Replies to post #152319 on Zeev's Turnips Patch-No Politics (ZEEV)

[TJ Parker]

certainly not the bogus government numbers that everyone is ballyhooing about nor in corporate earnings reports.

along similar lines, i was struck by the following sentence in the b2b release:

"Overall bookings and billings figures for North American-based semiconductor capital equipment providers have remained essentially flat over the past several months,"

what? the b2b has remained essentially flat, at .9, but that means that its settled into a steady decline of 10% per month. but beyond that weak attempt at spin ... well, at least they got klic to 13 and brks to an amazing 27.

[basserdan]

*** Gold related posts (CBD, KGC) ***


Cumberland Reports Final Phase 1 2003 Drill Results From Vault Deposit

Thursday September 18, 1:15 pm ET

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--CUMBERLAND RESOURCES LTD. (CBD-TSX) is very pleased to report final results from Phase 1 2003 Vault deposit open pit delineation drilling at the Company's 100% owned Meadowbank gold project, located 70 kilometres north of the Hamlet of Baker Lake, Nunavut. Revisions to project resources, incorporating Phase 1 drilling results, are currently being finalized for feasibility level open pit designs and reserve classification.
Phase 1 activities included over 14,000 metres of diamond drilling in a total of 146 holes as part of a $10.5 million 2003 work program at the Meadowbank project designed to define and explore for further resources, complete a feasibility study and commence mine development permitting. Phase 2 activities, which include an additional 5,000 metres of diamond drilling focused on additional infill and exploration drilling, are now being completed. Feasibility studies are on track for completion in late 2003 or early in the first quarter of 2004.

"The 98 drill holes completed during Phase 1 at the Vault preliminary open pit (see below) have now prepared the resource for open pit reserve classification," remarked Kerry Curtis, President and CEO. "This final series of drill holes at Vault exceeds expectations with numerous thick, high grade intersections and marks a very successful conclusion to the delineation of the preliminary open pit design".

Highlights from the final 24 drill holes from Phase 1 at Vault include:

CONTINUED AT:

http://biz.yahoo.com/ccn/030918/443cd7d9a829094e87a4f7835ebb6487_1.html
==============================================================

Amex to Trade Options on Five Securities

Thursday September 18, 2:55 pm ET

NEW YORK, Sept. 18 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Stock Exchange® (Amex®) will launch trading in options on Friday, September 19, 2003 on the following Nasdaq and New York Stock Exchange listed stocks of:

* Cray Inc. (Option Symbol: HQC/Stock Symbol: CRAY)

* Hecla Mining Company (Symbol: HL)

* Internet Initiative Japan Inc., American Depository shares (Option Symbol: IQD/Stock Symbol: IIJI)

* Kinross Gold Corporation (Symbol: KGC)

* Precision Castparts Corp. (Symbol: PCP)

CONTINUED AT:

http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/030918/nyth169_1.html

[basserdan]

*** Stephen Roach (9-19=03) ***


Global: A Warning From the Global Consensus

Stephen Roach (New York)
September 19, 2003

The mood in Dubai is cautiously upbeat as the semi-annual IMF-World Bank meetings now get under way. The direct impacts of the war in Iraq and SARS have faded. In response, the global economy seems to be slowly shifting gears to the upside. The official forecast of the IMF staff underscores the tentative nature of this shift. The mounting imbalances of a US-centric world are at the top of their worry list. Needless to say, that’s a theme I certainly have some sympathy with. World financial markets couldn’t care less.

There aren’t too many organizations that actually provide a full-blown forecast of the global economy. The IMF outlook sets an important marker for those of us who do. The IMF’s current projection of overall world output growth is unchanged from the April outlook -- a 3.2% increase estimated in 2003 followed by a 4.1% gain projected for 2004. This prognosis is a little bit more optimistic than our own -- a 2.9% increase for 2003 followed by a 3.9% projected gain in 2004. Compared with our view, the major discrepancy can be traceable to the IMF’s relatively more optimistic assessment for growth in Asia ex Japan; we are projecting about a 5.5% average growth rate for the region over the 2003-04 interval, about 0.5 percentage point less than the IMF’s latest forecast. By IMF metrics, Asia ex Japan is actually the largest region in the world -- having a 26% weight in the global economy (as measured on a purchasing-power parity basis). Needless to say, for that reason, alone, Asia’s role as a swing factor in the global economy can hardly be minimized.

As the direct impacts of Iraq and SARS have now faded, over the past five months, we have raised our 2003 forecast of world GDP growth by 0.5 percentage points -- from 2.4% to 2.9%. To the extent that the IMF forecast delineates the consensus view of the world, there may be reason to believe that the risks to our prognosis remain on the upside. But as I continue to see it, those risks pertain mainly to the very near term -- mainly reflecting this summer’s growth bubble in the US and Japan and the possibility that it may spill over into other regions and other assets around the world.

I remain convinced, however, that this newfound vigor on the growth front is unsustainable. To the extent that surging economic growth may have borrowed from gains in early 2004, America is still facing some sort of payback in the not so distant future. The August vehicle sales boom in the US -- an astonishing 19.4 million annual rate -- is a classic example of how the “borrowing effect” plays out. Yes, showroom floors were crowded. But this surge of demand came more in response to aggressive dealer incentives than from any meaningful improvement in the underlying fundamentals of America’s jobless recovery. To the extent that sales understandably fall off once the incentive campaigns are ended, the case for sustainable cyclical vigor can be brought into serious question. And, of course, I continue to be concerned about the rapidly deteriorating imbalances of a lopsided world -- personified in the form of America’s record current-account deficit. There’s no greater testament, in my view, as to the macro tensions that might short-circuit the cumulative forces of cyclical revival in a lopsided, US-centric global economy.

The latest view of the IMF appears to be very much on the same page insofar as the sustainability issue is concerned. Significantly, shifts in the mix of the IMF’s worldwide forecast over the past five months go a long way in underscoring how precarious this global recovery really is. Relative to last April’s projections, the IMF has raised its 2003-04 growth estimates for the United States and Japan but lowered them in most other regions of the world. In other words, the IMF’s baseline view of the world is even more US-centric than before.

It’s on that count where the IMF raises the alarm in the text of its updated World Economic Outlook. America’s twin deficits -- fiscal and current account -- are cited as especially disconcerting in this regard. The ability of a saving-short US economy to fund an ever-rising external imbalance is judged as problematic, at best. As a consequence, the likelihood of a dollar correction is thought to be quite high. The debate is more over the speed of such an adjustment and the ever-present possibility of an overshoot. The greater the twin deficits, goes the logic, the higher the odds of a hard landing -- an outcome that could then wreak havoc on ever-complacent world financial markets.

The IMF also sounds a note of caution on the failure of the US to purge the bubble-related excesses that built up in the late 1990s. Particularly worrisome in this regard are stretched and strained household balance sheets. A cyclically well-advanced housing sector is also cited as having less potential to support US GDP growth in the future as it has in the recent past. As I put this all altogether, the real thrust of the IMF’s message on the world economy is pretty obvious: While near-term vigor is not to be denied, there are some increasingly worrisome signs on the not-so-distant horizon with respect to the sustainability of yet another burst of US-centric global growth. I couldn’t agree more.

Which takes us to the critical question of the moment: What do financial markets see that the IMF and its like-minded sympathizers -- yours truly, included -- are missing? The main insight, in my view, is the presumption that global imbalances really don’t matter at all. They are judged as the inevitable, benign, and even desirable outgrowth of yet another burst from the world’s only real growth engine. For what it’s worth, I continue to take issue with that key point (see my 2 September 2003 essay in Investment Perspectives, “Do Imbalances Matter?”). Imbalances, in my view, are tantamount to instability and fundamental disequilibrium. I would be the first to concede that such a state of disequilibrium is not life threatening in and of itself. But it does leave the economy, or economies, under question far more vulnerable to shocks than might otherwise be the case. To the extent such shocks are the rule, not the exception, I continue to be enamored with the case for an economic relapse in early 2004. Reading between the lines of the IMF’s latest assessment of global risks, I suspect such an outcome wouldn’t come as much of a surprise to them either

http://www.morganstanley.com/GEFdata/digests/20030919-fri.html

[basserdan]

*** Gold related post (GG) ***

ml, turn up your speakers....

Goldcorp's McEwen: Gold Prices, Acquisition Strategy

Sept. 16 (Bloomberg) -- Robert McEwen, chief executive officer of Goldcorp Inc., talks with Bloomberg's Brian Sullivan from Toronto about the long-term outlook for gold prices, the impact of gold industry consolidation on the production and supply of gold, and the company's acquisition strategy. Toronto-based Goldcorp is Canada's fourth-biggest gold producer.

http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000082&sid=ahhxH1fpOsAA&refer=canada

[basserdan]

*** Stephen Roach (9-22-03) ***


Global: Breakthrough

Stephen Roach (New York)
September 22, 2003

An unbalanced global economy has finally come to its senses. At the just-concluded G-7 meetings in Dubai, the world’s major industrial economies have endorsed the basic premise of global rebalancing -- a long overdue adjustment in the dollar. This could well have profound and lasting implications for the world economy. It is an unequivocally positive development, in my view.

Policy statements are always clouded with ambiguity. That’s true of central bank policy directives, as well as communiqués released after G-7 meetings. But for me, the communiqué from the 20 September G-7 meeting in Dubai was crystal clear. Three words said it all -- “flexibility” and “market mechanisms.” G-7 finance ministers have finally conceded that “…more flexibility in exchange rates is desirable for major countries or economic areas to promote smooth and widespread adjustments in the international financial system, based on market mechanisms.” In plain English this means that the perils of external imbalances -- massive deficits in America and surpluses in Asia and, to a lesser extent, Europe -- are now center stage. Market-driven currency adjustments are seen as the means to correct these potentially destabilizing external balances. This is a thinly veiled message to the Japanese, suggesting they cease and desist from their campaign of currency manipulation. It also puts other nations on notice who have been pegging their exchange rates -- especially China and its neighbors in Asia -- that there is no escaping the endgame of market-based principles of currency flexibility. But the essence of the message is that an unbalanced world now needs a weaker US dollar.

It’s worth underscoring how the world would benefit from an orderly depreciation of the dollar. From the standpoint of the United States, a weaker currency shifts the mix of economic growth from domestic demand to exports. Given America’s massive external financing needs -- currently more than $2 billion of capital inflows per business day -- foreign investors will probably need to be compensated for taking currency risk. That should result in higher real interest rates and a related suppression of domestic demand growth. Such an outcome will be key in enabling the US to rebuild national saving -- thereby weaning America from its increasing dependence on foreign saving and the current account deficits it needs to attract such capital from abroad. As an important aside, a weaker dollar will also be helpful in America’s anti-deflation campaign -- having the effect of transforming imported deflation into imported inflation.

Alas, there’s a certain zero-sum aspect to the global economy’s adjustment in relative prices. For the rest of the world -- or at least the major countries or regions that would have to bear the burden of the dollar’s correction -- the impacts are the mirror image of those facing the US. As the yen and the euro rise in response, export competitiveness in Japan and Europe will be diminished. That will force both economies to take actions aimed at promoting growth in long-sluggish domestic demand. Fiscal and monetary policies will need to be biased more toward accommodation than would be the case if the yen and the euro were artificially depressed. But the key impacts on Japan and Europe would be to accelerate the focus on reforms. Stronger currencies are the functional equivalent of “straitjackets” -- forcing nations or regions to unshackle domestic demand by making internal markets more flexible, businesses more efficient, and price-setting mechanisms more competitive. Without such reforms, there can be no global rebalancing.

Japan has long been a major stumbling block on the road to global rebalancing. Two reasons explain why it has now shifted its position -- economic growth and politics. The Japanese economy expanded at a 4.0% annual rate in 2Q03 bringing the year-over-year increase to 3.0%. On both counts, that qualifies Japan as the fastest growing economy in the G-7. While our Japan economics team looks for some weather-related consolidation in the current period, they now believe that a long-sluggish Japanese economy is on a moderate cyclical recovery path that could last through mid-2004. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Koizumi has solidified his political position, garnering 61% of the votes in the LDP leadership elections this past weekend, setting the stage for a solid general election victory in November. At the same time, he has reaffirmed his support for the principal reformer in his cabinet -- economics and financial services reform minister, Heizo Takenaka. With growth and politics moving into favorable alignment, this is a perfect opportunity for Japanese policy to shift focus away from currency manipulation to reform. With the yen now trading though the all-important ¥115 threshold against the dollar, it appears that the Japanese authorities have called off their campaign of aggressive currency intervention -- at least for the time being. There is no better time for the Koizumi government to seize the moment and get on with the heavy lifting of structural reform. For Japan, this could truly be its last chance.

For Europe, the basic message of the Dubai communiqué is inescapable: The imperatives of reform are about to become even more urgent. That’s not say Europe hasn’t made progress on this front over the past six months. That’s been the case in Germany, where Chancellor Schroeder’s government has not only accelerated the pace of tax cutting but has also moved ahead in proposing reforms of labor market regulations and social security. Meanwhile, the French government has withstood widespread protest and stayed the course on public sector pension reform; healthcare insurance reforms are next on France’s agenda. At the same time, there has been progress on Austrian pension reform and on Portuguese corporate tax reforms. At work have been the strictures of the Stability and Growth Pact, reinforced by the mounting pressures of a stronger euro. Global rebalancing offers no real let-up on the currency front, although the breakthrough in Dubai implies that some of the burden of the dollar’s adjustment will now be shifted away from Europe to Japan. But as the dollar’s correction gathers force, the pressures pointing to a stronger euro will not abate. That will keep the onus on reforms -- tough medicine over the near term but ultimately good news for Europe and for the hope of achieving better balance in the global economy.

The Dubai communiqué does not put explicit pressure on China and other developing nations to abandon currency pegs and adopt more flexible exchange rate regimes. I’ll be the first to admit that this conclusion is open to interpretation. But as I read the language of the latest G-7 statement, the reference is to currency flexibility in “major” economies -- a qualifier that is normally reserved for wealthy, industrial nations. I have argued at length why a developing Chinese economy should not be lumped in the same category as the developed economies (see, for example, my July 14 essay, The Scapegoating of China). The lack of well-developed financial systems and capital markets suggests that China and other developing countries are simply not prepared to cope with open capital accounts and the flexible currencies that more advanced nations can accommodate. China’s special outsourcing role in the global supply chain also argues against a revaluation of the renminbi. These considerations should not, however, be viewed as permanent. As China and other developing nations make progress on the road to reform and prosperity, currency flexibility can become a more realistic and important element of their growth strategies. In the end, there can be no special exemptions from global rebalancing.

For the US, Dubai was also a watershed event. The motivation is not hard to fathom. At work is an increasingly powerful interplay between economics and domestic politics, as America’s jobless recovery appears on a collision course with the Bush Administration’s re-election hopes. With America’s fiscal and monetary levers already fully engaged, the currency option takes on new and critical importance as the only means left to provide macro stimulus to a beleaguered US labor market. It remains to be seen as to whether such tactics will work -- especially with IT-enabled outsourcing creating a new and lasting global labor-cost arbitrage that biases US employment growth to the downside. But the Bush administration has evidently concluded that a currency adjustment needs to be added to America’s reflationary policy arsenal. In doing so, US politicians should benefit by having fundamental economics on their side, as America’s massive current account deficit screams out for a weaker dollar.

History tells us that the US dollar has only just begun its downward descent. On a broad trade-weighted basis, the dollar (in real terms) has fallen about 8% from its early 2001 highs. In a full-blown current account adjustment, a drop of around three times that magnitude can be expected -- not all that different than the 30% real deprecation of the dollar that occurred in the late 1980s when the current-account disequilibrium was far less acute. In the end, a lopsided world has no choice other than to accede to a weaker dollar. The G-7’s Dubai communiqué now puts the major economies of the world on the same page with respect to the global rebalancing that such a currency realignment can trigger. The road ahead will be long and arduous -- and not without risk, especially in oft-volatile currency markets. But the economics I practice suggest it is the only way out for such an unbalanced world. As someone with a long-standing gloomy bias on global prospects, I am now encouraged for the first time in four years.

http://www.morganstanley.com/GEFdata/digests/20030922-mon.html

[basserdan]

*** Gold related post (GG) ***

G'morning ml,
Some terrific numbers, to be sure...... <GGG>
Goldcorp is truly a keeper!
==============================================================

GOLDCORP INC.: Deepest HGZ Multi-Ounce Intersection of Gold, Yet 2.11 Ounces per Ton over 48 Feet Best Intersection: 39.98 Ounces per Ton over 34.1 Feet Expansion on Target

Monday September 22, 6:06 pm ET


TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 22, 2003--
(All assay values are uncut)
(All dollar amounts in US$)
GOLDCORP INC. (NYSE:GG - News; TSX:G - News) is pleased to announce encouraging exploration results from its Red Lake Mine, in northwestern Ontario, Canada. Multiple zones of multi-ounce gold mineralization continue to be encountered at greater depths. This type of mineralization is a characteristic of the upper areas of the High Grade Zone (HGZ), where the richest concentrations of gold have been found, to-date. In addition, the dimensions of HGZ and Sulphide Mineralization (SZ) in all of the target areas continue to expand. Also, the mine expansion and construction of the new shaft is moving forward quickly.

Highlights of the exploration results are summarized below:

The deepest multiple ounce occurrence of the HGZ ever encountered: 2.11 ounces of gold per ton (opt) (72.4 grams per tonne (gpt)) over 48 feet (ft) (14.63 metres (m)) at a vertical depth of 7,165 ft (2184 m). This intersection indicates the HGZ now extends below the planned bottom of the new shaft (7,150 ft or 2180 m).
Multiple zones of high grade mineralization were encountered beneath current reserves. The best values were found within a 134 ft (40.84 m) interval containing four intersections of the HGZ that included 16.46 opt (564.3 gpt) over 22 ft (6.71 m), and 3.24 opt (111.1 gpt) over 33.5 ft (10.21 m).
The extremely high grade nature of the Hanging Wall Zones beneath the current reserves was confirmed by intersections of up to 39.98 opt (1,370.7 gpt) over 34.1 ft (10.39 m).
The HGZ was identified 260 ft (79 m) east of its previously identified eastern limits with intersections of up to 3.52 opt (120.7 gpt) over 7.4 ft (2.26 m) at a vertical depth of 7,112 ft (2,168 m).
The deepest intersection of Sulphide Mineralization ever, was obtained at a vertical depth of 7,300 ft (2,225 m), some 3,000 ft (920 m) below where it was last mined.
CONTINUING EXPLORATION SUCCESS!

HIGH GRADE ZONE (HGZ)

Objective to increase ounces per vertical foot

In the upper 1,200 ft (366 m) of the HGZ, to a depth of 5,500 ft (1,676 m), which is the area which has received the most intensive exploration efforts, the average gold content (including mined material) is 3,500 ounces of gold per vertical foot. Below this, the HGZ has been shown to extend deeper for at least an additional 1,900 ft (579 m). However the HGZ in this lower area is less explored and so far, the gold content (including mined material) is lower at 1,500 ounces of gold per vertical foot. The recent discovery of multiple zones of multi-ounce, high grade mineralization at depth indicates that the gold content is increasing and with it the possibility to increase the reserve and resource base of the HGZ.

Hanging Wall Zones

Deepest Intersection of Multi-Ounce Mineralization

2.11 opt (72.4 gpt) over 48 ft (14.63 m)

Hole 37L034IW intersected 2.11 opt (72.4 gpt) over 48 ft (14.63 m) at a vertical depth of 7,165 ft (2,184 m) in the Hanging Wall Zones of the HGZ. This is the deepest intersection of multi-ounce mineralization yet obtained in the HGZ. This result is significant as it indicates the HGZ continues at least to the planned depth (7,150 ft or 2,180 m) of the new shaft and further suggests the likelihood that it is continuous at depths below this.

HGZ 260 ft (79 m) East of Previous Limits

3.52 opt (120.7 gpt) over 7.4 ft (2.26 m)

Hole 37L460AW intersected 3.52 opt (120.7 gpt) over 7.4 ft (2.26 m) at a vertical depth of 7,112 ft (2,168 m), 260 ft (79 m) east of the previously defined eastern limits of the Hanging Wall Zones. This hole is significant since it is the second deepest occurrence of multi-ounce mineralization in the HGZ and it suggests the possibility that the dimensions of the mineralization increase at depth either through increased lateral continuity or increased structural complexity, or possibly a combination of both.

Continuity Confirmed at Depth

Extremely High Grade and Multiple Zones.

Up to 39.98 opt (1,370.7 gpt) over 34.1 ft (10.39 m)!

Exploration below the limits of reserves (6,475 ft or 1,974 m) has been successful in establishing the continuity of the Hanging Wall Zones of the HGZ, and confirming the extremely high grade nature of this mineralization over substantial thicknesses.

For example hole 37L422A intersected 39.98 opt (1,370.7 gpt) over 34.1 ft (10.39 m) at a vertical depth of 6,480 ft (1,975 m). In addition hole 37L464 intersected multiple zones of high grade mineralization to a maximum depth of 6,800 ft (2,073 m). This latter hole encountered four zones of mineralization over a length of 134 ft (40.84 m) which included 16.46 opt (564.3 gpt) over 22 ft (6.71 m), 5.61 opt (192.3 gpt) over 5.0 ft (1.52 m), and 3.24 opt (111.1 gpt) over 33.5 ft (10.21 m).

The occurrence of multiple zones of high grade mineralization has increased with the intensity of drilling at depth. It potentially indicates increased structural complexity at depth, which is a feature of the upper areas of the HGZ where it is richest

CONTINUED AT:

http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/030922/225961_1.html

[basserdan]

*** Gold/Silver COT #'s ***

Hi ml,
In case you haven't 'read the book' yet. <g>

[punkle]

mlsoft, you've been off the board for 5 days and people are worried. Since your last post was to me I figured I'd ping ya.

[basserdan]

*** Gold related post (BGO) ***

G'morning ml,
Check this out!


Bema Gold Sees Tenfold Production Rise To Over 1M Ounces

Wednesday September 24, 8:01 am ET
By Tom Locke, Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

DENVER (Dow Jones)--Bema Gold Corp. foresees a tenfold rise in its gold production to more than a million ounces per year, said Chairman Clive Johnson.
That expansion, up from about 117,000 ounces in 2002, is expected to come from a number of different existing projects, said Johnson in a Tuesday presentation at the Denver Gold Forum 2003 in Denver, sponsored by the Denver Gold Group.

The most significant of them is the Kupol project in Russia, where Bema expects to commence production in 2007. A pre-feasibility study for Kupol is expected in March 2004, followed by a complete feasibility study in March 2005. Projected capital costs for the project are $200 million.

Kupol alone, which has "spectacular grades over tremendous widths," could have production of 700,000 ounces to 1 million ounces of gold per year, said Johnson. He believes the cash costs of production at Kupol will be extremely low, at less than $50 an ounce for the life of the project.

Johnson noted that Bema has had success with its Julietta Mine in Russia, where a mining company needs high grades of ore, a good local partner, and government support to succeed.

Also adding to Bema's future production will likely be the Refugio Mine in Chile, which was shut down in May 2001 because of low gold prices. Johnson expects Refugio, which is owned 50% by Bema and 50% by Kinross Gold Corp. , to go back into production by late 2004, but he is uncertain about what level of production will be instituted then.

The operating Petrex Mines in South Africa and the potential of the Cerro Casale deposit in Chile round out the Bema picture.

The Cerro Casale gold and copper deposit, in which Bema has a 24% interest in a joint venture with Placer Dome Inc. , would require an initial capital cost of $1.43 billion, according to Johnson's presentation. He expects the project to get off the ground when it becomes possible to finance it, and with gold prices rising, that prospect appears as a more likely possibility

http://biz.yahoo.com/djus/030924/0801000378_1.html

[basserdan]

*** Gold related post (WHT) ***


Wheaton River Hints At Continued Growth Via Acquisition

Tuesday September 23, 8:09 pm ET

VANCOUVER -(Dow Jones)- Intermediate gold producer Wheaton River Minerals Ltd. (WHT), which has been on an acquisitive binge this year, could buy out some of its existing joint-venture partners, president and chief executive Ian Telfer said Tuesday.

At the Denver Gold Forum, Telfer said he expects Teck Cominco Ltd. might sell its 79% stake in the El Limon (Morelos Norte) exploration property in Mexico. Vancouver-based Wheaton River is acquiring Miranda Mining Corp. , which owns the remaining 21% interest in El Limon.

Telfer also kept the door open to increasing Wheaton River's 37.5% interest in the Bajo de la Alumbrera gold/copper mine in Argentina.

"We'd certainly take a look at it," Telfer said, when asked whether Wheaton River would be a buyer if the other 50% of Alumbrera, owned by Xstrata plc , came up for sale.

Telfer's presentation was broadcast on the Internet.

Wheaton River increased its asset base this year via acquisitions in Argentina and Australia, and Telfer said the company hopes to "move up the ladder" on the list of intermediate gold producers, while reducing the percentage of revenue it obtains from copper.

At its 100%-owned Peak mine in Australia, Wheaton River has replaced several managers and cut staff by 20% since buying the mine in March and has increased the exploration budget to $4 million from $1.5 million in hopes of extending the mine life, Telfer said.

Overall, the company's annual production is expected to grow to 700,000 gold- equivalent ounces by 2006 (when its newly acquired Los Filos, Mexico, project starts producing gold), from more than 400,000 ounces this year.

In Toronto, Wheaton River shares closed Tuesday at a 52-week high of C$2.89 a share, up 3 Canadian cents, on almost 7 million shares.

The Denver Gold Forum continues through Wednesday.

Company Web Site: http://www.wheatonriver.com

http://biz.yahoo.com/djus/030923/2009001455_1.html

[basserdan]

*** Gold related post (GG) ***

ml,
Sure is a lot of 'news' coming out of Denver these days. <VBG>

Goldcorp Sees Big Potential For Red Lake Mine

Tuesday September 23, 6:16 pm ET
By Tom Locke, Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

DENVER (Dow Jones)--Goldcorp Inc.'s new drilling at its Red Lake Mine in Ontario expands the dimension of a deeper high-grade zone that could approach the significance of a huge high-grade zone above it, Chief Executive Robert McEwen told Dow Jones Newswires Tuesday.

Further exploratory drilling will determine what the potential of the lower deposit really is, but "the potential could be as much as another 3.8 million ounces of gold," McEwen said following his presentation here at Denver Gold Forum 2003, sponsored by the Denver Gold Group.

In his presentation, McEwen also stressed the importance of a $94 million, 7, 200-foot second shaft at Red Lake that will increase gold production there 40%, from about 500,000 ounces a year to about 700,000. It also will lower cash costs per ounce to $70 from $80, and provide some insurance as another access point should anything happen with the existing shaft.

The first full year of production after shaft completion is expected to be 2007. After the shaft is built, the company will be able to exploit lower-grade ore as well as high-grade ore, and it will expand production from 650 tons of ore a day to 1,000, with the capability of expanding to 2,500 tons a day.

One company goal is to expand to 1 million ounces of gold production a year, and it is looking at potential acquisitions in North America, South America and Europe to help it reach that goal, said McEwen. He said Goldcorp unsuccessfully tried for two years to buy Placer Dome Inc.'s Campbell Mine next to the Red Lake Mine.

"Our approach to (mergers and acquisitions) is to wait for the opportunity," said McEwen, and the company wants to be ready to take advantage of it when it arises.

As of June 30, Goldcorp had considerable acquisition ammunition: $200 million in cash, $68 million in marketable securities and $85 million in gold bullion.

That 245,000 ounces of gold bullion, or 25% more than that of the Bank of Canada, is a result of Goldcorp's retaining some of its gold production in anticipation of a rise in gold prices. McEwen said the price of gold is "going to test the $800 mark" over the next six to eight years. That's more than twice its current level near $390 an ounce.

"We're into a generational change in the marketplace," he said. Investors are concerned about preserving wealth in an environment of a weaker dollar, underfunded pension plans and governments incurring debts to keep economies propped up, and they are looking to gold as an investment to offset these factors, he said.

http://biz.yahoo.com/djus/030923/1816001362_1.html
==============================================================

Goldcorp says won't be pushed into acquisitions

Tuesday September 23, 3:26 pm ET
By Nicole Mordant

DENVER, Sept. 23 (Reuters) - Goldcorp Inc. (Toronto:G.TO - News), one of North America's lowest-cost gold producers, said Tuesday it won't hurry into any acquisitions despite pressure from investors to expand its production rate and reduce reliance on a single mine.

Among gold mining companies, Toronto-based Goldcorp is known as one of the most aggressive marketers as well as the most outspoken opponent of hedging.

Both strategies have gone down well with investors, who have piled into its shares, helping them show a 36 percent annual compound growth rate over the past 10 years.

But after years of kudos for the low-cost operations at its Red Lake mine in Ontario, the 500,000-ounce-a-year gold producer is now facing criticism from investors who say its growth profile is positive but shallow.

"Our approach to mergers and acquisitions is to wait for the right opportunity. The problem is buying too quickly and not being able to digest," Goldcorp chairman and chief executive Rob McEwen said.

He was speaking to a roomful of fund managers and chief executives from the world's biggest gold mining companies, gathered at the annual Denver Gold Show.

McEwen said Goldcorp tried for two years to buy Placer Dome Inc.'s (Toronto:PDG.TO - News) Campbell Mine, which borders its Red Lake operation in northwestern Ontario. But Placer refused to sell.

For now, McEwen said, Goldcorp will focus on organic growth, expanding its operations at Red Lake, where its cash costs are $100 an ounce compared with the industry average of $212 an ounce.

The Toronto-listed producer begins to sink a second shaft at Red Lake in January next year, an expansion that will add 200,000 ounces to production from 2006 onward.

At the same time, Goldcorp continues to explore for new gold at Red Lake and Monday announced some encouraging early-stage results.

In keeping with its strong marketing drive, the company slipped a copy of the press release under the bedroom door of every delegate staying at the conference hotel.

The mid-tier producer is keeping its eyes open for potential acquisitions and has taken more than a passing interest in a couple of "highly liquid stocks," in which it recently made an investment of about $60 million.

"They are strategic in nature," McEwen said, but declined to name the stocks.

http://biz.yahoo.com/rc/030923/minerals_gold_show_goldcorp_1.html

[basserdan]

*** Gold related post (WHT) ***


Wheaton River Eyes Bermejal, Rest Of El Limon Property

Wednesday September 24, 7:57 am ET
By Tom Locke, Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

DENVER (Dow Jones)--Wheaton River Minerals is eyeing nearby property acquisitions in Mexico to complement the $87 million Los Filos property acquisition that is expected to close next month, Chief Executive Ian Telfer said.

Near Los Filos is the El Limon property, in which Wheaton has a 21% interest. Wheaton hopes to acquire the other 79% interest of El Limon from Teck within a year, Telfer told Dow Jones Newswires after his presentation Tuesday at the Denver Gold Forum 2003 in Denver, sponsored by the Denver Gold Group.

In his presentation, Telfer also said that an upcoming announcement is expected to raise the gold resources level at El Limon to around 3 million ounces, from a current level around 1.6 million ounces. Telfer expects the level to rise to 4 million ounces, to start production in about three years at El Limon, and to produce about 200,000 ounces of gold per year there. "It's going to be a barn-burner for us," he said.

Also in the "Guerrero Gold Belt" area is the Bermejal property, owned jointly by Newmont Mining Corp. and Penoles, a Mexican mining company. Telfer told Dow Jones he would hopes to acquire Bermejal "in the next six months," and get production going there in two years.

He also expects production to start at Los Filos in two years. Los Filos and Bermejal together are expected to produce 225,000 ounces of gold per year, he said.

The combined impact from the three properties of 425,000 ounces per year would be significant for Wheaton, which estimates 2004 gold-equivalent production, including silver, at less than 600,000 ounces.

The El Limon and Bermejal acquisitions are the only ones on the horizon that the company is willing to talk about, said Telfer.

Wheaton thinks the gold price is going higher, and it has been successful in acquiring properties at low prices, he said. That's partly because it has bought properties that have been non-core assets for the sellers - a car parts company, a copper company and a zinc company. Plus, the companies wanted cash in the $100 million to $200 range, and there are very few small companies besides Wheaton that are able to raise those sums of money, he said.

http://biz.yahoo.com/djus/030924/0757000371_2.html