Toronto-listed miners issuing stock like its going out of fashion

Equity financings in 2009 have already topped record levels on resurgent demand for gold assets

TORONTO (Reuters) - 

Canada's main stock market said on Wednesday that equity financings by mining companies so far in 2009 have already topped full-year records due to resurgent demand for gold assets and that was led by Barrick Gold Corp's(ABX.TO) C$4.3 billion ($4 billion) stock sale.

Exchange operator TMX Group (X.TO) said mining companies on the senior Toronto Stock Exchange had raised C$17 billion through 264 financings as of Sept. 30.

Those figures -- which include 60 transactions valued at more than C$50 million each -- already exceed the full-year record set in 2007. They are also well ahead of the C$3.9 billion stock issued in the first nine months of 2008.

Barrick, which issued stock in September in order to buy back its gold hedge book, is one of several gold producers that have sold equity this year. Gold-mining shares have appreciated as the gold price largely avoided last year's resources sell-off and has risen to record highs this year.

Other notable offerings included Teck Resources' (TCKb.TO) C$1.7 billion private placement stock sale to China Investment Corp, and a C$460 million secondary offering by uranium miner Cameco Corp (CCO.TO).

TMX says the Toronto Stock Exchange and its small-cap TSX Venture Exchange are home to 55% of the world's mining companies. It said on Wednesday that company representatives are currently in Australia trying to drum up interest among Australian companies in a Canadian listing.

It said 26 Australian mining companies are currently listed on the Toronto and TSX Venture markets.

($1=$1.06 Canadian) (Reporting by Cameron French; editing by Peter Galloway)

© Thomson Reuters 2009 All rights reserved

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