Argentina’s new government scraps mining taxes

Canadian Press reported Thursday on the merger of US Gold Corp. (TSX:UXG) and Minera Andes Inc. (TSX:MAI) to form a new corporate entity called McEwen Mining.

Gold failed to capitalize on the stock market rout and December futures tumbled 4% or $74/oz to $1,734/oz by early Thursday afternoon as the Fed warned of "significant downside risks" and pessimistic economic data from China further damaged sentiment. Silver was hardest hit and platinum and palladium prices came under pressure as well. December silver slid -9.8% or almost $4 to $36.50 an ounce while October platinum lost -4.9% or $87 and palladium for December delivery traded down -8.1% to $655. One trader summed up the day this way: “The textbook ideas, the things we follow, the things we believe to be so are being shot to pieces for the moment and it’s very difficult to trade other than for a long-term view.”

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - Sept. 22, 2011) - Silvercorp Metals Inc. ("Silvercorp" or the "Company") (TSX:SVM)(NYSE:SVM) announced it has acquired a total of 4,468,012 of its common shares at a total cost of $34,949,140 (average price of CDN$7.82 pursuant to its normal course issuer bid ("NCIB") announced on June 17, 2011. Under the existing NCIB the Company intends to acquire up to 10 million common shares. All common shares purchased under the NCIB will be cancelled.

News that the Mongolian government is rethinking a 2009 deal that gave Ivanhoe Mines and Rio Tinto a 66% stake in the massive Oyu Tolgoi gold and copper project has sent the shares of Ivanhoe down more than 9.5% in Toronto on Wednesday afternoon, while Rio's ADRs gave up over 6% in New York trade. The bad news appears to have led to a bust-up between the two companies, with Ivanhoe founder and CEO Robert Friedland saying on Wednesday Rio's senior management has been making "unauthorized and incomplete" statements about Oyu Tolgoi and that he will take the matter up with the world's number three miner. Ivanhoe is closely tied to Mongolia where it also controls SouthGobi, a producing coal mine. SouthGobi plummeted 10% on Wednesday.

After declaring a 730,000 tonne increase of contained copper in mineral resources at Kennecott Utah Copper, Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO) expects to head underground. Rio Tinto says that the mineral resource, known as the North Rim Skarn, is a high-grade copper-gold skarn deposit located approximately 300 metres below the current Bingham Canyon pit, the world's deepest open pit mine. The company has committed US$165 million to complete the next stage of exploration and development studies by 2014.

Avanti Mining Inc. CA:AVT -2.86% (pinksheets:AVNMF) ("Avanti" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has received assays from the next 14 holes of its 2011 drill program at the Kitsault Mine molybdenum project located in northwest British Colombia.

FLSmidth has today signed an agreement to acquire the assets of the privately owned company Knelson, a Canada based corporate partnership which is active within the minerals industries. Knelson develops, manufactures, and installs equipment for the recovery of precious metals such as gold, platinum and silver, as well as the enhanced gravity separation of base metals and industrial minerals with over 3000 installations in over 70 countries worldwide. The customer base comprises all the major gold, platinum and silver mining companies.

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - Sept. 20, 2011) - Empire Mining Corporation (TSX VENTURE:EPC) ("Empire") is pleased to report the final assay results for the remaining drill holes from Phase I drilling at the Demirtepe copper-gold-silver-molybdenum project located in western Turkey, where drilling in the Main Zone has consistently intercepted significant shallow mineralization in every hole completed. The most recent assays include the following significant copper-gold-silver and molybdenum intersections

With the price of silver near 30-year highs, analysts and investors are beginning to question the underperformance of silver mining and streaming stocks.