.74 | 0.59 | 0.64 | -12.3 |
TSX greatest value change
VOLUME | CLOSE | CHANGE | ||
Alcan | AL | 11379036 | 94.25 | +5.70 |
FNX Mining | FNX | 5557760 | 34.71 | +4.31 |
First Quantum | FM | 2944193 | 86.59 | +1.65 |
Energy Metals | EMC | 11075742 | 18.29 | +1.64 |
HudBay Minls | HBM | 8281430 | 24.26 | +1.26 |
Peru Copper | PCR | 896133 | 6.66 | +1.09 |
Ivanhoe Mines | IVN | 5472473 | 14.74 | +1.04 |
Thompson Creek | TCM | 5619351 | 17.46 | +0.83 |
Teck Comin A | TCKA | 18819 | 49.79 | +0.79 |
Inmet Mining | IMN | 1255228 | 73.75 | +0.65 |
Agnico-Eagle | AEM | 2310731 | 36.23 | -1.95 |
Major Drilling | MDI | 544701 | 36.44 | -1.68 |
Laramide Res | LAM | 1994909 | 11.06 | -1.63 |
Labdr I-Ore Ro | LIF_U | 603668 | 33.85 | -1.57 |
Goldcorp | G | 12522135 | 24.55 | -1.35 |
Potash Cp Sask | POT | 3895286 | 73.51 | -1.34 |
Gammon Lk Res | GAM | 6278218 | 14.44 | -1.21 |
Barrick Gold | ABX | 8073176 | 31.37 | -1.17 |
Denison Mines | DML | 6735978 | 13.80 | -1.12 |
Banro Res |
BAA | 192165 | 10.65 | -1.05 |
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