Venture heads back down after short rebound

Vancouver – After a short upward climb the S&P TSX Venture Composite Index headed back down in the May 30 to June 3 trading period. The index dropped 45.05 points over five days of losses to 2,055.62 points on especially low volumes, dipping down to an average of 88 million shares traded daily.

Dia Bras Exploration was the biggest value gainer of the week, climbing 51¢ to $3.50 on a modest volume of 125,000 shares traded. The company recently closed a roughly US$286 million acquisition of 29.4 million shares of Peruvian mining company Sociedad Minera Corona, which translates to 82% of the company or 92% of voting shares. To finance the purchase, Dia Bras entered into a US$150-million credit agreement with Banco de Credito del Peru and closed a $137.4 million private placement. Dia Bras is making the acquisition to gain control of the Yauricocha silver-copper-lead-zinc mine.

Panama-focused Pershimco Resources was up 19¢ to 90¢ on 5.5 million shares traded in the period. The company is advancing its Cerro Quema gold-copper project in the country and recently announced it had completed just over 3,000 metres of a 6,000 metre drill program on the project. Pershimco is drilling both to expand the resource to the north and at depth at its LaPava and Chontal targets and the Quema-Quemita target 2 km east. Earlier in May the company completed a $3-million private placement at 50¢.

Rio Alto Mining was the most traded stock on the Venture, clocking roughly 9.2 million shares traded on no news. The activity, however, had the company losing much of its 39¢ gain the previous week as its share price dropped 25¢ to $2.38. Rio Alto is developing the 210 sq. km La Arena gold-copper project in Peru where in early May it achieved its first gold pour. The company optioned the property from Iamgold in 2009.

Second in activity, Habanero Resources was up 3¢ to 14.5¢ on 8.7 million shares traded. The junior explorer, with property holdings across Canada, recently arranged a $1.63-million financing to work on silver and gold projects in the Yukon and its Lezai gold project in Quebec. The non-brokered private placement includes up to 10 million flow-through units at 13¢ each and 3 million non-flow-through units at 11¢, with each unit consisting of one share and one transferable share purchase warrant. Warrants for the flow-through units are exercisable at 20¢ while non-flow-though warrants are exercisable at 15¢. 

Dorex Minerals had one of the biggest percentage gains as it rose 7.5¢ or 48.4% to close at 23¢ on 437,000 shares traded. The company recently executed a letter of intent with a private Mexican company for an option to earn 75% of the Tres Hermanos property in Mexico’s Chihuahua State. Dorex has made the first $75,000 payment to the vendor and will be required to pay the same again once a definitive agreement is entered into and approved. Dorex will also have to pay $1.3 million to the vendor within four years and spend up to $3.5 million within three years. The 3.28-sq.-km Tres Hermanos project is in the Batopilas mineral district of the Sierra Madre’s precious-metal belt.