Trading Summary (January 06, 2004)

Profit takers did just that sending Toronto’s gold stock index 4.36 points lower to end Tuesday’s trading session at 232.55. After breaching the US$430-per-oz. level in London, gold settled US$1.40 lower at US$422.40 per oz. in New York. Silver and platinum continued higher as palladium ended unchanged at US$203 per oz. The base metal crowd dropped 5.13 points to 236.39. Overall, the S&P/TSX composite index managed to scrape together 23.44 points to make 8,405.10.

TVI Pacific watched just more than 13.3 million shares gain 4.5, or nearly 20%, to reach a 52-week high of 27.5. On Tuesday, TVI said that the Central Government of the People’s Republic of China had granted it a business license for its subsidiary, Hunan Pacific Geological Exploration, the first entirely foreign-owned mineral exploration company in the country. TVI says the license also allows it to acquire, own, and explore projects on a nationally level. The company is currently negotiating for several gold and gold-copper projects. Meanwhile, the company three drill rigs in transit to the Shuikoushan property, where 6,600 metres of core drilling will test the Xianrenyan gold deposit and several new targets.

Wheaton River Minerals was next in line dropping 16 to $3.97 on about 10.4 million shares. Northgate Exploration jumped 20, or plus-7%, to a 52-week high of $3.05 on a handful fewer shares.

Junior Southern Cross Resources put in a nice percentage gain, jumping 20, or nearly 18%, to make $1.35. The issue saw unusually heavy action trading more tan 3 million shares, up from its average of under about 200,000. The company recently raised $6 million via a private placement of 6.3 million shares at 95 apiece. The funds will be used to expand exploration activities and accelerate the development of the Honeymoon uranium project in South Australia. The company plans to revise the feasibility study at Honeymoon as soon as possible.

Also on the rise was fellow junior Jaguar Nickel, which soared 32, or about 20%, to a new 52-week high of $1.97. Jaguar is in the midst of an environmental base line study of its Sechol property in Guatemala. The study is focussing around the El Inicio starter pit, and will also monitor the Cahabon and Polochic Rivers and Lake Izabal, 43 km east of the property.

Canada’s junior exchange managed to close the day in positive territory despite the fact that advancing stocks lost to declining stocks 402 to 474. The S&P-TSX Venture Exchange composite index edged up 1.52 points, or 0.08% and closed at 1,782.38.

IBI Corp. closed at 6.5, up half a penny with a whopping 6.37 million shares traded. The company has applied to become a tier one company on the Venture Exchange and as of January 2nd has changed its trading symbol to “IBI.” The junior has 244 million shares outstanding and holds an operating vermiculite mine in Uganda.

International Wayside Gold Mines closed at 27, up 5, with 1.45 million shares traded. The company recently raised $4.8 million through a brokered private placement with First Associates. The junior sold 32 million units at $0.15 per unit. Each unit consists of one flow through common share and one-half of one non-flow through common share purchase warrant. Each whole warrant entitles the holder to purchase one non-flow-through common share at $0.25 for a period of 18 months from the closing of the offering. The proceeds of the offering will be used to continue exploration and development of its Cariboo Gold Project at Wells, B.C.

ECU Silver Mining finished the day at 33, up half a penny with 1.4 million shares traded. The company resumed mining operations on December 5th and milling operations on December 17th at its Santa Juana mine in Mexico. The company intends to start a drilling program to define the extension of the vein system next week. Several hearings have been heard in court regarding the ownership of the mine and decisions will be rendered early next year.