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Lihir, Allied shares up

LIHIR Gold rose further yesterday to hit a record high of A$3.25, up A$0.07, on a turnover of 16.95 million shares, while Oil Search put on A$0.03 to A$4.10.
Another Papua New Guinea stock in record territory was Allied Gold, which rose A$0.04 to A$0.46, on a turnover of 7.4 million shares.
The company’s Simberi gold mine is scheduled to start production later this year.
The much watched Highlands Pacific fell by a marginal A$0.05 yesterday to A$0.23 on a turnover of 4.5 million shares.
Highlands shareholders were hopeful the company’s June quarterly report, due by the end of July, would provide some early signs of a significantly improved mining performance at the company’s Kainantu gold mine in Eastern Highlands.
Lihir, the largest PNG company listed on the ASX, last week for the first time saw its market capitalisation exceeded A$6 billion (K15.71 billion).
The company last year sold a record 642,431 ounces of gold but this is anticipated to rise above 800,000 ounces this year, helping to underpin the stock’s strong performance.
Its share price is at its highest level in over two months with a recovery that followed the appointment of a new managing director.