Gold Net has been concentrating on establishing markets overseas for Australia Gold Nuggets. Recently we were fortunate enough to establish an outlet from Las Vegas in the USA and we are hopeful that this outlet will lead to much bigger and better gold sales for Gold Net. Sales are good at the moment and we have been buying good quantities of gold from prospectors to satisfy this developing market.
Establishing markets for Australian gold nuggets overseas is not easy. The gold nuggets we have are unique in the world and are clearly undervalued. However, Gold Net will continued to contact overseas outlets and keep the wheels turning to improve outlets for the benefit of all.
We have recently advertised gold packages at quite sensible prices for sale in US$.
Good sales at these prices are expected. We will keep you informed of developments.

Editor

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All material in this magazine is copyright and may not be reproduced in any part or form whatsoever without written permission from the publisher.
Genuine Educational Authorities are encouraged to make requests - which will not, in general, be denied.

with the "Wexodus" in full swing the large numbers of detectorists that visit the vast Western Australian gold fields are there in their droves. It is a unique occurrence in Australia - that through the Australian winter large numbers - and I do say large number of enthusiasts, travel from all over Australia to the gold fields of the west.

But why does this occur? Is there more gold there? Is it more easily found?
There certainly is a perception that there is still more gold in the west that can be more easily found than in Victoria and New South Wales. This is probably correct, but when one counts the real cost of going to the west - those that travel there for the winter months rarely make the trip pay.

No doubt knowing that last year some lucky prospector pulled out 500 ounces in two or three days, including a nugget weighing over 200 ounces from the same patch, whets the appetite, and is a drawcard to this vast area to all and sundry who own a metal detector. It is also a social event of monumental proportions, with many an outback bush fire burning late into the night with a grand Bar B Que, a few beers, and a lot of golden yarns shared between friends.

Those that visit this area to seriously detect, can only be "blown away" by the vastness of the gold fields, and the many gold mines owned by large corporations that dot the landscape throughout this vast region. The huge infrastructures that exist to support the commercial gold and other resource commodity producers in this region is immense. Just keep out of the way of the road trains as they zoom along the highways from the gold mines to the recovery facilities.

But in this region - just where are the best areas, the areas that continually and consistently produce gold. Well the answer to that is obvious - the large companies generally hold the most auriferous ground. I recall seeing one report on reserves for the Sons of Gwalia, that clearly stated that in each cubic metre of dirt on the surface there was 100grams of gold. Now that's over 3 ounces for every square metre (about 3 feet 6 inches square) piece of dirt that they had locked up. Wouldn't it be nice to just happen up a patch like that. That piece was near Leonora.

Leonora is a mecca for gold detectorists. It is situated right in the middle of extensive gold fields that reach out in all directions. It has good facilities for a frontier town, with accommodation at the Mining Village and a three star motel. The caravan park is well maintained and managed, and this time of the year bookings are essential due to the large number of gold seekers that use this park as a base. Additionally, two hotels, sometimes with topless waitresses and quite a good supermarket support the town and the many bush camps that can be found in the surrounding bush. Of note is the fact that in this small frontier town - there are no less than four tyre resellers. They all do a brisk trade. That indicates that tyres have a short life span in this country, as I found out last time I was here.

Leonora is well used as a base with many campers spending one to two weeks in the bush at a time, then returning to Leonora for a good shower and resupply.

Kalgoorlie on the other hand is much more of a mining city. With a population of over 30,000 this city is the capital of gold mining in Australia. It is uniquely Western Australian, and in the outback of Australia you can find almost anything you want here.
For many years Kalgoorlie boasted the only licenced brothel in Australia. This still exists, and members of the public can take a guided tour of the new $3,000,000 brothel. It's amazing just how many busloads of tourists take this tour.

The ground around the immediate vicinity of Kalgoorlie is well held by the mining companies, and detectorists must travel fair distances away from the town to detect on available ground. It should be remembered that the Kalgoorlie - Boulder area was a century ago the heart of the gold boom, and essentially with the giant Super Pit adjacent to the city - large quantities of commercial gold are still produced here. Only last year a new gold bonanza was found just 20km from the city. So there is still gold out there to be found.

Other areas of interest to the detectorist are Laverton, Menzies, Coolgardie, Kambalda and Norseman. Many of these areas are under done by detectorists, and personally I like the Norseman area, as I have found good quantities of gold quite close in to the town, and close to the surface.

With the opening up of EL's to the hobbyist prospector much more gold will be taken from the ground this year and in ensuing years. The Golden West is indeed a fabulous place to detect, and a visit to this area in the mild winter months in Australia where day temperatures hover around 20 degrees (70 degrees Fahrenheit) is indeed an experience one will not easily forget, especially if you do find that illusive nugget.

Kiandra was perhaps the coldest gold field in Australia. Situated high in the mountains well above the snow line, the hardships endured by prospectors and their families, along with government personnel made living here a hard task indeed. But then what gold field wasn't hard in the 1800's. No doubt they all had elements of hard living - and made our pioneers some of the toughest people, enduring great hardships.

Researching these gold fields, one is humbled by their achievements, their tenacity to succeed, and their enduring desire to make this relatively new country succeed. It should be remembered that when the great gold rushes first occurred, white settlement has only been evident in Australia for about 70 years.

Outstanding personal achievements were made by many, and men ill fit for positions were promoted. There were simply no others to fill vacancies. It was a time of rapid progress and growth, punctuated by outbursts of near anarchy and lawlessness, yet at times over reactions by Government authorities and repressive authority.

Some of the more pertinent occurrences were recorded from the gold field at Kiandra, and are reflected in here in these snippets. With the discovery of gold at Kiandra large numbers of diggers converged on the town. The police response was swift and several police were seconded from surrounding locations. This is evident from the following letter.

"Sir,
I have the honour to report my departure from Kiandra Gold Field on the 19th Instant, with the escort, bearing gold as in margin (5,160 ounces) and at that time leaving Mr Lynch, in charge, with a prisoner - George Walker - committed to take his trial, charged with robbery from the person of William Thorpe in broad day, and opposite and in sight of the Government camp, at that time leaving as a police force, Sergeant Gibson, Trooper Morris, and three dismounted men, with a daily increasing population, as well as a general one.

On the following morning, Mr. Sub-Commissioner Lynch felt it necessary to despatch two men, Levi and Conway, to escort him to Tumut, under which abridged force two delinquents being, on Wednesday, the 21st instant, about 8 in evening, arrested by the mob, they proceeded to execute Lynch law upon them exclaiming "hang them" - others "cut their ears off"; and ultimately shaving their heads, during which process, and with some difficulty, they were rescued by the few remaining police, their lives being preserved.

As a result, the more respectable portion of the population have called and had a meeting, forming themselves into a Vigilance Committee, many, I am informed, taking up the duty of special constables (about 100 persons)

Under such a state of matters I have deemed it my duty to order every available man in the police force out to Kiandra, and to proceed there again in the morning.

I further deem it my duty to urge upon you the necessity of recommending immediately the appointment of a Police Magistrate for duty at Kiandra, as the criminal business has so materially increased as to render it impossible the combined duties can be performed in anything like efficiency by the Gold Commissioner. In short, larceny and robbery from the person are rife, and of daily as well as nightly occurrence, requiring and urgently demanding not only such an officer, but a considerable accession of police force, both mounted and dismounted.

I would also desire to report that from the continued fine weather, at least as far into the season, and talk of memorializing the Government for police, all the year, in which case volunteers would have to be drawn should the Government yield to the request.

I beg finally to impress on your attention that such is the rapid accession of bad characters from Victoria, since your departure, that I cannot answer for what turn crime may take, if not met by proper means for its repression, and an immediate raid made against them."

Clearly the police in the area had their hands full in dealing with the new Kiandra Gold field.

On the 18th March 1860 the Cooma mail was robbed by armed men near Rob Roy. The coach was carrying 6 ounces of gold dust and over 500 pounds in bank notes. As was the custom of the day the notes had been cut in half with the other halves travelling at another time on another coach. This method clearly secured the notes from theft, and the notes easily cancelled.
The real loss to the bank was only the 6 ounces of gold dust.

It is of interest to recognise that in April 1860, the Surveyor General of South Australia, Lt. Col. A.H. Freeling, made an official visit to Kiandra to report on the:
"Extent and richness of the diggings, the best mode and manner of access to the Snowy River Diggings, whether it is possible to remain and work on the ground during the winter, what facilities exist for South Australians remitting to South Australia, and the price of provisions and the necessities of life."

No doubt the South Australian government, recognising the wealth that could be derived from Gold fields, following Alexander Tolmer's lead almost a decade before clearly saw an opportunity to enhance the wealth of the State and despatched Freeling. He had to travel by sea over 1,000 miles, and by land over 540 miles to carry out his instructions.

Freeling's report was comprehensive and very detailed. Unfortunately he had no alternative but to report that the gold field was not as extensive as had been thought, and that the situation there would not support great numbers of South Australians.

In fact shortly after Freeling was on the Gold field - the population peaked at an estimated 10,000 - although it is of note that Freeling estimated only 5,000 at the peak. By the following March - 1861 the Sydney Morning Herald reported the following.
"Great Exodus from Kiandra, many dread perhaps the coming winter. I should say that there are no more than 200 diggers left to 250. Very few men here, nearly all gone to Lambing Flat."

The Kiandra Gold rush was short and swift - but still managed to claim about 170,000 ounces - that was officially recorded.

The arrival of Tolmer and his troopers on the Mount Alexander Gold Fields created quite a talking point among the diggers.
Tolmer was well known in the colony os South Australia - and many recognised him immediately.
Incidentally it is of note that Mount Alexander was named by Major Mitchell after Alexander the Great the 4th Century Macedonian King. Additionally he named the Campaspe River after the kings mistress.
However I digress.

Word spread quickly, and the local Gold Commissioner, Captain Wright invited Commissioner Tolmer to dinner at Castlemaine, to discuss the purpose of his presence with South Australian Mounted Troopers on the Victorian Gold Fields. Tolmer duly attended and was cordially entertained in the officer's mess by Captain Wright and other officials.
Wright enquired the purpose of Tolmer's presence and Tolmer was frank and open with Wright. Explaining that the South Australian Colonial Secretary Lt Col Finniss had written to the Victorian Government advising of the purpose of the trip, Wright graciously accepted the word of a fellow officer.

There was of course some disquiet among some of the other officers, in particular one Captain Lonsdale, the newly appointed Colonial Treasurer of Victoria, who refused to recognise Tolmer's commission, and purpose. His pedantic behaviour was ignored by Tolmer, but it was noticed by Captain Wright and others.

Tolmer returned to the police camp at Mount Alexander the next day and issued instructions to place notices on trees throughout the diggings - notifying of the purpose of his presence. While waiting he visited several diggers from South Australia, and at one site was winched down to a level about 15 feet below the surface - where in less than 10 minutes he picked about � ounce of gold from the side of the shaft.
Then the owners of the shaft offered the claim to him for 5 pounds. Tolmer declined the offer.
He spoke at several gatherings advising of the South Australian Government's intentions to provide escorts for the gold back "home". Usually mounting a dray he would stand as an imposing figure in his uniform as he addressed the diggers.

Within a few days, gold was being accepted at the police camp at Mount Alexander. There was a lot of gold that the South Australian "crow-eaters", as they were known even then, has taken from the ground. At the end of the first day of weighing and issuing receipts, the long line of diggers waiting patiently was still in place. They had taken gold from 276 diggers on that first day. At the end of the next day, Tolmer realised that he could not safely take more gold from the many that had lined up for hours.

The dray that he intended to transport the gold back to South Australia was light and the numbers of troopers limited. His decision not to accept any more gold was not well accepted, at least initially, until he promised to have another gold escort return within the month. He was known as a man of his word, and his word was accepted.

The evening before his departure he was again invited to the officers mess for dinner, by Captain Wright. During the evening Captain Lonsdale asked Tolmer just how much gold he had taken from the diggers. Tolmer said, "Is that question put officially?" Lonsdale replied, "Certainly." Tolmer retorted, "Sir, the other night you refused to acknowledge my position under the South Australian Government, so I must decline to give you that information." Lonsdale glared - but Wright and others grinned wryly and the moment dissipated.

Next morning Tolmer penned a note to Captain Lonsdale, advising him that the total amount of gold to be transported back to South Australia was 5,750 ounces. As the weekly gold escort to Melbourne was in the vicinity of 13,000 ounces, Tolmer knew that this would not cause alarm.

The gold escort was proceeding west through the diggings when Tolmer caught up to it the next morning. Three diggers had joined the entourage returning home with the escort for added protection.
As they proceeded west to the foothills of the Pyrenees Ranges, towards the end of the second day, they made for the Four Posts Inn, at Glenorchy. Tolmer had been previously warned that this was a hang out for bushrangers, and this was the most likely place to expect trouble. He rode directly up to the front of the premises and as he arrived, six of the most unsavoury characters emerged from the front of the Inn and stood on the verandah.

Tolmer dismounted, approached them and casually asked which of them would attempt to take him and his escort. In fact he goaded them. Ordering a bottle of brandy, he walked outside and by military order, provided a nip for each of his officers - who dismounted by order and marched forward to accept the brandy. The six would be villains watched this procedure in awe. At the conclusion Tolmer mounted his horse and the party rode off.
The boldness shown had the desired effect and the "would be robbers" were not seen.

The travelling was excellent throughout the Wimmera and the Tatiara, which he described as excellent country. There was plenty of water and feed throughout. The difficult country was the Little Sandy Desert, and the stretch from the Tatiara to the River Murray - due to the deep sand. Tolmer took particular note of many things during this escort.

Just west of the Tatiara the party was approached by a lone rider, called Taylor. He had been sent by the South Australian Register, the daily Adelaide newspaper, to enquire as to the day Tolmer would arrive in Adelaide. Tolmer advised him that it would be the 19th March. Tolmer kept this appointment.

When the party reached Crafers, at the highest point crossing the Adelaide hills they were met by a large contingent of well wishers, riders and drays. They accompanied the escort into the city and with Tolmer riding triumphantly at the head of the party he stopped in King William Street at the Treasury Building, where a large group of dignitaries including Sir Henry Young, Finniss and Hanson were waiting. After the usual speeches - three cheers were called for with thunderous response.

Tolmer's foresight in organising the gold escort - against the odds, certainly assisted the almost bankrupt colony to recover from its position. Struggling wives left behind by their men who went to the goldfields sent home much needed gold that was readily converted into money, so long outstanding bills could be paid. Traders and bankers alike, were relieved by the actions of one man. A man who came from humble beginnings - but who held the respect of many of the simple settlers of the young colony.

In all, the first gold escort brought gold worth 18,456 pounds. Considering that Tolmer used the same horses for the entire trip was a unique feat in inself. His horsemanship and understanding of men and their limitations were exceptional. His recommendations were mostly accepted by the Government. These included the appointment of a resident South Australian Gold Commissioner to accept gold ready for the escorts so time would not be lost.

Tolmer had opened up a significant route to the gold fields and to the eastern States in general. His contribution to the colony was inestimable. Tolmer's life after this event was most eventful - but then that is another story, for another time.

Much has been written about the large gold nuggets from the fabulously wealthy Victorian Gold Fields. Nowhere in the world has such a great wealth of gold in such abundance ever been reaped before or since. To be able to accurately say just how much gold really came from the gold fields of Victoria would now be impossible, as the records are by no means accurate.
A lot of very large nuggets that came from this area were never disclosed to authorities. It would be fair to say that large nuggets are still coming from this region and are not being reported to authorities. However what was disclosed makes for fascinating reading indeed.

There is a perception that most of the large nuggets came from at or near the surface. Perhaps this attitude is derived from the fact that the Welcome Stranger nugget was fund almost on the surface. A large number of big nuggets were also found near the surface. But a good number of large nuggets were found at depth.
For example "The Welcome" nugget that weighed 2,195 ounces, found in 1858 came from Bakery Hill at Ballarat and was found at 180 feet. "The Blanche Barkly" weighing 2,195 ounces, found at Kingower in 1957 was at a depth of 13 feet, and "The Precious" weighing 1,621 ounces, found at Catto's Paddock, Berlin in 1871, was at 12 feet. "The Lady Hotham", found in 1854 at Ballarat, and weighing 1,177 ounces, was at 135 feet.

What becomes entirely obvious is that the depth at which gold was found in the gold rush days was from the surface to about 1,000 feet. It is of interest to note that the vast majority of 100 ounce plus nuggets were found less than 50 feet deep. In fact, 248 nuggets over 100 ounces recorded in the early gold rush years were found under this depth, and of this total 146 were found within 10 feet of the surface.

Of the nuggets over 100 ounces found at greater depth only 14 were found between 50 -100 feet, and a further 19 between 100 - 200 feet.
From 200 - 500 feet there were 20 and from 500 - 1000 feet 27.
Effectively, of the nuggets over 100 ounces more than 75% were found within 50 feet of the surface. Now that gets my mouth watering as I know that there are still a lot of nuggets still in that country just waiting to be dug out.
What a pity we can't get much below 3 feet with our present technology. We still have a long way to go.

Of interest too are the locations of the nuggets. The main goldfield regions of Wedderburn, Dunolly, and Kingower are prominent, along with Ballarat. Maryborough surprisingly does not present prominently here - but today, large nuggets are regularly found in this area. Two nuggets, weighing 180 ounces and 82 ounces respectively, were found recently.

A similar pattern follows when looking at the nuggets from 100 ounces down to 20 ounces. It is clear that the vast majority of these nuggets were found in the top 50 feet. In the top 10 feet there were 299 nuggets and in the next 40 feet a further 295 nuggets. From 50 feet to 1,000 feet only a further 152 nuggets were recorded in this range.

Once again the locations previously mentioned proliferate throughout. Dunolly, Wedderburn, Ballarat, Kingower, Kangderaar, Tarnagulla, and Berlin feature prominently. Once again Maryborough is rarely mentioned again in the statistics.
Dunolly and Wedderburn are very prominent.
Looking at the charts below indicates that there is and always has been a vast surface area of the Victorian gold fields, that has produced in spectacular fashion. No doubt there is still a lot of gold out there for the taking.

When the great gold bonanza concluded about 1910 officially - records of nuggets were not kept in great detail. The industry and government interest waned and with it the official record keeping practically ceased.

The gold industry became a forgotten memory as generations came and went until the great gold revival occurred in the 1980's with the advent of the Metal Detector era.
There is still a great deal of gold left in the ground. Yes, we all know there is a lot of dirt between each piece of gold. But with technology improving as it inevitably does - we shall see more gold nuggets in the future.

The economic decline within the United States continues to detrimentally effect global economies. Some informed comment has been gleaned from a number of sources that makes for interesting reading. Gold Net provides this comment on a, make of it what you will basis. It certainly indicates all is not well with the US economy.

COMMENT:

The consumer is now in hock. He's carrying too much debt. Consumer spending has been contracting all this year, down to a rate of 4% in the first quarter and to a rate of 1.5% in the second quarter - and the decline is accelerating.

COMMENT:

The reasons for consumer behaviour are plain: the wealth effect of the stock market drop and weakened job market. Unemployment has risen to 4.5% and more than 400,000 people have filed claims for unemployment benefits, a number typically associated with a recession. The consumer is also constrained by a rising debt burden, which now approximates 22% of disposable income. Average credit card debt per household, in the 1990's grew by 150% from approximately $3,000 to $7,000.

COMMENT:

Zuckerman than reportedly concluded his piece by saying, "If there's a surprise waiting for us in the second half of this year, chances are it won't be a recovery of growth but, rather, a disappointment that the combination of Fed easing and Tax cuts have failed to jump-start the economy. Why "because of the triple whammy of weak consumer spending, declining capital spending, and tumbling exports."

COMMENT:

And why are Mr. Greenspan's interest rate cuts not working? We will offers some reasons in our July issue which is scheduled to go to press this coming week. Also we are providing an extensive research report on Itronics Inc., which is our favourite technology stock as the Kondratieff winter intensifies.

The consumer is now in hock. He's carrying too much debt. Consumer spending has been contracting all this year, down to a rate of 4% in the first quarter and to a rate of 1.5% in the second quarter - and the decline is accelerating.
The reasons for consumer behavior are plain: the wealth effect of the stock market drop and weakened job market. Unemployment has risen to 4.5% and more than 400,000 people have filed claims for unemployment benefits, a number typically associated with a recession. The consumer is also constrained by a rising debt burden, which now approximates 22% of disposable income. Average credit card debt per household, in the 1990's grew by 150% from approximately $3,000 to $7,000.

COMMENT:

If there's a surprise waiting for us in the second half of this year, chances are it won't be a recovery of growth but, rather, a disappointment that the combination of Fed easing and Tax cuts have failed to jump-start the economy. Why because of the triple whammy of weak consumer spending, declining capital spending, and tumbling exports.

COMMENT:

And why are Mr. Greenspan's interest rate cuts not working? We will offers some reasons in our July issue which is scheduled to go to press this coming week. Also we are providing an extensive research report on Itronics Inc., which is our favorite technology stock as the Kondratieff winter intensifies.

GATA's Bill Murphy

Bill Murphy suggested that Mike Bolser, a GATA backer had read his mind when he passed on the following thought to Bill.
I read with some interest the lament letter from your subscriber about why the squeeze didn�t happen yet. He doesn�t get it. The clue is his reference to 200 day moving average and 50 day moving averages for gold. They are meaningless measures of future COMEX performance. Clawar and I agree completely on this point, that no meaningful change in the long term price of gold will occur until the forces that control it either give up or are forced to give up. A number of things can force them to give up:

1. Exhaustion of appropriate physical gold stocks used to deliver against losing derivative positions.
2. Litigation discovery in Howe/GATA. Discovery is a situation that is so fraught with danger for the government that it is difficult to envisage any scenario under which they answer questions or provide documentation.
3. A plunging stock market which is no longer controllable from the purchase of index futures, a practice which can be seen in real time by examining the bid/ask order flow. During support times the bid is always higher than the ask, a queer proposition indeed.
4. A series of large bankruptcies which triggers a systemic credit crunch. Motorola, Lucent, Xerox, Finova and Amazon.com might do it. Other combinations could just as well be the trigger.

COMMENT:

The manipulators have shown that they are willing to extract 20% of America�s gold bullion reserve in order to cap the Washington Agreement rally in late 1999. The transfer of 58 million ounces at the West Point Depository to custodial from Gold Bullion Reserve status has not been explained yet after months of questions. Reasonable people can rightfully conclude that this gold was improperly used in a Federal Reserve swap with a cooperating European bank and sits under an earmark, owned by another entity.

They were desperate enough to act inappropriately then, we must assume that they will be even more desperate in the future. Perhaps desperate enough to take even more gold bullion from the reserve status.

It is difficult for anyone to comprehend the magnitude of these acts, so many prefer to ignore them or fall back to a more comfortable theory, that GATA is somehow wrong, that somehow the facts aren't the facts or might be explained away.

COMMENT:

If there were a reasonable explanation for the 58 million ounce transfer it would have surfaced by now. Reasonable assessment leads one to the conclusion that for the government to tell the truth is not an option for them if they really did take the gold for a speculation payment. They will never tell the truth in this matter, it is unthinkable to tell the truth here.

This is the main sticking point. Few citizens believe that their government could do such a thing, even staunch gold investors. GATA is simply seeing the loyalty of America�s citizens when it encounters resistance to a reasoned argument.

COMMENT:

In my opinion GATA needs to focus only upon the most grievous facts at hand and the consequences of those facts. The West Point bullion reclassification, the admission of gold swapping by the Federal Reserve in FOMC minutes and the admission that Treasury deals in gold. The facts that Chairman Greenspan has denied the above in letters to members of Congress is icing on the cake.

COMMENT:

The following remarks by famed gold trader Jim Sinclair were published on June 26th. Jim knows the gold market as well as almost anyone alive so I think his following comments provide great insight for all of us.

Gold is breaking out to the upside amidst the proverbial "wall of worry" and with most market participants clueless as to what gold is all about.

A flurry of buying emanating from the cash market set off some excitement on Comex as the Goldman Sachs Dwarfs were routed when their hold the $275 line at all costs was overrun. Only "shoot themselves in the foot" producer selling by the likes of Placer Dome stopped an accelerating rally.

COMMENT:

The grandest commodity moves of all come when the specs are long and the commercials are short. The reasons are fairly simple. Producers (commercials) that continue to hedge in this environment think like rats in an electric shock maze. They are conditioned, are too close to the market and think in the past. Some producers are pulling sell forward triggers as if they have just bounced off a shock wall - they are just reacting, not thinking. It was what they have done for years, so they keep doing it, not taking the time to analyze what is happening around them. They have been conditioned by The Gold Cartel to do just that. As a result, many producers will be the last to realize that a giant gold bull market is in play and that the 21 year gold bear market is over.

COMMENT:

The devious bullion dealers in the cabal will cover their own shorts first and try and get long before they inform the gullible producers what the new game is. They need as much producer selling as possible for their own covering.

Gold Net has previously warned of the overheated US economy. Those warnings were essentially quite correct. All is not well in the US economy, and with the crisis in the Argentine, we see difficult and troubled times ahead.

Courtesy - Australian Gold Council

The gold industry has been a major investor in Australia for over 150 years and remains so into the new millennium.

In November 2000, along with associate member Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, the Australian Gold Council released a survey of over 200 gold producers, explorers and service providers to the industry. The main findings of this first-ever survey included:

Australia's gold mining industry will spend at least $4.5 billion in capital works, new exploration and production activities this financial year.

Respondents to the survey have forecast an 11 percent increase in total expenditure by the gold industry over 1999-2000 levels, led by a $340 million rise in expenditure by gold producers.

In regional areas, respondents forecast that their employment levels will rise 2.3 percent to16,373 employees, while capital expenditure will leap by 49 percent to more than $1 billion.

Total expenditure by the gold industry on environmental works by the respondents throughout Australia in 2000-1 is expected to be around $33.2 million.

Moreover, the gold industry invests its capital where it is needed most in Australia; in regional and remote parts of the continent such as outback Queensland, the Tanami area of the Northern Territory and much of regional Western Australia.

Alongside the investment made by gold producers, gold exploration in Australia is worth around $500 million each year - this commitment is critical because exploration provides the investment in capital and jobs for the future.

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Hidden Gold Fields The prospect of hidden gold fields Kalgoorlie's Attractions The great golden wealth of Kalgoorlie The Long Tunnel Mine A new and innovative Tourist Attraction Coiltek's UFO Search Coil A great gold finder from Coiltek