Trading Summary (June 13, 2001)

The Toronto Stock Exchange couldn’t continue Tuesday’s upward trend and fell 82.08 points to end at 8,012.7 on Wednesday. The technology-laden industrial products subindex led the slide, falling 171.12 points, or nearly 3.6%. The metals and minerals subgroup flowed suit, dropping 50.58 points, or 1.1%, as did the gold stocks, which lost 25.62 points, or 0.5%. By day’s end, just three of the TSE’s 14 subindexes were in the black.

Miners making the most actively traded list were Barrick Gold, off 17 at $25.99 on 2.4 million shares, Teck’s B series, unchanged at $15.02 with 2.3 million shares traded, and Kinross Gold, down a penny to $1.48 on 1.87 million shares.

Barrick Gold has kicked off a $600,000 exploration program on the California and Surf gold properties, which are held by joint-venture partners Rimfire Minerals and Western Keltic Mines. Barrick can earn a 51% interest in the two properties by spending $2,000,000 on exploration within three years.

Recent drilling by Kinross Gold has increased the size of Wheaton River Minerals’ Goose Lake gold deposit in Nunavut. Kinross can earn a 70% interest in the property by spending $20 million over four years. The company has already spent $3 million.

Among the TSE’s leading percentage gainers was Minco Mining & Metals, which gained 7, or 25%, to 35. Teck recently began a 2,700-metre drilling program on the White Silver Mountain project in China’s Gansu province. The holes will test a number of coincident electromagnetic conductors and surface alteration zones. The property is prospective for volcanogenic massive-sulphide mineralization. Teck can earn 70% of Minco’s interest (net 56%) by carrying out development drilling, completing a feasibility study, and arranging financing. Teck is covering the cost of the program.

Other gainers were River Gold Mines, up a quarter, or 24%, to $1.30, Holmer Gold Mines, a penny, or 22%, higher at 5.5 and Kazakhstan Minerals, up 3, or 20%, to $18.

Canada’s junior exchange posted gains in both the mining and oil and gas sectors while the tech sector slumped. The Canadian Venture Exchange composite index lost 4.83 points, or 0.1%, and closed the day at 3,339.56. The mining index tacked on 6.58 points, or 0.1%, and finished at 7,363.62.

Skeena Resources was today’s volume leader, trading in excess of 2.9 million shares. The company is gearing up for two diamond exploration programs on its Weirdale kimberlite cluster in the Fort a la Corne District of Saskatchewan and the Elkford District of southeastern British Columbia. Skeena tacked on 2 and closed at 15.

Kenrich Mining found a penny and closed at 6 on 673,000 shares. The company holds the Corey gold property in northwestern British Columbia and is focused on discovering an Eskay Creek-type deposit.

Kensington Resources jumped 19 and closed the day at 94 with 659,000 shares traded. The company is a joint-venture partner in the Fort la Corne Diamond Project with DeBeers Canada Exploration, Cameco and its wholly owned subsidiary, UEM. A budget of $4.79 million has been approved by the partners for this year’s exploration program.

Cantex Mine Development lost 2 and closed at 8 with 327,000 shares traded. The Chuck Fipke-led company recently discovered a gossan formation 24 km north of the Suwar nickel-copper-cobalt prospect in Yemen. Assays are pending.

Curion Ventures lost 2 and closed at 5 with 300,000 shares traded. At last report, Curion completed an agreement with a number of other companies that held claims in the south of Voysey’s Bay, Labrador. The agreement formed a joint-venture company called SVB Nickel.

New Blue Ribbon Resources lost a penny and closed at 12 on 268,000 shares. The issue is still wallowing near its 52-week low after assay results dudded from the first round of drilling on the Moose diamond property in Manitoba. Blue Ribbon’s joint-venture partner, BHP Diamonds, tested seven magnetic anomalies on the project without hitting kimberlite.