A dismissive story in SA''s Business Report about Durban conference

12:10p ET Saturday, May 12, 2001

Dear Friend of GATA and Gold:

We're almost hoping that the disbelief and mockery exhibited
in the following story from Canada's Financial Post this week
continue for a while. It will make the reversal in gold all the
more delicious. Getting the press to get off its duff for a
minute and examine the FACTS and the RECORD is hard,but we're
working on it. It's going to happen.

CHRIS POWELL, Secretary/Treasurer
Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee Inc.

* * *

Bullion excitement boosts gold stocks: Another fakeout?

By David Steinhard
Financial Post, Canada
May 10, 2001

Shares of gold miners soared yesterday after a spike in the
price of gold and speculation about the impact on the bullion
market of the looming liquidation of an Australian mining
company.

Gold stocks rose across the board in North America, with
many stocks enjoying double-digit gains. Yet, despite the
excitement, analysts said investors shouldn't get their
hopes up that this is anything but another short-term rally
that will end in disappointment.

The Toronto Stock Exchange 300 composite index rose
0.1%, with Barrick Gold Corp. up 5.5% and Placer Dome
Inc. up 6.6%. Gold itself rose US$4.90 to US$270, so the
greater gain of individual gold shares had one analyst
smelling a false rally.

quot;It doesn't make much sense when gold is up US$4 and
the stocks are up between 12% and 14%,quot; Peter Ward of
Lehman Brothers in New York, said in an interview.

quot;We have seen gold run between US$260 and US$270,
then come right back down. And we have no reason to
believe this will be any different.quot;

A 20-year inventory that quot;must be liquidatedquot; will make it
very difficult to sustain a rally in the gold sector for very
long, he said.

Gold futures shot to a two-month high in New York in early
trading, as fund buyers flushed out short positions and
broke a string of narrow ranges. There's been some
short-covering going, quot;so US$3 on the gold price is enough
to get people fired up and these stocks to move,quot; said Victor
Flores, a gold analyst at HSBC Securities.

Analysts said the jump was also sparked by overnight news
of the impending liquidation of Centaur Mining amp; Exploration
Ltd., an Australian-based gold miner with a large hedging
position.

Centaur's creditors will decide next week whether the
company, which collapsed with debts of US$664-million,
should be put into liquidation.

Analysts said fears a slowing economy could depress the
value of the U.S. dollar could be fuelling interest in gold.
As well, some analysts believe that investors should turn to
gold to hedge against inflation. Not Mr. Ward.

quot;If investors wanted to hedge against inflation, they should
buy inflation-indexed treasury bills,quot; he said.