STOCK MARKETS — VSE resource index gainsas composite index

Western markets continued to churn over the report period ended Nov. 23, with the Vancouver Stock Exchange resource index posting a 2.23-point gain to 1,526.16.

The composite index lost ground, slipping 18 points to 1,027.98. Alberta-listed Rhonda Mining did well, jumping $1.45 to $6.25 following the release of diamond results from its Snowden joint venture with Aaron Oil and a private company in the Fort a la Corne region of Saskatchewan. Diamonds have been recovered from three vertical holes which intersected a flat-lying horizontal apron of kimberlite volcanics.

The best hole returned nine microdiamonds and one macro from a 38.7-kg sample. The macro is described as deep yellow in color and is suggestive of a “fancy” diamond.

The joint venture is awaiting sampling results from drilling on the Foxford prospect, 30 km west of Snowden.

Aaron posted a modest gain of 15 cents to finish at $1.90.

Plans to acquire South African diamond production helped Diamond Fields Resources, which posted a 65 cents gain to $3.90. The company has signed an option to acquire a 66.7% interest in two producing kimberlite diamond pipes in the Kimberly region of South Africa.

Diamond Fields expects to release details on the agreement and the properties upon completion of a due diligence review.

Olds Industries added 20 cents to close at 70 cents after announcing an agreement for the acquisition of a 25% interest in a diamond project in China’s Shandong province.

An option to acquire up to a 75% interest in a Philippine mining company (which owns a large claim block in the famous Diwawal gold field on the island of Mindanao) gave Delta Gold Mining a big boost. Sampling of known high-grade veins returned values ranging from 50 to 500 grams gold per tonne. The issue jumped $1.20, finishing at $3.65.

Randstrom Manufacturing, which plans to change its name to Francisco Gold, managed to add 30 cents. It closed at $2.10.

The company continues to evaluate its portfolio of Mexican properties and is also concluding an agreement on a large epithermal gold property in west Chihuahua state, Mexico.

Kookaburra Resources landed a high-grade copper property in southeastern Peru for the not-so-princely sum of US$50,000 plus a further payment of US$500,000 in three years.

The project hosts several high-grade copper horizons which, based on limited work by the previous owner, contain about 4.5 million tonnes grading 4.5% copper.

Kookaburra added a dime on the news, to close at 90 cents.

Arizona Star Resource is raising up to $2.4 million through a brokered private placement of units at 80 cents each.

The company, which gained 11 cents to finish at 97 cents, plans to use the proceeds from the financing for further work on the Aldebaran gold project in Chile.

The signing of a letter of intent to acquire a porphyry-epithermal gold prospect in the Pullo district of southwestern Peru woke Aquamin Resources from its slumber at the 60 cents level.

The issue closed up 40 cents at $1.

Bolivar Goldfields added another 30 cents to close at $4.85. The company announced a brokered private placement of three million units at $4 each for gross proceeds to the company of $12 million.

Bolivar plans to use the funds to acquire properties and finance work programs in Venezuela’s Bolivar state.

MinAmerica, a private Panamanian company, now holds 4.2 million shares of Adrian Resources following the recent purchase of an additional 420,000 shares.

Adrian finished up 14 cents at $2.