In yet another day of sluggish trading the market struggled to find direction.
The S&P-ASX 200 index was down 0.71% to 4508 points, while the broader All Ordinaries closed 0.62% lower to 4519.2 points.
Meanwhile, on the London Metal Exchange, copper, lead, nickel and zinc all made positive gains.
Copper closed 1.8% higher at $US6551.50 per tonne, lead was 3.54% higher at $2323.75/t, nickel closed 0.54% higher at $17,840/t and zinc added 2.29% to $2203/t.
The spot gold price shined for another day, inching up to a record high of $US1095.27 per ounce as the news of India’s purchase of a couple of 100t of the precious metal continued to push the price skyward.
Analysts were speculating if today could be the day the gold price broke through the lucrative $1100 per ounce barrier, but alas the golden glow wasn’t strong enough and the price slumped to $1087 at the close.
The gold plays suffered a turbulent session which saw Newcrest Mining slump A34c to $34.11, Lihir Gold lost 3c to $3.28, Centamin Egypt added 5c to $2.35 and Sino Gold Mining gained 11c to $7.15.
The major iron ore plays wiped off the minor gains from yesterday’s session with BHP Billiton closing the day down 50c at $36.44, while Rio Tinto slumped 84c to $62.59.
Fortescue Metals Group ended the session just 3c lower at $3.68.
Centrex Metals provided some of the biggest news of the day with the announcement the Foreign Investment Review Board has cleared the way for a $271 million Chinese investment in mining on Eyre Peninsula in South Australia.
The FIRB decision is unconditional and has cleared the way for state-owned Wuhan Iron & Steel Company, China’s third-largest steel group, to earn a 60% stake in the iron ore rights to five Centrex-owned tenements.
Shares in Centrex closed 7c higher at 71c.
South Boulder Mines received some positive reinforcement from investors after it lifted a trading halt on the back of new extensive gold mineralisation discovered at the Terminator prospect within the Duketon project.
Shares in the gold play lifted 35% or 7c to 27c.
The two biggest movers by percentage on the Final Call watchlist today were Australian Mines and Southern Cross Exploration, both with falls.
Australian Mines wiped off 50% or 0.1c to 0.1c while Southern Cross fell 36% or 2.1c to 3.7c despite neither company making an announcement today.
The most traded stock was St Barbara, taking the crown from the fluid Focus Minerals. Today some 40 million shares in St Barbara moved in 788 separate trades.
