For the tale of the tape, the TSX Exchange fell 1.62%, while the TSX Gold Index lost on 1.8% and the TSX Venture Exchange, Canada’s largest junior exploration bourse, gave back 0.38% with the decliners beating out the advancers by a 439 to 355 margin on volume of 159 million shares traded.

Indian mining company Lakomasko BV has purchased 9.5 percent of HudBay Minerals, which announced late last week that it is evaluating its strategic options. HudBay ended the day up C$0.77 at C$8.35.

In the midst of a merger, Motapa Diamonds and Lucara Diamond recovered 715.79 carats from a 15,390 dry tonnes sample at the Mothae project in Lesotho. The sample produced 48 stones greater than two carats, 13 stones greater than five carats and one stone greater than 20 carats. Motapa ended the day up C$0.06 at C$0.31, while Lucara closed at C$0.50 for a C$0.02 gain.

Rubicon Minerals (AMEX:RBY) continued to hit the goodies at its F2 zone on the Phoenix gold project in Ontario’s prolific Red Lake mining camp. The latest results included 3.62 ounces of gold per ton over 9.8 feet and 6.96 ounces of gold per ton over 3.3 feet. Rubicon ended the day up C$0.05 at C$1.90.

Not to be outdone, Alamos Gold cut 12.2 metres grading 43.7 grams gold per tonne at its Mulatos gold project in Sonora, Mexico. Alamos ended the day up C$0.03 at C$8.25.

The junior board continues to straddle the crucial 1,000 point mark. Will it hold? We shall see what Tuesday trading has in store.

Source: Resource Stock Roundup: Tuesday, April 28th, 2009

Merger mania is going full tilt with the latest marriage proposal being Victoria Gold’s all-share offer for StrataGold. Victoria is offering up 0.1249 of its shares for each StrataGold share held. The move would give Nevada focused Victoria the Dublin Gulch gold deposit in the Yukon. Victoria ended the day up C$0.01 at C$0.39, while StrataGold added C$0.01 at C$0.05.

Rubicon Minerals (AMEX:RBY) cut 173.7 grams gold per tonne over 2.5 metres at its Phoenix gold project in the Red Lake camp of Ontario. Rubicon ended the day up C$0.20 at C$1.73.

Not to be outdone, Colossus Mineral tagged 406.4 grams gold, 98.4 grams platinum and 115 grams palladium over 7.88 metres at its Serra Pelada project in Brazil. Colossus added C$0.78 to close at C$2.38.

Agrium (NYSE:AGU), North America’s third-largest fertilizer producer by market value, posted a fourth quarter profit of $124 million or $0.79 per share, down from the $172 million or $1.24 per share tabled in the same period a year earlier. However over the year Agrium, which ended the day up C$1.20 at C$47.21, posted record profits.

A stock to watch is Kinbauri Gold. The company’s shares were halted from trading at C$0.47 pending news. Kinbauri holds the advanced El Valle/Carles project in northwestern Spain and has been seeking strategic alternatives to move the project towards production.

Right now it is all about gold and nothing else. We will see what Thursday trading has in store.

Source: Resource Stock Roundup: Thursday, February 12th, 2009