Win a pot of gold at Calgary conference while helping GATA

12:39p ET Tuesday, September 17, 2002

Dear Friend of GATA and Gold:

Reuters has just corrected its dispatch that asserted
that Newmont Mining Corp. planned to close its gold
hedges by February. Turns out that the hedge closing
involved is much less than that. The corrective dispatch,
appended here, isn't terribly clear, but there probably
will be more on this later today.

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

* * *

Correction to Reuters story on Newmont hedging

LONDON, Sept. 17 (Reuters) -- Australian gold producer
Normandy, owned by world number one gold miner
Newmont Mining Corp., on Tuesday said Newmont NFM
would eliminate its hedge book by February next year.

quot;Newmont NFM has completed a restructure of its hedge
book, reducing total hedging by 1.1 million ounces since
31 December 2001, and has implemented a new hedging
policy that will result in elimination of the company's remaining
hedge book of 300,000 ounces by February 2003,quot; the firm
said in a statement released in Australia.

The news was supportive for gold prices as hedging -- or the
forward selling of gold by producers to lock in profits -- is seen
by many analysts as a cap on prices as selling forward
increases supplies into the market.quot;The amendment to the
hedging policy was considered appropriate in light of the
company's improved balance sheet and the improved
outlook for the gold price. It is unlikely that additional
hedging will be undertaken in the near future,quot; Normandy
said in the statement.

Normandy said the reduction in the hedge book since
31 December 2001 had been achieved by the selective
buyback of 700,000 ounces on a cash neutral basis and
delivery of all sales into existing contracts (400,000 ounces).

This had left 600,000 ounces hedged at 31 August, which
included 300,000 ounces ounces of hedging inherited in
the acquisition of Otter Gold Mines Limited, Normandy said.

The remaining 300,000 ounces of Newmont NFM hedge
contracts will be delivered into over the next six months.

The remaining 300,000 ounces in the Otter Gold Mines
hedge book would be reduced as opportunities arise,
Normandy said.

Newmont Mining Corp had already committed itself to
accelerate the unravelling of millions of ounces of gold
pre-sold at fixed prices.

The mining house had already extinguished some two
million ounces of a total 10 million ounces inherited with
the takeover of Normandy in February this year.

Newmont, which forecast gold production of over seven
million ounces this year, is among a growing legion of
big miners with an aversion to hedging -- the practice of
selling yet-unmined nuggets at fixed prices.

Newmont has criticised hedging as hurting the gold price
by erecting a false ceiling on upward price movements.

However, some firms defend hedging as a way to protect
margins when bullion prices fall.