Investors bailed out of the markets as worries escalated about Europe’s evolving debt crisis and tensions rose between North and South Korea. The Bank of Spain’s move over the weekend to seize regional savings bank Caja-Sur only heightened anxiety that sovereign-debt woes could spread.
During the May 18-24 reporting period, the Dow Jones industrial average, a price-weighted average of 30 blue-chip stocks, fell from 10,510.95 points to 10,066.57, its lowest close since Feb. 10, and a plunge of 444.38 points or 4.23%. The broader S&P 500 index lost 41.09 points or 3.67% to finish at 1,079.71, while the technology-dominated Nasdaq composite index dropped 89.57 points or 3.87% to finish at 2,227.69.
Even gold, often a safe haven, took a beating, falling from its New York close on May 18 of US$1,223 per oz. to US$1,192.30 per oz. on May 24, a loss of US$30.70 per oz. or 2.5%.
Randgold Resources was down US$6.47 to US$81.80 per share, while Agnico-Eagle Mines dropped US$6.27 to US$56.63. All 10 of the most actively traded stocks were in negative territory, with Newmont Mining tumbling US$4.70 to US$52.34, Barrick Gold down US$3.31 to US$41.12, and Goldcorp losing US$3.71 to US$41.04.
The carnage spread across base metals too, with Vale sliding US$1.82 to US$25.17, Teck Resources off US$1.11 to US$30.99 per share, and Alcoa sliding US$1.01 to US$11.09. Cliffs Natural Resources dropped US$2.66 to US$50.26 per share, on news that it intends to make takeover bids for Canadian juniors KWG Resources and Spider Resources. Neither of the proposed bids, which will be funded with existing cash, is conditional on the completion of the other. Cliffs currently owns a 47% stake in the Big Daddy chromite project in the McFaulds Lake area of northern Ontario. KWG and Spider, which are now proposing to merge, each own 26.5% of Big Daddy and have the option to earn-in up to 30% each. Cliffs wants majority ownership.
Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan, meanwhile, fell US$4.78 to US$96.68. On May 24, UBS Investment Research reported that it is lowering its 2011 potash estimates to US$405 per tonne from US$430 per tonne as “price increases have been slow to materialize.”
| U.S. most active issues | |||||
| VOLUME | WEEK | ||||
| (000s) | HIGH | LOW | CLOSE | CHANGE | |
| Alcoa* AA | 210087 | 12.41 | 10.80 | 11.09 | -1.01 |
| Freeport McMo* FCX | 110785 | 70.96 | 62.69 | 65.56 | -2.41 |
| Hecla Mining* HL | 69320 | 6.02 | 4.86 | 5.16 | -0.79 |
| Barrick Gold* ABX | 62273 | 44.99 | 39.95 | 41.12 | -3.31 |
| Newmont Mng* NEM | 60171 | 57.14 | 50.86 | 52.34 | -4.70 |
| Silver Wheatn* SLW | 57941 | 20.60 | 17.00 | 18.12 | -2.40 |
| Vale* VALE | 55001 | 27.72 | 23.58 | 25.17 | -1.82 |
| Cliffs Nat Rs* CLF | 53007 | 55.00 | 46.40 | 50.26 | -2.66 |
| Goldcorp* GG | 52498 | 45.22 | 39.90 | 41.04 | -3.71 |
| Teck B* TCK | 45750 | 34.41 | 29.10 | 30.99 | -1.11 |
| U.S. greatest percentage change | ||||||
| VOLUME | WEEK | |||||
| (000s) | HIGH | LOW | CLOSE | CHANGE | ||
| Tombstone Exp* | TMBXF | 307 | 0.12 | 0.09 | 0.11 | + 22.2 |
| Commerce Grp* | CGCO | 24 | 0.08 | 0.05 | 0.08 | + 14.2 |
| Crystallex In* | KRY | 4350 | 0.55 | 0.45 | 0.52 | + 13.0 |
| Amazon Goldsd* | AZNG | 72 | 0.35 | 0.31 | 0.35 | + 12.9 |
| Canarc Res* | CRCUF | 69 | 0.15 | 0.10 | 0.11 | + 10.0 |
| US Antimony* | UAMY | 46 | 0.45 | 0.40 | 0.45 | + 9.7 |
| Petaquilla Mn* | PTQMF | 742 | 0.52 | 0.35 | 0.48 | + 9.0 |
| Richmont Mine* | RIC | 597 | 4.82 | 4.04 | 4.72 | + 8.7 |
| New Jersey Mg* | NJMC | 147 | 0.28 | 0.22 | 0.26 | + 8.3 |
| Li3 Energy* | LIEG | 1041 | 0.46 | 0.32 | 0.42 | + 5.0 |
| Aurelio Res* | AULO | 183 | 0.02 | 0.01 | 0.01 | -50.0 |
| Global Gold* | GBGD | 26 | 0.12 | 0.06 | 0.09 | -35.7 |
| Patriot Gold* | PGOL | 236 | 0.28 | 0.21 | 0.22 | -24.1 |
| Habanero Res* | HBNRF | 50 | 0.12 | 0.09 | 0.10 | -23.0 |
| Elray Res* | ELRA | 99 | 0.09 | 0.07 | 0.07 | -22.2 |
| PlatinumGpM* | PLG | 483 | 2.49 | 1.85 | 1.88 | -21.9 |
| Silver Dragon* | SDRG | 1144 | 0.29 | 0.16 | 0.22 | -21.4 |
| Gold Reserve* | GRZ | 439 | 0.99 | 0.75 | 0.75 | -21.0 |
| Tara Gold* | TRGD | 192 | 0.45 | 0.05 | 0.40 | -20.0 |
| Solitario Res* | XPL | 103 | 2.64 | 1.96 | 2.15 | -16.9 |
| U.S. greatest value change | ||||
| WEEK | ||||
| VOLUME | CLOSE | CHANGE | ||
| Richmont Mine* | RIC | 596705 | 4.72 | + 0.38 |
| Mesabi Trust* | MSB | 686702 | 17.77 | + 0.29 |
| Crystallex In* | KRY | 4350105 | 0.52 | + 0.06 |
| Contintl Mnls* | KMKCF | 1027656 | 2.10 | + 0.05 |
| Amazon Goldsd* | AZNG | 72234 | 0.35 | + 0.04 |
| Petaquilla Mn* | PTQMF | 742296 | 0.48 | + 0.04 |
| US Antimony* | UAMY | 46388 | 0.45 | + 0.04 |
| Oromin Expl* | OLEPF | 58122 | 0.76 | + 0.02 |
| Li3 Energy* | LIEG | 1041148 | 0.42 | + 0.02 |
| New Jersey Mg* | NJMC | 146695 | 0.26 | + 0.02 |
| Randgold Res* | GOLD | 6523068 | 81.80 | -6.47 |
| Agnico-Eagle* | AEM | 19134482 | 56.63 | -6.27 |
| Potash C Sask* | POT | 27790369 | 96.68 | -4.78 |
| Consol Energy* | CNX | 40161762 | 33.97 | -4.78 |
| Newmont Mng* | NEM | 60170892 | 52.34 | -4.70 |
| Compass Mnls* | CMP | 779300 | 74.38 | -4.38 |
| BHP Billi-BHP* | BHP | 37995910 | 61.50 | -4.07 |
| OM Group* | OMG | 1659397 | 28.98 | -3.91 |
| Goldcorp* | GG | 52498276 | 41.04 | -3.71 |
| Rio Tinto* | RTP | 32080989 | 42.08 | -3.55 |
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