TSX rebounds on gold, oil rally

The Toronto Stock Exchange clawed back 346.27 points to finish the Feb. 14-20 report period at 11,865.76, with all of the precious metals, and most of the base metals staging recoveries. After plummeting more than US$20 per oz. last period, the yellow metal rebounded to the tune of US$5.20 per oz. to US$554.50. The gold index responded by advancing 6.2% to 276.42 points. Not to be outdone, the diversified metals and mining index jumped 9.3% to 442.79.

With its financials finally squared away, Kinross Gold says it is considering growing by acquisition. Still, investors were less than impressed with the company’s net loss of $61.7 million during the first nine months of 2005. The issue recovered from an earlier fall to end the report period a penny better at $11.09, with just shy of 29 million shares changing hands.

Bema Gold was next in line, with a 43 gain to $4.78 on around 26.8 million shares. Bema is hoping that Barrick Gold might participate in the development of the Cerro Casale copper-gold project in Chile. Barrick inherited a 51% stake in the project from Placer, which had agreed to sell its stake to minority partners Bema and Arizona Star Resource. Barrick grabbed 79 to make $33.28.

Recently renamed Scandinavian Minerals (formerly Scandinavian Gold) stood out from the pack, jumping $1.75, or 69%, to $4.30. The company recently boosted its resource estimate for the Keivitsa nickel-copper deposit in Finland. The deposit is described as one of the world’s major undeveloped sulphide nickel deposits. A prefeasibility study is scheduled for March 2006.

Also on the rise were the warrants of Agnico-Eagle Mines, up 48% to $10.50; the common shares lagged behind, gaining a respectable $4.10, or 15.5%, to $30.60. The company recently acquired Industrias Peoles‘ Pinos Altos silver-gold project in Mexico, after drilling during the past year doubled indicated resources there to 1.6 million oz. gold and 41 million oz. silver. Agnico forked over US$65 million in cash and shares. The company also converted its US$144-million convertible subordinated debentures into 10.3 million shares to eliminate its long-term debt.

Adastra Minerals got a 13% boost to $2.61 after it tabled a plan to sell a 14.9% stake in the Kolwezi copper-cobalt tailings project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to Japan’s Mitsubishi Corp. Adastra is fending off a hostile bid from First Quantum Minerals. For its part, First Quantum climbed $4.25 to $38.10, helped by mostly rebounding base metal prices.

Sticking with the base metal miners, Inco gained $5.74 to $58.80. The nickel giant earned US$836 million during 2005, up from US$619 million in 2004. Subsequent to the period’s end, the company again extended its friendly bid for Falconbridge by four months until June 30, with the prospect of further delays should regulators in Europe require more time to review the proposed deal. The $12.8-billion offer also needs approval in the U.S. Falco ended $2.85 higher at $38.20.

Coal miner Pine Valley Mining led the decliners with a 21.8% fall to $1.79. The company finished the last three months of 2005 with a net loss of $579,000, compared with year-ago earnings of $1.6 million. Production slipped by about 2% to 134,407 tonnes of pulverized coal injection metallurgical coal, while costs climbed.