Mining index drives CDNX higher

Vancouver — Canada’s junior exchange staged a strong rally, led by a triple-digit gain in the mining index, during the report period ended April 11. The Canadian Venture Exchange’s composite index climbed 13.3 points, or 0.5%, to close at 2,921.49. The mining index tacked on 107.36 points, or 1.8%, to close at 6,108.36.

Seine River Resources was the most actively traded junior miner, jumping 1 to close at 3 on a volume of 1.3 million shares. The company holds a portfolio of oil-and-gas and gold properties in Guatemala, California and Alberta. It has an interest in the past-producing Plumas gold mine and in the Trinity gold mine (formerly known as Bully Choop). Both are in California.

Montoro Resources ended the week at 5, down 3 with 1.3 million shares changing hands. The junior is negotiating a further property acquisition, in the area of Falconbridge’s Raglan nickel sulphide mine in northern Quebec.

Pan Asia Mining climbed 1 to 8 on 833,000 shares traded. The company is upgrading the 701 diamond mine in China. At last report, open-pit mining was in progress and the plant was still operating.

Hyder Gold tacked on a penny to close at 8, with 820,000 shares traded. The junior has focused on exploration for intrusion-related gold deposits in Alaska. Hyder holds an option to earn a 70% interest from Rimfire Minerals in five properties in the Big Delta area of central Alaska.

Gallery Resources lost 1 and closed at 19 on a volume of 818,000 shares. The company is exploring five mineral properties in Newfoundland and Labrador, covering a total of 117,150 acres.

Cantex Mine Development ended the week down a penny to stay near a 52-week low at 15 on a volume of 792,000 shares. The Charles Fipke-led junior is working the Al Hariqah gold property and the Suwar massive-sulphide property, both of which are in Yemen.

Shares in Radius Explorations continued to attract investor interest, climbing 5 to close at $1.20 on 507,000 shares. The Simon Ridgway-led company recently announced a $2.1-million financing. It is completing stepout and infill trenching over the Sastre, Bridge and TBS zones at the Tambor gold project in Guatemala.

Donner Minerals lost 2 and closed at 11, with 491,000 shares traded. The company recently announced it would merge its South Voisey Bay interests with several of its joint-venture partners into a new company called SVB Nickel. The South Voisey Bay project is 90 km south of Inco’s multi-billion-dollar Voisey’s Bay nickel-copper-cobalt deposits. Donner and its joint-venture partners have spent in excess of $20 million on the project.

Investors appear to be adopting a wait-and-see approach to Rockwell Ventures. Shares in the Hunter-Dickinson-led company closed at 77, up 3 on 389,000 shares. The junior is drilling the prospective Pedra Branca platinum-palladium property in Brazil.

Grayd Resources jumped 4 to 22 on 70,100 shares. The junior attracted a few investors after announcing that Placer Dome has signed a letter of intent to earn 70% of the White Gold property, near Tok, Alaska.