Refreshing to see some relatively decent volume in KAU ticking...

Refreshing to see some relatively decent volume in KAU ticking through. About 2pm Sydney time volume looks the strongest in two months.

it's likely two main factors are spurring demand. spot gold has rallied strongly and currently sits around $1,949, a tidy gain from a recent low of $1,810 touched briefly on Oct. 6. This translates to a local price of AUD$3,092, up from $2,895 on Oct. 10.

would you like an extra couple of hundred dollars for those ounces, sir?

If you were mining gold profitably before this month, the higher price goes straight to the bottom line. It thickens the icing on the cake.

KAU buyers are also likely wanting to take a position ahead of what is expected to be an upbeat Sept. quarterly report due by month's end.

The board said in its annual report that with a whole lot of rejuvenating capex completed at the A1 mine and Maldon mill in June, the company is poised to strongly increase production and profitability.

a company update for July suggested things were moving unequivocally in this direction. There's every reason to think this momentum continued after July.

around 2.30pm Sydney time, KAU traded at 19c. The stack of offers is somewhat sclerotic in the 19.5-20.5 cents range but a quarterly that exceeded expectations likely would clear any blockage - like reaming a new one.