Aurizon Mines (AMEX:AZK) inked a C$50 million bought deal financing comprising just over 9.7 million shares priced at C$5.15 each. The gold miner ended the day down C$0.51 at C$5.13.

Shares of Goldsource Mines continued to slump on the back of the last batch of drill results from the Border coal project in Saskatchewan. Goldsource fell C$0.15 to C$1.38.

Teck Cominco (NYSE:TCK) cashed in 5.6 million shares of Kinross Gold (NYSE:KGC) that it acquired in January on the sale of Teck’s sixty per cent interest in the Lobo Marte property in Chile. Teck got $18 per share for a cool $141 million. Teck ended the day up C$0.77 at C$8.74.

We may have bounced off the bottom but on a year over year comparison, the value of trades on the junior bourse is down 77.2 per cent, while the trading volumes are down 29.7 per cent. More importantly, equity financings are down 64.8 per cent over the first three months of 2009. We shall see what Thursday trading has in store.

Source: Resource Stock Roundup: Thursday, April 09th, 2009

Merger mania amongst the junior explorers continued with Avion Resources looking to acquire Dynamite Resources. The proposal calls for Dynamite shareholders to get 0.75 of an Avion share for each Dynamite share. The move would consolidate the Segala mine property, in which Dynamite has a 40 per cent interest. Dynamite closed at C$0.14, up C$0.01, while Avion was unchanged at C$0.20.

Shareholders of Frontera Copper got an early Valentine’s Day present as Invecture Group raised its formal take over offer to C$0.75 from C$0.59 per share. Frontera ended the day up C$0.10 to C$0.78.

Drill results from the Border coal project in Saskatchewan sent shares of Goldsource Mines lower. Out of 18 core holes, five encountered thick intervals of core including a 50.9 metre section. Goldsource ended the day down C$0.57 at C$1.42.

In need of cash, Minera Andes inked a deal with Robert McEwen that would see the founder of Goldcorp (AMEX:UXG) take down 121.2 million shares at C$0.33 per share for a cool C$40 million. Minera ended the day up C$0.12 at C$0.49.

Red Back Mining posted record production in the fourth quarter for its mines in Mauritania and Ghana. Cash operating costs came in at an enviable $393 per ounce for the 72,664 ounces of gold. Despite the good news, Red Back followed the price of gold lower by ended the day down C$0.29 at C$6.81.

Shares of Kinbauri Gold added C$0.03 to close at C$0.42 after the company reported that a scoping study for its El Valle-Carles gold-copper project in northwestern Spain yields a net present value at a 10 per cent discount of $132 million and an internal rate of return of 42 per cent.

The buy side interest in resource stocks remains at favourable levels but with unemployment in North America soaring one has to wonder how long the optimism will last. We will see what Tuesday trading has in store.

Source: Resource Stock Roundup: Tuesday, February 10th, 2009

For the tale of the tape, the TSX Exchange added 0.98%, while the TSX Gold Index rallied 0.4% and the TSX Venture Exchange, Canada’s largest junior exploration bourse, ended the session up 0.22% with declining issuers still out paced the advancing issues this time by a 529 to 472 margin with slowing volume of 168 million shares traded.

The world’s largest gold miner, Barrick Gold earned $514 million, or $0.59 a share in the quarter of 2008 a 29% jump over last year’s quarter. The previously well known gold hedger received a price of $925 an ounce of gold in the quarter. Sales in the quarter rang in at $1.96 billion as the company produced 1.7 million ounces of gold at total cash costs of $393 an ounce. All was not rosy however, as this figure is down from the 2 million ounces produced in the same period of 2007 when cash costs came in at $309 an ounce. Barrick ended the day down C$0.01 at C$39.40.

Meanwhile AngloGold Ashanti fared much better after reporting earnings of $105 million for the first quarter of 2008 and production of 1.2 million ounces of gold. Total cash costs for the South African company came in at $430 per ounce and importantly, Anglo finally announced that its La Colosa project in Colombia holds an inferred resource of 12.9 million ounces of gold within 468.8 million tonnes grading 0.86 gram gold per tonne. Anglo ended the session up $3.50 in New York at C$38.31.

Shares in VMS Ventures rallied on news that the junior cut 1.09% copper over 102.5 metres at its Reed Project Discovery Zone in Manitoba. VMS ended the day up C$0.09 at C$0.60.

It was a good day for Sprott Resource as the company inked a deal with Altius to explore for potash in the St. George’s basin in southwestern Newfoundland. Under the deal, Sprott can earn a 60% stake by spending C$2.5 million over 4 years. Sprott ended the session up C$0.52 at C$3.75.

Profit taking was the story of the day for Goldsource Mines. After running up from C$0.30 to nearly C$5 per share on speculation of a major coal find in Saskatchewan, Goldsource ended the day down C$0.26 at C$4.29.

All lights were green for the Canadian markets as investors start to become believers that commodity prices won’t be falling off a cliff anytime soon. We will see what Wednesday trading has in store.

For the tale of the tape, the TSX Exchange gained 1.52%, while the TSX Gold Index rallied 1.5% and the TSX Venture Exchange, Canada’s largest junior exploration bourse, ended the session up 1.28% with advancing issuers actually beating out the declining issues by a 557 to 460 margin with slowing volume of almost 200 million shares traded.

Shares in VMS Ventures got a modest boost after the junior announced that drilling has resumed on its Reed Lake copper-zinc discovery zone in Manitoba. VMS ended the day up C$0.075 at C$0.53.

Finally some profit taking ensued on Goldsource Mines’ red hot coal play. Shares in the junior have exploded following news that two holes testing for kimberlites cut coal instead in east-central Saskatchewan. Having run up from C$0.19 two weeks ago, shares in Goldsource ended the day down C$0.47 at C$4.20.

Swift Resources and Saturn Minerals also gave back some of Thursday’s gains following news it made applications for coal permits in the area. Swift ended the day down C$0.41 at C$0.64, while Saturn lost C$0.145 to C$0.34.

As usual for this time of year, the news flow has stalled to a trickle. That said, the news coming out does tend to be market moving. We will see what Monday trading has in store.

For the tale of the tape, the TSX Exchange fell 0.74%, while the TSX Gold Index plunged another 4.1% and the TSX Venture Exchange, Canada’s largest junior exploration bourse, ended the session down 1.50% with declining issues once again swamping the advancers this time by a 632 to 402 margin on stable volume of 189 million shares traded.

Nevoro has offered to buy Sheffield Resources in an all-share transaction that would see Sheffield shareholders get 0.8 of a Nevoro share for each Sheffield share held. Sheffield, which holds the Moonlight copper project in California, added C$0.09 to close at C$0.335.

Newmont Mining posted a first quarter profit of $370 million, or $0.81 a share, a five-fold increase from the $68 million, or $0.15 a share tabled in the same period a year ago. Despite the jump the falling bullion price had the World’s third largest gold producer by volume end the day down $0.85 at $43 in New York.

Potash Corp of Saskatchewan continued to ride the fertilizer train as the world’s largest crop-nutrient maker by market value posted a record first quarter profit of $566 million or $1.74 per share up from the $198 million or $0.62 per share tallied in the year ago period. After a stellar run up so far this year, Potash ended the day at C$193.90, down C$10.22.

In a case of total bewilderment, shares of Goldsource Mines soared C$0.405 to close at C$0.78 on nearly 1.2 million shares traded. The company recently completed six drill holes of a permitted 22-hole program on its mineral claim blocks in central and eastern Saskatchewan. No kimberlites were encountered and the only results of interest were a coal seam. More news pending?

The latest pullback in commodity prices from recent highs is having a rather dramatic impact on resource equities. To many this pullback will make a good entry point for the next leg up, while others think that the resource bull is now over. Based on the overall trend and current price point, I suspect the former to be closer to the truth. We will see what Friday trading has in store.