Trading Summary (May 28, 2002)

A surging gold price sent the Toronto Stock Exchange’s gold issues higher on Tuesday with the group gaining more than 5% to end at 229.01 points, one of six subindices to end in the black. The yellow metal itself jumped US$3.70 to end the day at US$323.90 per oz. in New York. The base metal miners weren’t able to tag along dropping 0.56 of a point to hit 146.55. Overall, the S&P/TSX Composite Index shed 6.45 points to 7,660.58.

Not surprisingly, the gold issues dominated the most traded list. The TSE’s second most active issue was Eldorado Gold, up 13 or 9.2% to $1.54 (a new 52-week high) with more than 8.5 million shares on the go. Also in the top ten were: Kinross Gold, plus 17 to $4.15; Placer Dome, up $1.41 to $21.71; TVX Gold, 4 pennies higher at $1.84; TVI Pacific, which hit a new year-high gaining 4 to 17; Echo Bay Mines, plus 28 or 17% to $1.90, also a new 52-week high; Miramar Mining, which added a nickel to make $2.03; and McWatters Mining, which rose a penny to reach 18.

The country’s remaining gold major Barrick Gold gained $1.34 to $35.53 on more than 2.6 million shares to miss out on the top ten list.

The base metal miners saw less action with Sherritt International the class of the field gaining 2 pennies to $4.96 with just fewer than 1.1 million shares traded. On the plus side were: Falconbridge, up 7 to $19.33; Teck Cominco’s B shares, which gained a nickel to $14; and Aur Resources, up 28 to $4.65.

On the diamond watch, marine diamond miner Namibian Minerals lost 2 or more than 11% to 16. On Tuesday, Namco posted a first-quarter net loss of US$8 million or US8 per share. The loss is a significant improvement over the US$29.6 million lost in the final three months of 2001.

Canada’s junior exchange tallied a lack lustre session with buyers finding little reason to purchase stocks. The S&P-TSX Venture Index fell 0.95 point, or 0.1% and closed at 1,225.31.

Trivalence Mining topped the most actively traded chart losing 1 to close at 89 on over 5.5 million shares. The junior’s joint venture partner, Rio Tinto is working the 1,012 sq km Aredor diamond concession in Guinea, West Africa. Over the past two months, Rio Tinto has drill tested six EM-geophysical targets and two known kimberlites.

Benefiting from a higher gold price, American Bonanza Gold Mining jumped 5 to close at 22, on nearly 4.6 million shares. The junior holds the low-grade Copperstone gold project in Arizona.

ECU Silver Mining continued to attract interest. The junior closed flat at 9 on 2.8 million shares. The company recently inked a deal for the use of a flotation and cyanidation mill with a 200 tonnes per day milling capacity, situated some 110-km south of its La Esperanza silver-gold project in Mexico.

National Gold added 7 to close at 57 on 644,720 shares. The company’s joint venture partner Alamos Minerals is drilling the Salamandra gold property in Mexico.

Seabridge Resources soared 61 to close at $3.04 on nearly 500,000 shares. Over the past few years, the company has acquired projects which host some 8 million oz of contained gold.