MINING MARKETS & INVESTMENT NEWS – WESTERN MARKETS — Diamond explorers show signs of heating up

The adage “even a dead cat will bounce” pretty much sums up the performance of western markets over the report period Feb. 24-March 2. The Vancouver Stock Exchange composite index rebounded to post a gain of 6.68 points, or 1.6%, finishing the week at 413.9. The mining index followed with an increase of 6.31 points, or a 2.2% jump, to 295.77. The combined value of the Alberta Stock Exchange was up 27.08 points, or 1.4%, to close at 1,899.49.

Investor interest in junior diamond explorers appears to be on the rise. The following companies have programs that are either about to begin or well under way: Winspear Resources rose 17 cents to finish at $3.41; Mountain Province Mining was up a dime at $2.95; Camphor Ventures lost 15 cents to close at 70 cents; Gerle Gold was off a penny at 41 cents; Intertech Minerals tacked on a nickel to finish at 63 cents; Island-Arc Resources fell back 5 cents, to 40 cents; Kalahari Resources was off 6 cents at 36 cents; Kensington Resources reached as high as 43 cents before falling back to 33 cents for a gain of 3 cents; Mill City International remained unchanged at 10 cents; Alberta-listed Tanqueray Resources slipped 8 cents to close at 17 cents; Cypango Ventures was unchanged at 6 cents; Archon Minerals closed down a nickel to $2; Contiki Resources was off 2 cents, at 9 cents; and Layfield Resources shed a penny to finish at 7 cents.

Argentina Gold closed up 40 cents at $4.60 after releasing results from a second diamond drill hole in the high-grade portion of the Amable target that indicated an increase in grade versus the nearby reverse-circulation (RC) holes. The company also reported an updated resource estimate for the Amable and Filo Federico targets at its 60%-owned Veladero gold-silver project in the Andean mountains of Argentina.

Alberta-listed Oro Nevada Resources jumped 8 cents to finish at 46 cents. The company will add to its current cash position of $8 million by carrying out a private placement of 3 million units at 39 cents each, for proceeds of $1.2 million. Oro Nevada says it is building a war chest to pursue potential acquisitions.

Alberta-listed Tan Range Exploration was off 6 cents at 52 cents after signing an option agreement granting Newmont Gold the right to earn up to a 70% interest in four Tanzanian properties. Tan Range’s principal project, Itememia, was excluded from the deal.

Taseko Mines closed down 51 cents at $3.41. The company is undertaking a $7-million feasibility study in conjunction with Concentrated Exploration Limited Partnership to advance the Prosperity copper-gold porphyry project in British Columbia.

Abacus Minerals closed at 40 cents, up 15 cents. The company has resumed drilling on its La Manchuria gold-silver project in the Santa Cruz province of Argentina. A 2,000-metre RC program will focus on expanding the mineralization encountered by 1998 drilling.