The following has been making the rounds in Europe. It may explain today's higher volume in ITF.
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> Platinum Group Metals
> The Latest Resource Darlings
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> The platinum group metals have been showing wild price fluctuations all
year, providing us with spectacular profit opportunities on several
occasions. Just this week palladium soared $29 in a single day to close at
$756. The reason cited by dealers for that jump was the lack of news and
metal coming from Russia. There's good reason to believe that's actually
the case, as Japanese contractors are reporting there have been no
deliveries of metal for more than two weeks, and they don't expect the
supply picture to get brighter any time soon. Part of what drives the price
of these metals is the uncertainty regarding Russian shipments.
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> Any way you look at it, the PGM fundamentals look very, very strong.
Demand growth shows absolutely no signs of slowing, and the condition of
Russian exports remain questionable at best. And because the lion's share
of platinum and palladium come from the Ruskies, opaque market conditions
and questionable production and distribution policies will continue to drive
the price - regardless of whether what's reported is rumor or hard fact.
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> It's testament to the degree that Russia has been democratized. Any metal
produced (most of which comes from Norilsk Nickel) first goes through the
gauntlet of the Russian government. Given this, and a myriad of other
possible scenarios, it's likely that we'll see palladium's record high of
$803 broken before year-end. Regardless, such extreme volatility is a good
thing - provided you're on the right side of the trading activity.
>
> All of these trends bode well for International Freegold, whose exposure
to the PGM market is impressive, and will certainly treat us well on any
additional positive exploration news. We've seen this pattern in the last
few months with ITF, and chances are, we'll see it again.
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> International Freegold - ITF - T
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> International Freegold Mineral Development Inc., aside from its extensive
Canadian properties, recently acquired an additional PGM project in Alaska.
After conducting extensive analysis of Alaskan PGM projects, Avalon
Development, acting as Freegold's geological consultant, recommended the
acquisition of the Union Bay prospect which consists of 105 unpatented
Federal lode mining claims covering 2,100 acres. The Union Bay prospect is
located near tidewater on the Cleveland Peninsula of mainland southeast
Alaska - about 35 miles northwest of Ketchikan.
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> Reconnaissance exploration is expected to begin immediately, including
geological mapping, reconnaissance rock sampling, heavy mineral concentrate
sampling and reconnaissance soil sampling. A Phase I summer exploration
program is already under way on the previously acquired Tonsina PGM prospect
in south-central Alaska. Freegold staked 5,600 acres there and acquired an
additional 36 square miles through an option agreement with Ahtna Minerals
Inc.
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> Freegold's main focus remains the acquisition and development of platinum,
palladium, rhodium and gold projects in North America. Since we expect the
PGM market to remain strong throughout the year, ITF is in the right place
at the right time. Freegold now has eight PGM properties in the Sudbury
Mining District in Ontario, and with working capital and securities of $1.2
million and no debt, the company will be able to exploit those properties
without delay. If you don't already own ITF, it's a good time to buy.
Shares are trading at the same level they were this past spring, before
rewarding us with a solid triple.
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> ITF remains a highly leveraged way to gain exposure to the PGM market. As
we've recently seen, any exploration success will reward us with a sharp
increase in share price as speculative buyers move in and push the bid up.
These price swings are rapid and can themselves cause a speculative frenzy,
so use good trading discipline and sell half of your position on any double.
Stick with this strategy. |
