Canadian Regulators Confirm Bre-X Probe

Canada’s top securities regulator said it is probing whether Bre-X Minerals, which is mired in controversy over its Busang gold find in Indonesia, breached insider trading and disclosure laws. The Ontario Securities Commission said the Calgary-based gold prospector has been under investigation since the end of 1996, but it had not yet revealed details of the probe. Meanwhile, a much-anticipated report on Bre-X’s assay program at Busang confirmed the company’s original findings. But analysts said the highly technical report by Kilborn SNC Lavalin Inc. also raised new questions about the controversial gold project. A group of Canadian Bre-X shareholders launched a class-action lawsuit, adding to the five court actions the company already faces in the United States. Frantic trading in Bre-X shares forced the Toronto Stock Exchange to stop Bre-X trading for the third time this week because of heavy order volumes and a creaky computer system.