AngloGold Ashanti Limited and Other Basic Materials Stocks Making Big Moves on November 8, 2012

This morning's trading has marked a bad day for the market so far. The Nasdaq has decreased 0.5%; the S&P 500 has declined 0.2%; and the Dow is down 0.2%. The basic materials sector is the category of stocks that accounts for companies involved with the discovery, development and processing of raw materials. This sector includes the mining and refining of metals, chemical producers and forestry products. The basic materials sector is sensitive to changes in the business cycle. Because the sector supplies materials for construction, it depends on a strong economy. This sector is also sensitive to supply and demand fluctuations because the price of raw materials, such as gold or other metals, is largely demand driven.

The Basic Materials sector (XLB) is currently ahead of the overall market, down only 0.4%, and its biggest movers are currently:

Company	Market Cap	Percentage Change
Kinross Gold Corporation (NYSE:KGC)	$10.7 billion	+5.1%
Pan American Silver Corp (Nasdaq:PAAS)	$3.26 billion	-4.7%
OM Group (NYSE:OMG)	$636.7 million	-4.6%
AngloGold Ashanti Limited (NYSE:AU)	$13.47 billion	-4.3%
Coeur d\'Alene (NYSE:CDE)	$2.34 billion	-4.1%
TPC Group (Nasdaq:TPCG)	$711.4 million	+3.3%
CF Industries (NYSE:CF)	$12.66 billion	-3.3%

Broker Summary: Fidelity Online Brokerage

Increasing 5.1%, Kinross Gold Corporation (NYSE:KGC) is trading at $9.87 per share. So far today, 12 million shares of the company's stock have changed hands.

Currently trading at $20.42 per share, Pan American Silver Corp (Nasdaq:PAAS) has fallen 4.7%. At 2.3 million shares, the company's volume so far today is 1.2 times the average volume over the last three months.

OM Group (NYSE:OMG) is currently trading at a share price of $18.76, a 4.6% decline. The company is currently trading a volume of 116,363 shares.

AngloGold Ashanti Limited (NYSE:AU) has decreased to $33.46 per share, a 4.3% fall. At one million shares, the company's volume so far today is 0.7 times its current daily average.

Falling 4.1%, Coeur d'Alene (NYSE:CDE) is currently at a share price of $24.99. The company's volume is currently 1.2 million shares. This is on pace to fall short of yesterday's volume of 5.6 million shares.

After rising 3.3%, TPC Group (Nasdaq:TPCG) is currently trading at a share price of $46.35. The company's volume for the day so far is 570,246 shares, 6.7 times its average over the past three months.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) has fallen 3.3% and is currently trading at $195.36 per share. This morning, the company is trading a volume of 551,088 shares.

The Bottom Line The nature of the market is such that stocks will have good days and bad days. It is important to weigh current activity against historical performance when making any investment decisions. However, these fundamental metrics must be analyzed with historic data, industry information in addition to firm specific financial statements.