Still stuck on the side of the road – junior financing – by Kip Keen (Mineweb.com – February 12, 2013)

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Junior financing is still hard to come by with the latest anecdotal evidence suggesting even air travel is hard for some juniors to cover.

HALIFAX, NS (MINEWEB) – Thumbs out, but no free rides a comin’. On the road to financing there still appears to be no major respite in view for a swath of juniors that are looking for cash and need it now more than ever to support bonafide exploration programs.

The latest statistics via Oreninc and Canaccord Genuity point to anemic financing levels that the latter suggests are barely able to sustain basic junior needs to pay salaries, administrative and listing costs, never mind actual exploration. Indeed, it would appear some juniors may even be rethinking travel commitments as bank accounts wither.

In its Junior Mining Weekly report, dated last Friday, February 8, Canaccord couched a dour assessment of the junior financing market in lacklustre statistics from the recent resource conferences in Vancouver. Canaccord noted attendance was slightly down at AME BC’s Roundup, by five percent, and 20 percent off at Cambridge House’s resource investment conference.

Worse, Canaccord reported that some juniors appear to have decided not to attend at the last minute, despite having a spot reserved.

“This year, anecdotal evidence suggested that some had registered and paid the fees for the Cambridge House conference, but in the end did not attend as they couldn’t afford to pay the travel expenses,” Canaccord stated.

There was not a lot of hope in recent financing statistics either. Oreninc, which tracks resource sector financings, noted that both the number and average value of deals for the week ending ending February 7, 2013, hit four week lows. Further, it suggested a recent uptick in financings was just that, an aberrant blip, with risk money continuing to eschew junior markets.

“It seems the strength of last week was more of an anomaly than the new norm, as brokers continue to sit on the sideline,” Oreninc said.

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