AngloGold Ashanti -- AU, ANG (NYS, JSE)

    Yamana Gold Inc.'s listing positions the company among NYSE-listed leaders in the gold mining industry: Barrick Gold Corporation (ABX: Barrick Gold Corporation) , Goldcorp Inc. (GG: goldcorp inc new com) , AngloGold Ashanti Limited (AU: anglogold ashanti ltd sponsored adr) , Gold Fields Limited (GFI: gold fields ltd new sponsored adr) and Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited (HMY: harmony gold mng ltd sponsored adr) .

    LONDON (MarketWatch) -- J.P. Morgan downgraded three miners and upgraded one as part of a review of South Africa's mining sector. It remains a palladium bull, overweight platinum equities and neutral gold equities. It downgraded AngloGold (AU: anglogold ashanti ltd sponsored adr) to underweight from neutral, Lonmin (UK:LMI: lonmin ord usd1) to underweight from neutral and Harmony Gold (HMY: harmony gold mng ltd sponsored adr) to neutral from overweight, while it upgraded Anglo Platinum (AGPPY: anglo platinum ltd adr) to overweight from neutral.

    Elsewhere in the precious metals patch, JPMorgan was busy doling out downgrades to Harmony Gold (HMY) and AngloGold Ashanti (AU).


    Harmony was dinged to a neutral rating from overweight, while AngloGold was clicked down to underweight from neutral. Still the shares were both up modestly in recent action.

    It is my opinion that Goldman and Morgan were quite active selling gold and capping this past week near the $655-660 level. I think the COT report makes it clear.


    Why I felt it was important to include this is because I heard pundit after pundit pronouncing gold was dead this week as a safe haven play, all of them pointing to the price performance which was basically following the equity market up and down. As you know, price action ALWAYS makes market commentary. The usual mode for gold moving higher during times of financial distress, uncertainty and fear was negated and instead gold was tracking the indices up and down. I think this is part of a concerted effort by the monetary powers to discredit gold and bolster the dollar so as to avoid alarming the investment world which as we all know does not like to apply the grey matter between its two ears any longer than to think how to operate the remote for the TV.


    By having Goldman and Morgan come in and beat back the rally attempts by gold, the feds can point to a falling gold price and say gold is no longer a safe haven hoping to steer money into the bond market which as we know is nothing but paper promises backed by more paper.


    Personally, these guys are fighting 5,000 years of history and are destined to fail miserably, although with the idiots that appear regularly on “BUY all the time TV”, they are hoping to stave off problems by basically buying time so that they can kick the can down the road further.


    http://www.jsmineset.com/

    "Other gold mining companies operating on the African continent include Harmony Gold (HMY: harmony gold mng ltd sponsored adr) , AngloGold Ashanti (AU: anglogold ashanti ltd sponsored adr) , DRDGOLD (DROO.Y: drdgold ltd sponsored adr) and Gold Fields Ltd. (GFI: gold fields ltd new sponsored adr)."

    Robb M. Stewart
    JOHANNESBURG (MarketWatch) -- Gold and coal producers in South Africa have been called on to raise wages for unionized workers by at least 15% as collective bargaining looks set to begin.
    The National Union of Mineworkers said it sent its demands Friday to the Chamber of Mines, which every two years leads negotiations on behalf of members, including AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. (AU: anglogold ashanti ltd) , Gold Fields Ltd. (GFI: gold fields ltd new sponsored adr) and Harmony Gold Mining Co. (HMY: harmony gold mng ltd sponsored adr) . The union has called for the same 15% wage increase from both the gold and coal industries.
    The union, in an e-mailed statement, said it also is calling for an allowance of 1,500 rand ($211) a month for gold workers and ZAR2,850 a month for coal workers who don't use company-provided accommodation, as well as a 3% increase in workers' shift allowance.
    "We strongly believe that the demands are very reasonable and that the employers will soon come to the party without hassles," said NUM, South Africa's largest union.
    Elize Strydom, negotiator for the chamber, said NUM has made 36 separate demands that must be presented to members. Strydom added the chamber will now look for a mandate for bargaining, and so she doesn't expect negotiations with NUM and other unions to begin for another two weeks.
    "They are going to be tough talks, there's no doubt about that," Strydom told Dow Jones Newswires. "Things are going to be fairly drawn out."
    Trade union Solidarity last month submitted its demands to the chamber, calling for a 20% wage increase for members at the country's gold producers.
    Gold production in South Africa amounted to 62,806.7 kilograms in the first quarter of the year, down 7.6% on the same three months the year before, the Chamber of Mines said in late May. It added cash production costs were almost 20% higher and total operating costs before capital expenditure up nearly 18%.
    South Africa, the world's largest producer of gold, in 2005 faced its first industry-wide strike in 18 years when miners downed tools for five days. Workers then accepted a 6% to 7% pay increase for the lowest job categories and an increase of 5.5% to 6% in the second year of the agreement, which is set to expire at the end of June.
    NUM, which represents the bulk of miners in the country, and Solidarity are also calling for a 15% wage rise at leading platinum producers Anglo Platinum Ltd. (AMS.JO) and Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd. (IMPUY: impala platinum hldgs sponsored adr) , which bargain independently.
    Anglo Platinum, which is negotiating with six unions representing about 42,000 workers, last week raised its offer to a 6% pay hike from 5% but dropped an offer of a one-time 30% bonus on the basic monthly salary.

    Edited Press Release
    JOHANNESBURG (MarketWatch) -- South Africa's National Union of Mineworkers has released its demands for the country's Chamber of Mines, calling for a 15% wage increase for members, the union said Monday.
    In terms of allowances from employers falling within the scope of the chamber, the union said it demands ZAR1,500 as a living out allowance for gold workers and ZAR2,850 for coal workers. It further demands that all shift allowance be increased by 3%.
    "We strongly believe that the demands are very reasonable and that the employers will soon come to the party without hassles," NUM said.

    JOHANNESBURG (MarketWatch) -- DRDGold Ltd. (DROOY: drdgold ltd sponsored adr) and Mintails Ltd. (MLI.AU) Thursday said they have formed a joint venture to process gold found in surface tailings on South Africa's East Rand gold fields.
    South Africa's DRDGold said the venture has acquired from AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. (AU: anglogold ashanti ltd sponsored adr) , Africa's largest producer of gold, significant gold-bearing tailings materials created from historic gold production. The venture also has bought the remaining infrastructure surrounding the East Rand gold operation, including a surface reclamation operation on the gold fields that was discontinued by AngloGold in 2004.
    DRDGold said the joint venture will be equally owned by the South African units of it and Australia's Mintails, and managed by its Crown Gold Recoveries subsidiary.
    Company Web site: http://www.drdgold.com

    JOHANNESBURG (MarketWatch) -- DRDGold Ltd. (DROOY: drdgold ltd sponsored adr) and Mintails Ltd. (MLI.AU) Thursday unveiled a joint venture to extract gold from newly acquired mine waste on the East Rand of South Africa's Witwatersrand Basin.
    The new deal follows an agreement signed in late April to form a separate joint venture between the South African units of the two companies to explore and potentially mine gold and uranium on the West Rand.
    South Africa's DRDGold, the country's fourth-largest producer of gold, in a statement said it and Mintails would consolidate certain of their assets on the East Rand in an equally-owned venture.
    The venture would be managed by DRD's Crown Gold Recoveries subsidiary, which has treated more than 200 million metric tons of sand and slime and produced roughly 2.8 million troy ounces of gold through its plants.
    As well, the venture has acquired from AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. (AU: anglogold ashanti ltd sponsored adr) , Africa's largest producer of gold, significant gold-bearing tailings materials created from historic gold production as well as infrastructure and a surface reclamation operation on the East Rand gold fields that was discontinued by AngloGold in 2004.
    The AngloGold surface operation, ERGO, has processed more than 890 million tons of tailings material on the East Rand and produced some 8.2 million ounces of gold through two plants, Brakpan and East Daggafontein. The two plants were purchased by Mintails in 2006.
    DRD said it the first gold production could begin within 24 months, depending on the outcome of a feasibility study.
    At 0802 GMT, DRD shares were up ZAR0.05, or 0.8%, at ZAR6.15, in line with a rise in Johannesburg's gold mining subindex.
    DRD and Mintail's separate venture on the West Rand, agreed in April, is eventually expected to list on the Australian Stock Exchange following an initial public offering. That venture aims to restart mining in the West Rand gold fields, consolidating idled projects owned by the two companies and Mineral & Mining Reclamation Services.
    Gold mining first commenced in the Witwatersrand Basin in 1886 and has since produced more than 1.7 billion ounces of gold, representing over 40% of the world's gold production. Massive multimillion ton tailings deposits, which line the outskirts of Johannesburg, are the remnants of over a century of deep underground and open cast mining.
    Mintails on its Web site said it currently has the rights to exploit in excess of 330 million tons of sand, slime and rock tailings material, a vast proportion of which is situated on the West Rand about 70 kilometers west of Johannesburg.
    Company Web sites: http://www.drdgold.com http://mintails.com

    JOHANNESBURG (MarketWatch) -- South Africa's Chamber of Mines, negotiating biennial wage agreements on behalf of the country's top gold producers, will make a new offer to trade unions when talks resume July 2, one of the unions said.
    Solidarity and the National Union of Mineworkers this week declared a dispute with the gold producers after the Chamber declined to make a wage offer during the first round of negotiations.
    "This dispute, which may lead to a strike, has now been suspended until the conclusion of the talks in July," Andre van der Merwe, Solidarity's mining general secretary, said in an e-mailed statement Thursday.
    "Events on the first day of the negotiations proved that a tough negotiating season lies ahead for the gold mining industry. We have decided to hold off on the dispute as a sign of our commitment to a negotiated settlement," Van der Merwe said.
    Solidarity added that it is nevertheless a fact that its members are anxious.
    It said the rand gold price went up by 65% over the past two years. Technical analysts expect an upward movement in shares. The demand for gold currently exceeds supply and a report by PricewaterhouseCoopers found that no end is in sight for the increase in commodity prices. This has raised the expectations of employees.
    The union added that on the other hand, there is increased price pressure on workers. The inflation rate stands at 6.3% at present and expectations are that these high levels will be maintained and may even climb slightly. The inflation rate for workers is even higher, due to the high inflation rates for food, medical care, transport and housing, which negatively affects the disposable income of workers. Worker inflation is currently calculated at between 8% and 9%.
    The combined pressure brought about by the expectations of the workers in view of the industry's performance and inflationary pressure on workers creates a climate for tough negotiations.
    -Contact: 201-938-5400

    By David Wessel
    Word Count: 1,025 | Companies Featured in This Article: AngloGold Ashanti, BMW
    South Africa is a miracle: Political power passed 13 years ago from a small white minority to a black majority without a bloodbath.


    It didn't become Zimbabwe or Yugoslavia. "We went from being one of the ugliest societies in the world to the most hopeful," says Bobby Godsell, chief executive of gold producer AngloGold Ashanti. South Africa, he says with a touch of patriotic hyperbole, is becoming "a normal society with normal problems."


    South Africa long will be regarded as a triumph of leadership. But it is also an economic experiment: Can a free-market, developing-country democracy -- blessed with gold, ...

    DALLAS, Jun 18, 2007 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- A new research update has been issued on Sierra Gold Corp. (SGCP : sierra gold corp new com) by Beacon Equity Research Analyst, Lisa Springer, CFA.
    The full report is available at http://www.BeaconEquityResearch.com.
    Anyone interested in receiving alerts regarding Sierra Gold Corp. research should email members@beaconequityresearch.com with "SGCP" in the subject line.
    In the report, the analyst writes, "Sierra Gold is an emerging player in the gold and diamond mining industry. Sierra Gold owns the mining rights of Northern Star Resources Limited, which has mining properties covering 40 square kilometers in one of Sierra Leone's richest alluvial gold mining fields. Extensive assaying conducted by the Company suggests the presence approximately 936,000 ounces of high grade gold. At gold prices of $659 per ounce, this suggests the value of gold reserves exceeds $616 million."
    Other companies in the gold production market include AngloGold Ashanti Ltd (AU : anglogold ashanti ltd sponsored adr) , IAMGOLD Corp (IAG : iamgold corp com) , Meridian Gold Inc (MDG : Meridian Gold Inc) , and Rangold Resources (NASD: GOLD).

    Last Update: 6:42 AM ET Jul 5, 2007


    NEW YORK, NY, Jul 05, 2007 (MARKET WIRE via COMTEX) -- AngloGold Ashanti's (AU: anglogold ashanti ltd sponsored adr) second quarter 2007 earnings conference call will take place on Tuesday, 31 July at 15.00 South Africa time (US EDT: 09.00; UK: 14.00; Sydney: 23.00). Participants can access the call by dialing one of the following numbers and referencing 'AngloGold Ashanti':


    From North America:
    Toll 1 412 858 4600
    Toll-free 1800 860 2442
    From the UK:
    Toll 020 7107 0611
    Toll-free 0800 917 7042
    From Australia:
    Toll-free 1800 350 100
    From South Africa:
    Toll 011 535 3600
    Toll-free 0800 200 648




    A replay will be available two hours after the call on 31 July through14 August. To access the replay, dial one of the following numbers and reference the playback code 2645:


    From North America:
    Toll 1 412 317 0088
    Toll-free 1 877 344 7529
    From the UK:
    Toll-free 0808 234 6771
    From Australia:
    Toll-free 1800 091 250
    From South Africa:
    Toll 011 305 2030




    As usual, a live webcast of the call, as well as the company's full quarterly results, will be available on http://www.anglogoldashanti.com.
    Contacts: Michael Clements Phone: 011 27 11 637 6647 Email: Email Contact
    SOURCE: AngloGold Ashanti

    But the knock-on effect of the hike in the value of the rand is being sorely felt in the earnings of South African gold miners such as Gold Fields (GFI), Randgold Resources (GOLD), Harmony Gold Mining (HMY), and AngloGold Ashanti (AU). With a stronger rand, the miners' exports are becoming less competitive. And the evidence is in the companies' recent results.

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