It is a starting point for Aphrodite Gold to become a gold producer at a competitive cash cost per ounce of gold produced.  In our opinion, there is significant scope to increase the returns, particularly the IRR.

The potential for uplift in resources at Aphrodite is significant increasing the potential throughput and lowering costs. There is potential to increase gold production and project life with expansion in resources - a revised resource estimate expected end Q1 2012 incorporating all 2011 drill results.  Further drilling is also planned.

Producing a high gold grade, low mass concentrate would greatly reduce transport and processing costs of the concentrate as well as opening up a range of options for the processing or sale of concentrate.

Interestingly, Barrick Gold Corp, who own Kanowna Belle mine, which is to the south of Aphrodite Gold deposit, used to own the Aphrodite project.

For the three months that ended December 31, the operator of Toronto's main stock exchange posted $54.2 million in earnings, or $0.70 per share, down 19.7 percent from $67.5 million, or $0.90 per share, a year earlier.

Fertilizer producer Agrium (TSE:AGU) said Wednesday that earnings grew 43 percent in the fourth quarter as it overcame a struggling global economy that has hit commodity prices and made buyers cautious.

Calgary-based Agrium said earnings for the quarter that ended December 31 rose to $193 million, or $1.20 per share, from $135 million, or 86 cents per share, a year earlier.

Adjusted earnings were $2.34 per share for the latest quarter.

Online gaming software company Cryptologic (TSE:CRY) said Wednesday it has inked a multi-year licensing deal to provide a portfolio of games to the Société du jeu virtuel du Québec.

Espacejeux – which opened its online gaming platform in 2010 – was granted licensing rights to 14 of Cryptologic’s top performing games.

Catalyst Paper Corporation's (TSE:CTL) shares will be delisted from the Toronto Stock Exchange at the close of market on March 8, said the Canadian exchange, due to the specialty paper producer's failure to meet continued listing requirements.

Shares were suspended from trading last week, a day after Catalyst Paper filed for protection under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act, in the wake of a union at its Crofton mill rejecting a labour contract that was a crucial step in the company's prior reorganization plans under the Canada Business Corporations Act.

CAE (TSE:CAE) (NYSE:CAE) said Wednesday its fiscal third quarter profits rose more than 18 percent to beat analysts' estimates, as it sold more full-flight simulators in the latest nine months than it did in all of 2010, but revenues still fell short of expectations.

For the three months that ended December 31, the maker of modeling, simulation, and training for civil and defense aviations posted net income of $46.1 million, or $0.18 per share, up 18.5 percent from $38.9 million, or $0.15 per share, a year ago.

ATS Automation Tooling Systems' (TSE:ATS) stock jumped over nine percent Wednesday after releasing third quarter earnings that beat estimates, driven by growth in its transportation unit.

For the quarter that ended January 1, revenue from continuing operations rose 23 percent to $149.1 million, compared to $120.8 million recorded last year.

Net income from continuing operations grew sharply to $17.6 million, or 20 cents a share, compared to a year-earlier profit of $3 million, or three cents a share.

Intact Financial (TSE:IFC) said Wednesday its fourth quarter profits fell over 20 percent as it recorded high expenses related to its May 2011 acquisition of AXA Canada.

For the three months that ended December 31, the insurance provider posted net income of $84 million, or $0.62 per share, down 21 percent from $107 million, or $0.95 per share, a year ago.

Century Iron Mines (TSE:FER) said Wednesday that it has completed the earn-in of its 51 percent interest in the Attikamagen project, located 20 kilometres northeast of Schefferville, straddling the boundary between the provinces of Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador.

Under the terms of an option and joint venture agreement with Champion Minerals (TSE:CHM), Champion has signed, and delivered the 51 percent interest in the iron ore property to Century Iron's subsidiary.

Vitran Corp. (TSE:VTN) said Wednesday fourth quarter sales rose by 20 percent, reporting a narrower net loss, despite worse-than-expected performance in its U.S. business.

Toronto-based Vitran also posted a narrower net loss of $8.1 million, or 49 cents a share, compared to a year-earlier net loss of $40.2 million, or $2.47 a share.

Canadian airline giant WestJet Airlines (TSE:WJA) saw its fourth quarter profit beat Street estimates on Wednesday, as the company announced definitive plans to form a regional carrier business.

For the three months that ended December 31, WestJet posted net earnings of $35.6 million, or $0.26 per share, down four percent from $37.2 million, or $0.26 per share, a year ago.

Canaccord Financial (TSE:CF) said Wednesday its third quarter earnings fell over 75 percent, but still beat analyst estimates.

Gold and copper explorer Eurasian Minerals (CVE:EMX) (AMEX:EMXX) said late Tuesday it has agreed to acquire gold-focused royalty company Bullion Monarch Mining (OTCQB:BULM) in a US$45.8 million cash and share deal.

Under the terms of the deal, Bullion shareholders will receive 0.45 of a Eurasian common share and US$0.11 in cash for each Bullion share held.

Rock Tech Lithium (CVE:RCK) unveiled Wednesday the remaining drill results from the second phase of its exploration program at the company's Georgia Lake lithium project in Ontario.

Highlights of the latest drill results include 1.20% Li2O over 8.84 metres, 1.11% Li2O over 3.10 metres, and 0.82% Li2O over 1.0 metres in drill hole NC-11-23.

Mobile messaging firm Synchronica (CVE:SYN)(LON:SYNC) has agreed to form a joint venture with Toronto based technology incubator Intertainment Media Inc (CVE:INT, OTCQX: ITMFT). The Canadian group is also investing up to C$10 million in Synchronica share-plus-warrant units priced at a minimum 16 pence each.

Rambler Metals and Mining (CVE:RAB)( LON:RMM) has begun the process of buying out net smelter royalty (NSR) over its flagship Ming mine.

Cadillac Ventures (CVE:CDC) said Wednesday it has started an updated mineral resource estimate for its K1-1 deposit, following the receipt of results from 26 drill holes recently completed at the site.

Sage Gold (CVE:SGX) provided Wednesday an update on its operations at the Clavos gold deposit, located in Timmins, Ontario.

The company said it has completed the $3.0 million expenditure as part of the requirement under its earn-in agreement with St. Andrew Goldfields (TSE:SAS), in order to earn a 60 percent interest in the deposit.

Sage said it has sent the expenditure data to St. Andrew for approval.

The company said it has completed the $3.0 million expenditure required under its earn-in agreement with St. Andrew Goldfields (TSE:SAS), in order to earn a 60 percent interest in the deposit.

Sage said it has sent the expenditure data to St. Andrew for approval.

In addition to this $3.0 million, Sage must pay $75,000 in cash to St. Andrew, issue $75,000 in shares of its common stock, and replace the $250,000 closure bond, in order to earn its 60 percent interest.

The company also announced that Roscoe Postle Associates (RPA) is in the final stages of completing all required wire framing and block modeling associated with the completion of an updated NI 43-101 compliant resource estimate for the Clavos deposit.

The estimate is expected for completion during the first quarter of 2012, and will contain mineral resources for the "Existing Clavos" deposit zone, the Sediment zone, the 960 zone, and the Contact zone.

The Sediment, 960, and Contact zones were not included in the previous estimate for the deposit, which was completed in October 2006, also by RPA.

The previous report estimated a measured and indicated resource of 143,000 tonnes at 8.0 g/t gold containing 37,000 ounces, and an additional inferred resource of 529,000 tonnes at 6.5 g/t gold for 110,000 ounces of gold.

Following the completion of the updated resource estimate, Sage said it will undertake a scoping study, which it expects will provide it with the data required to evaluate the feasibility of several development options on the property.

These options include the potential for near term cash flow related to the extraction of tonnage identified with the existing Clavos deposit, the feasibility of developing the 960 zone with one or two exploration drives, and the position of the Sediment zone, in relation to the 960 zone.

The 960 zone is located 600 metres east of the existing Clavos underground workings. Sage said it is possible that the Sediment zone could offer access to the 960 zone, reducing capital expenditures.

Finally, Sage announced Wednesday the completion of 2,400 metres of drilling within the 960 zone, for which assays are pending. The drilling targeted the potential down-dip extension of the zone, as well as tested the Sediment zone to the south of 960.

Sage is a mineral exploration company with its main properties being the Clavos Gold deposit in Timmins, and the Lynx deposit and other exploration properties in the Beardmore -Geraldton Gold Camp.

The company, founded in 1980 and with about 611 employees, develops cellular therapies for oncology, immunology and regenerative medicines in China and the United States.

It provides adult stem cell collection, processing, and storage services that allow healthy individuals to donate and store their stem cells for personal therapeutic use.

New York-based NeoStem also said that Progenitor Cell Therapy, which the company acquired last year, will also be presenting at one of the February conferences.

NeoStem’s chief executive, Robin L. Smith, will be providing a corporate update on February 14 at the Bio CEO & Investor Conference at 9:30 a.m. at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, in New York City.

In addition, Progenitor Cell Therapy’s president, Robert A. Preti will be presenting at the New York Stem Cell Summit, where he will talk about its contract manufacturing services for the cell therapy industry. This conference will take place on February 21 at 11:41 a.m. at Bridgewaters, New York.

NeoStem’s CEO is also slated to make a presentation at the Bridgewaters event at 1:47 p.m.

Late last month, the company’s subsidiary, Amorcyte, announced that it enrolled the first patient in the PreSERVE phase 2 trial for its AMR-001 therapy, designed to treat patients post heart-attack.

The study is a multi-centre, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial testing the safety and efficacy of the treatment by artery infusion.

AMR-001 is an autologous cell therapy designed to prevent heart tissue damage and further major adverse cardiac events following a heart attack.

The treatment consists of a patient's own bone marrow cells, which are processed to create pharmaceutical-grade cells which are then re-injected via coronary arteries into damaged areas of the heart, five to 11 days after a patient experiences a heart attack.

Because the treatment is autologous, meaning cells are taken from the same individual that they are transplanted into there is no risk of rejection and can provide support for an extended period of time.

NeoStem said that for the phase two study, roughly 160 subjects aged 18 or older will be randomized on a 1:1 basis between the treatment and control groups. Results are expected sometime in the middle of 2013.

For the three months that ended December 31, the company posted adjusted earnings of $10.6 million, or $0.11 per share, down 77 percent from $45.6 million, or $0.55 per share, a year ago.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had expected $0.05 per share in profits.

Earnings were adjusted for $6.3 million in restructuring costs, $2.7 million related to its proposed acquisition of Collins Stewart Hawkpoint, and $1.7 million related to the amortization of intangible assets, the company said.

Total revenues fell 42 percent to $147.9 million, from $254.8 million in the same period last year.

"The strategic investments we undertook to expand our global capabilities and enhance Canaccord's long term performance highlighted our fiscal third quarter, with our announced acquisition of Collins Stewart Hawkpoint, and the closing of our acquisition of a 50% interest in BGF Equities," said president and CEO, Paul Reynolds.

"Combined, these growth initiatives will add important scale to our UK and US businesses, establish key operations in Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia and Europe, and provide a strong, high-margin UK Wealth Management business to our global platform.

"We're particularly pleased with the record advisory revenue our Merger, Acquisition and Restructuring practice generated during the quarter, due in part to our growing presence in Asia and our strong corporate relationships in Canada.

"As global economic and market challenges continue to restrain capital raising activities, we see the growth of our advisory business as a key opportunity to offset reduced activity in some of Canaccord's other business segments, while we best position our company for the eventual market recovery."

The company's capital markets business, Canaccord Genuity, posted $38.5 million in advisory revenues during the latest quarter, up 53 percent from a year ago. Much of the company's advisory business was generated via cross-border transactions.

During the third quarter, Canaccord Genuity led or co-led 20 global transactions, raising total proceeds of $324.1 million. It also participated in another 77 global transactions, raising total proceeds of $1.2 billion.

However, the company's wealth management business posted $44.6 million in revenues, down 35 percent, reflecting prolonged market volatility and cautious investor sentiment, Canaccord said.

At the end of the third quarter, the company had $14.4 billion in assets under administration, down ten percent from the year-ago period. Still, it recorded $607 million in assets under management, up 18 percent from the third quarter of 2010.

Canaccord said it repurchased and cancelled 650,000 shares of its common stock during the third quarter.

In Toronto, shares of the Vancouver, B.C.-based company rose 3.84 percent to $8.92, as of 3:18 pm EDT.

The company's stock opened at $9.06 this morning on the Nasdaq, up a tad from its IPO price of $9.0. As of late afternoon, its shares were 73 percent higher at $15.57.

But Caesars only sold 1.8 million shares of its stock at the middle of its $8 to $10 expected range, or around 1.4 percent of its total shares outstanding.

The Las-Vegas based company owns, operates or manages 52 casinos, mainly in the US and England, under the Caesars, Harrah's and Horseshoe brands in the US.

The company's largest investors, buyout firms Apollo Global Management and TPG Capital, are not among those that sold their stock.

According to reports, Caesars has worked out a deal with some previous private investors, allowing them to sell shares right away.

The company's financials have been on the decline since 2007, with average daily hotel rates slumping. Apollo and TPG acquired the casino giant in 2008, just as the downturn began to take shape.

In the first three quarters of 2011, revenue fell 0.5 percent to $6.66 billion, while net loss narrowed to $471 million, compared to a loss of $629 million in the same period of 2010.

The casino operator also hoards a significant amount of debt - with $22 billion as at the end of September 2011. It also owes $1.7 billion in interest payments over the next 12 months.

The company was de-listed in 1980 after being acquired by Holiday Inns, and in 1995, it made its debut again, only to be taken off the market by Apollo and TPG in 2008 in an LBO.

BMTI introduce Augmatrix™ Biocomposite Bone Graft, a new bone graft substitute product line, to surgeons and distributors.

• This Augmatrix product line is comprised of carbonate-apatite (calcium phosphate) and Type I collagen and is designed to be combined with bone marrow aspirate (BMA);
• The products are available in multiple forms to suit an array of bone grafting challenges, including fracture repair and general bone void filling procedures;
• The product line has been FDA cleared for use in orthopedic indications and is ready for sale in the US.

The Bottom Line: The Augmatrix product line will provide surgeons with a range of bone grafting solutions to procedures for which rhPDGF-BB offers, The Augmatrix bone graft substitute platform presents a complement to existing orthobiologics portfolio and will penetrate the large bone graft substitutes market earlier than anticipated. Aggregate sales of bone graft substitutes in the US are estimated to reach $1.7B in 2012.

• BMTI is trading flat at $2.24

Today’s Gospel:  Stocks are stuck in … purgatory … the market has acted very well since December and for the whole month of January with … no real pullbacks but … I think it has  gotten ahead of itself …  even though there’s improving macro-economic data.

Mid-Day: The NASDAQ is UP +1.75 (+0.06%) to 2,905.83 while the Dow is also DOWN -16.27 (-0.13%) to 12,861.93.

Mid-Day Market Commentary: Stocks have moved … modestly lower in … mid-day trading … on Wednesday … and buying interest has remained relatively subdued. The major averages still slowly are staying to the upside, adding to the … slim gains posted in the previous session.

Who is UP … Mid-Day: 

• Advanced Cell Technology (OTC BB: ACTC);
• BioTime (Amex: BTX);
• Fibrocell (OTC BB: FCSC);
• Geron (GERN),
• Opexa (OPXA);  
• Pluristem (PSTI);
• StemCells (STEM);
• Tengion (TNGN);
• ThermoGenesis (KOOL);
• Verastem (VSTM).

What’s new in the regenerative medicine/stem cell market … 5 …  things to know today …

Financing: Juventas Therapeutics, has increased the size of an equity round to $20M and has secured $12M of the round. A 2008 filing showed the company securing $7.7M toward an $8.8M round of equity and securities. Blue Chip Venture Co., Early Stage Partners, Jumpstart, North Coast Angel Fund, Reservoir Venture Partners and Triathalon Medical Ventures are listed as investors.

Sistemic to participate in stem cell research project: http://www.scotsman.com/business/sistemic_joins_5m_arthritis_stem_cell_research_project_1_2102881 . Scottish company Sistemic will collaborate with Ti-Genix andOxfordUniversity scientists in a $7.8M project to develop cellular therapies for rheumatoid arthritis. Researchers inFrance, theNetherlands andSpain will participate in the project. The Bottom Line: Provides in-depth data during the clinical trial.

Science Brief: Researchers use molecule to direct bone-forming stem cells: http://www.orthosupersite.com/view.aspx?rid=92271 . Researchers said a molecule called LLP2a-alendronate, when injected into the bloodstream of an animal model, instructed mesenchymal stem cells in the bone marrow to go to the surface of the bone, turn into bone-forming cells and synthesize proteins to improve bone growth. The Bottom Line: 12 weeks after the injection of the molecule, the researchers observed improved bone strength and increased bone mass in the femur and vertebrae, according to a study published online by the journal Nature Medicine. The researchers will move toward clinical trials.

Science Brief: Scientists develop brain cells that mimic Parkinson’s disease: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-16913997 . US researchers have grown brain cells from donated skin cells of patients with genetically caused Parkinson’s disease. The development gives researchers a way to study how the Parkinson gene mutates to cause the disease. The Bottom Line: The cells can also serve as models for drug testing.

Pluristem to expand study of radiation exposure treatment: PSTI is planning to broaden research and development efforts on the use of its PLX placental stem cell treatment for acute radiation exposure. The move follows promising results of a preclinical study of the product. The Bottom Line: They believe that their PLX cells have the potential to both extend the window of treatment for radiation victims and to become an off-the-shelf nuclear catastrophe countermeasure product.

Stock futures traded slightly higher Wednesday on hopes that Greece will soon ink a deal clearing the way for a second bailout that will allow it to avoid default.  

Futures on the Dow were up;  S&P 500 Index futures rose while Nasdaq 100 futures also rose.

European stock markets climb Wednesday, while Asia markets close higher

Avanir Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Class A     3.13 -0.04 (-1.26%) Intraday 3 Month 6 Month 1 Year

"Throughout a 13-week trial, AVP-923 was effective, with an acceptable safety profile, for treatment of diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain. The findings indicate that other fixed-dose combinations of AVP-923 should be studied to improve overall tolerability while maintaining significant efficacy," said Aziz Shabaini, MD, Medical Director of the Nerve and Muscle Center, Texas.

AVP-923 is a combination of dextromethorphan (DM) and quinidine (Q). AVP-923 is currently being studied in a Phase II clinical trial (the PRIME study) in central neuropathic pain in patients with multiple sclerosis.

"Today's publication in a leading peer-review medical journal complements a body of scientific literature suggesting that dextromethorphan could be efficacious in neuropathic pain," said Joao Siffert, MD, senior vice president of research and development at Avanir. "These results provide additional rationale in support of the ongoing PRIME study, which is evaluating the combination of dextromethorphan and quinidine in central neuropathic pain in patients with multiple sclerosis."

AVANIR Pharmaceuticals' Xenerex HuMAB Technology is used to develop human monoclonal antibodies for the treatment of infectious diseases and other therapeutic applications. The proprietary technology provides a platform for accessing human monoclonal antibodies against disease relevant antigens. Its Xenerex technology is capable of generating fully human antibodies to target antigens and draws on the natural diversity of the human donor population.

AVANIR Pharmaceuticals' products and product candidates address therapeutic markets that include central nervous system disorders, inflammation and infectious disease. The company's product pipeline includes: Abreva® Docosanol 10% cream is a topical treatment for recurrent episodes of cold sores or fever blisters; NUEDEXTA is a combination product containing dextromethorphan hydrobromide and quinidine sulfate indicated for the treatment of pseudobulbar affect (PBA); AVP-923, an NMDA antagonist and sigma-1 agonist, in diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain; etc.

In the 13-week, phase III, randomized, controlled trial, 379 adults with daily symmetric diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) leg pain for >3 months received double-blind placebo, DMQ 45/30 mg, or DMQ 30/30 mg, administered once daily for 7 days and twice daily thereafter. Efficacy measures included four pain rating scales applied daily using patient diaries, and another two applied at five clinic visits.  Safety and tolerability were assessed by adverse event reports, physical examination, electrocardiogram and clinical laboratory tests. Patients with certain cardiac conditions were excluded from the study along with patients taking certain medications.

On all six scales, DMQ 45/30 mg was significantly superior to placebo, including the primary efficacy analysis, which utilized mixed-effects modeling to test all scores on an 11-point numerical Pain Rating Scale (p < 0.0001). Sensitivity analyses gave consistent results.

For the three months that ended December 31, the maker of modeling, simulation, and training for civil and defense aviations posted net income of $46.1 million, or $0.18 per share, up 18.5 percent from $38.9 million, or $0.15 per share, a year ago.

Total revenues for the quarter increased 10.3 percent to $453.1 million, from $410.8 million in the same period last year.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had expected 17-cents per share in earnings, on $468 million in sales.

"We are pleased with our financial performance this quarter with stronger margins in both our civil and defense business units," said president and CEO, Marc Parent.

"The level of civil aviation market activity remains high in all regions and our order intake reflects our strong competitive position.

"Although procurement delays in defense continue to make predicting the timing of orders a challenge, we won contracts with key defense customers during the quarter. As well, we remain encouraged by the range of global opportunities in our pipeline."

Revenues under the company's civil segment increased 13 percent to $203.7 million. CAE sold 11 full-flight simulators, bringing its total nine month orders to 30 - more than it sold in all of 2010. Total orders for the division rose to $234.6 million during the quarter.

Civil training and services revenues rose nine percent to $123.0 million, while simulation product sales rose 21 percent to $80.7 million. Total backlog increased to $1.47 billion, up 34 percent.

CAE's military segment posted total revenues of $222.3 million, up one percent, as orders totaled $124.1 million for the quarter. Simulation product sales fell one percent to $152.4 million, while training and services sales increased six percent to $69.9 million. Total military backlog declined four percent to $2.05 billion.

Revenues from the company's new core markets more than doubled to $27.1 million, as the company sold patient simulators, courseware, and centre management systems across North America, Eastern Europe, and the Middle East.

CAE also said its board of directors has approved a four-cents per share dividend, payable on March 30.

In New York, shares of the Quebec-based company fell 1.08 percent to $10.94, as of 3:02 pm EDT.

The lithium explorer has interests in four salars - salt deposits - in Argentina. The key salar property is Diablillos, where the company holds 100 percent of the extraction rights for this lithium-potash-boron project in Salta province.

The company also operates an exploration project in Clayton Valley, Nevada.

Starting in 2015, Rodinia ramp to production of about 25,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate per year from Argentina, or about six percent of the world's annual supply, with a co-product of potash, according to analyst estimates.

Earlier this week, the company announced that it would begin drilling its first production well at the Salar de Diablillos.

In November 2011, the company's preliminary economic assessment for Diablillos indicated a potentially low cost operation with a net present value as high as US$964 million, and a mine life of greater than 20 years.

Operating costs per tonne, excluding potash and boric acid credits, were projected to be as low as $1,519 per tonne of battery-grade lithium carbonate for the base case, and $1,486 per tonne for the 25,000 tonne per year alternative.  This for a product that currently sells for north of $6,000 per tonne.

However, including co-product credits that exceed the costs to produce lithium carbonate, combined operating costs were brought below zero, at negative $703 per tonne for the base case scenario. This means lithium carbonate could be stockpiled, and the company would still make money from potash and boric acid sales.

The projected internal rate of returns for the property are the highest when compared to other players in the region, including Lithium One (TSE:LI), Lithium Americas (TSE:LAC), and Orocobre (TSE:ORL).

Speaking to Proactive Investors, Rodinia's President and Chief Executive Will Randall said: "What really separates [Diablillos] from the rest is that it has the lowest capital cost per tonne of installed capacity of lithium carbonate and the lowest operating costs when you take into consideration  our co-products of potash and boric acid.

"What we've done post PEA is, of course, start all the work for the feasibility study, and the first step is to drill the first production well so we can extract brine at production levels and fill our pilot ponds."

Randall himself is an experienced professional geologist and was Rodinia's Vice President, of Exploration before being appointed to lead the company in early 2010.

With extensive lithium-brine experience prior to joining Rodinia, he played a key role in the company’s acquisition of prospective assets in Argentina. Raised in Argentina, Randall has a strong understanding of the political and operating environment in the country.

Rodinia is actively planning their pilot pond circuit, as well as interviewing a number of reputable groups to assist in the creation and construction of the circuit.  Randall is hopeful to be able to provide more details on these developments in the near future.

The Diablillos lithium-brine project contains a recoverable resource of 2.8 million tonnes lithium carbonate equivalent from an in-situ resource of 4.9 million tonnes lithium carbonate. This same project also boasts and 11.2 million tonnes potassium chloride equivalent from an in-situ inferred potassium chloride resource of 19.8 million tonnes.

Also on the horizon for 2012 is an updated resource estimate for Diablillos, "basically putting pushing most of that tonnage up from the inferred category into the measured and indicated".

All this ongoing work at Diablillos will go into a feasability study, which Randall expects to be released "by the end of the year".

The Diablillos property is located approximately 145 kilometres southwest of the city of Salta, Argentina and covers an area of 5,786 hectares in the Puna region.

Rodinia's property covers the entirety of the Salar de Diablillos nucleus and a vast majority of the margin land with only approximately 600 hectares of land in the hands of private individuals.

Meanwhile, at Clayton Valley - which is the only lithium brine resource in the continental United States - Rodinia hopes to restart drilling later this year.

"The idea is to continue drilling where we had success last year and define a resource in the Southern sector," said Randall.
Defining a resource at Clayton Valley would represent the first compliant lithium-brine resource in North America. 

The central portion of Clayton Valley is currently in production by Chemetall, a unit of Rockwood Holdings (NYSE:ROC), and Randall anticipates defining a resource in his company's portion of the project before deciding the next steps on this project.

The 72,340-acre property is located in the central portion of Esmeralda County, Nevada.

In terms of cash, the company has $4 million on the balance sheet and a work program for the year of approximately $8 million. While this would suggest that a financing is on the horizon, Randall explains, “we have enough cash to continue developing for the next little while, and certainly enough to continue our discussions with strategic groups and potential offtake partners. Obviously we’ll need more money at some point this year, but as it stands we may not need to come to market in order to raise it".

In terms of supply and demand fundamentals, Randall said that over the past year, demand was has increasing but supply hasn’t been increasing at the same rate.

"That's a trend that will be very positive for us."

Global demand for lithium carbonate is mostly from lithium batteries and power grid storage applications. A key driver of battery demand is the electric vehicle sector, particularly in China.

In this regard, the company already has a strategic investment from Shanshan Resources, one of the world’s largest producers - and China's largest - of materials used for the manufacturing of lithium ion batteries.

Rodinia is already working to secure an off-take agreement with Shanshan and a handful of other potential suitors.

"What we're trying to do is work a deal that maximizes value for our shareholders and will secure us a large portion of the capital funding required to put the project into production. We're a year away from starting construction, so we have a up to a year to negotiate more money rather than less, but we hope to finalize this deal sooner."

Another driver of demand is renewable energy storage from sources such as wind, solar and tidal energy. When energy is generated, it is not necessarily used at that time, so it must be stored until needed.

"Those cell packs use a huge amount of lithium carbonate," Randall said.

Asked about potential consolidation in his sector, Randall pointed out with sector market valuations at current low levels, "you would think the majors would be looking at this as the right time, if there was going to be any kind of consolidation".

"It would probably be a good move by the majors to start buying a few of these [lithium plays] up, perhaps the ones they feel have the potential to be low-cost producers, but there hasn't been anything yet in the space."

A recent analyst note from Byron Capital Markets identified that Rodinia was "trading at a steep discount" and with a market capitalization of around $23 million, was "significantly cheaper" than the three other brine projects that have market capitalizations of at least three times as much.

Rodinia's Randall is not out looking for a bid but would consider an offer "if the right offer comes at the right time and it makes sense", since the company's focus has always been to develop assets to their full potential.

"We always aim to put our assets into production - that's the main focus of management and we have a team that has experience building and operating lithium projects, both brine and hard rock."

Overall, Randall said the company has had relatively few potential delays on its path to production.

"I think that's going to help us out in the medium-term and the long-term."

Among the advantages the company enjoys is the fact that it can "produce more potash per tonne of lithium carbonate" due to the low sulphate levels at Diablillos, allowing for easy recovery of potash.

Also, the flagship Diablillos project is located in a "very stable" mining jurisdiction.

"There is a precedent for a fully permitted lithium operation in Salta and this occurred within the last two years. This suggests that we have should have a clear process to follow to put this into production in a timely manner from a permitting point of view."

"In addition, we control 100% of the asset so we don't have to worry about competition or litigation resulting from a shared liquid resource."

Just as important, the entire basin is free of wildlife and aboriginal communities. Therefore, we don't see any opposition on the use of fresh water, grazing ground, etc. We truly believe we have the right recipe and environment to move Diablillos into production."

For the period that ended December 31, net income came in at of $452.3 million, or 73 cents per share, up from $242.6 million, or 37 cents per share, a year ago.

Excluding a tax benefit, Western Union earned 40 cents per share, meeting analysts' estimates, according to Thomson Reuters.

However, the company's revenue grew five percent to $1.43 billion, short of analyst estimates for $1.44 billion.

Western Union chief executive Hikmet Ersek said: "While there are some near-term market challenges in parts of the world, the long-term opportunities for revenue growth and margin expansion are strong."

For the full year, the company expects earnings per share to be between $1.70 and $1.75, excluding integration costs related to the Travelex Global Business Payments acquisition, below analysts' expectation of $1.80 per share.

Western Union, with a network of about 485,000 agent locations in 200 countries and territories, said it expects softness in Europe in 2012.

The company also said it would raise its quarterly dividend to 10 cents a share, the third such hike in a little over a year.

It expects constant currency revenue growth in a range of 6 to 8 percent for 2012.

Revenue at Western Union's consumer-to-consumer segment, which accounts for 83 percent of the company's overall revenue, rose three percent in the latest quarter. The company said it expects overall 2012 constant currency revenue trends to be similar to the fourth quarter.

Western Union has been trying to boost its other segments, particularly electronic offerings and services to businesses.

It bought a Travelex unit for about $970 million last July, to expand its international business payments services.

Prepaid money cards in force were nearly 1.5 million at the end of the fourth quarter.

No major economic data was released Wednesday.

Commodities

In NYMEX trading, oil futures for March delivery rose 56 cents to $98.97 a barrel but gold futures for April delivery fell $7.80 to $1,740.60 an ounce.

Europe

European markets finished lower today with shares in London leading the region. The FTSE 100 was down 0.24% while Germany's DAX was off 0.08% and France's CAC 40 fell lower by 0.05%.

The placement consisted of the sale of 971,867 shares of restricted common stock, and 485,937 warrants to purchase further common stock.

Seven existing investors, including the company's CEO, chairman, and two investors from Pressure BioSciences' November 2011 registered direct offering, participated in the latest financing.

The price per unit was $0.8025, for units consisting of 789,350 shares and 394,677 warrants, and was $0.9125 for units consisting of the remaining 182,517 shares and 91,260 warrants.

Each unit consisted of one share of restricted common stock and a warrant to purchase one-half share of common stock.

The offering was done at a premium to the company's closing share price of 74 cents on Monday February 6, the day before the private placement closed.

Warrants are exercisable for a period of five years, beginning on August 7, 2012, at an exercise price of 74 cents for the purchasers of the 789,350 shares, and at 85 cents per share for the purchasers of the 182,517 shares.

President and CEO of Pressure BioSciences, Richard Schumacher, told Proactiveinvestors that the financing gave the company $412,000 in new cash and reduced about $425,000 in notes payable to about $50,000.

Schumacher also noted that the company is now focused on aggressively commercializing its products based on its key patented pressure cycling technology (PCT) platform, which uses rapid and repeating cycles of hydrostatic pressure at controlled temperatures to extract cell components in the preparation of a biological sample, such as DNA, RNA, and proteins from humans, animals and plants, for further study.

The applications of the company's PCT-based products are endless - from the key $2 billion target market of mass spectrometry, an analytical technique used to determine the characteristics of molecules, to biomarker discovery, forensics and counter-bioterrorism, among other uses.

Since Pressure BioSciences began commercial operations in the middle of 2007, it has come a long way, releasing a number of PCT-based products geared towards the $6 billion sample preparation market, including three pressure-generating instruments named Barocyclers, a patent-pending sample homogenization device (The Shredder SG3), five types of single-use processing containers and six different, application-specific reagent kits.

Already, the company has installed around 200 of its PCT Barocycler instruments plus required consumables in laboratories. The sample preparation system has been proven to be safer, more accurate, reproducible, and much faster than current cell extraction methods - with up to 48 samples able to be processed from a wide variety of cells and tissues within minutes.

Last month, the life sciences company saw its shares surge after it announced the signing of a co-marketing and selling agreement with Digilab, expected to boost its sales efforts significantly.

The companies said they intend to co-market and sell their respective product lines worldwide, including in industry publications, at scientific meetings, on each company's website, through common collaborator studies, at key industry trade shows, and in visits to customer sites.

Pressure BioSciences also inked a distribution agreement with Germany-based scientific product provider IUL Instruments late last year. The deal gives IUL the exclusive right to market and sell the company's pressure cycling technology (PCT) sample preparation instruments and consumables in Germany and Switzerland.

In November, the company managed to raise $843,000 from a registered direct offering, which was also used in its effort to boost commercialization efforts. Schumacher said it has a specific commercialization strategy in place, which includes both internal sales and external partnerships - a strategy that is expected to be implemented further this year.

Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. Inc., a subsidiary of Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services Inc. (AMEX:LTS), acted as the exclusive financial advisor for the private placement transaction.

For the quarter ended December 25, total revenue bolstered 34.5 percent to $220.5 million, beating the expected $210.6 million, on average.

Net earnings increased to $13.6 million, or 73 cents a share, compared to a year-earlier net profit of $10.2 million, or 55 cents a share.

Analysts polled by Bloomberg were expecting profits of 67 cents.

Shares moved higher on the day, climbing 14.09 percent to $80.08 each on the Nasdaq.

"Strong sales at both new and existing restaurants drove fourth quarter earnings, bringing our annual net earnings growth to over 31 percent," chief executive Sally Smith said in a statement.

Buffalo Wild Wings, which plans to have 900 restaurants by the end of this year, has sought to attract consumers with flavored wings, shareable appetizers and draft beer. Customers ate a record 7.7 million wings on Super Bowl Sunday this year.

Same-store sales, or sales of stores open at least 15 months, rose 8.9 percent at company-owned restaurants and 5.9 percent at franchised stores.

Comparable store sales are considered to be a key indicator to a restaurant chain's financial health because they exclude sales from stores recently opened or closed during the year.

Total company-owned restaurant sales grew 36.4 percent to $202.9 million during the quarter.

Looking ahead, the company said it plans to expand to 1,500 locations in five to seven years and may seek to acquire other restaurant brands to help fuel growth.

CEO Smith said that same-store sales through the first six weeks of 2012 have risen by 12.9 percent at company-owned locations, and 10.8 percent at franchised restaurants.

For the full year, it reiterated profit growth expectations of 20 percent.

The company provides quick casual and casual dining services, as well as serves bottled beers, wines, and liquor.

The clothing and home products company said it earned $169 million, or $1.78 per share, for the quarter that ended December 31. That compares with net income of $168.4 million, or $1.72 per share, in the same quarter last year.

Revenue jumped 17 percent to $1.81 billion.

The quarter beat analyst expectations of $1.66 per share on revenue of $1.75 million.

Ralph Lauren's chairman and chief executive officer Ralph Lauren said: "Our design-driven culture is delivering highly desirable products across a growing range of lifestyle sensibilities and merchandise categories.

"We continue to support this innovation with best-in-class marketing, merchandising and distribution that not only distinguishes us in the marketplace, but also deepens our connection with our customers around the world.

"The progress we are making at our retail segment is very encouraging, particularly as we continue to invest in new stores and e-commerce worldwide."

The maker of the famous polo shirts said strong sales at its own stores and increased sales to department stores helped offset higher taxes during period.

The company's wholesale revenue grew 11 percent, and revenue from its own stores increased 22 percent, which included a boost from a larger base of stores.

Revenue at its stores open at least a year, considered a key indicator because it strips away the impact of recently opened stores, increased 12 percent as well.

The company's only decline came from licensing revenue, which dipped one percent because of lower international and home product licensing.

The company, whose brands include Polo by Ralph Lauren, Chaps and Club Monaco, sells its products at department stores and nearly 900 of its own stores and small shops.

Ralph Lauren said that due to the stronger-than-expected performance, it anticipates its revenue will increase 20 percent for the year.

That is up from its prior expectations of high-teens percentage growth. It also raised its operating margin outlook, saying it would be equivalent to or just below last year's. It previously said it expected a decline of half a percentage point.

As of near 1:30pm ET, the S&P/TSX Composite was down 11.86 points, or 0.09%, to 12,500.56, while the more junior S&P/TSX Venture Composite fell 3.11 points, or 0.19%, to 1,660.22.

In Greece, the government is attempting to reach a deal on budget cuts and financial reforms necessary for a second bailout package of 130 billion euros from the EU, IMF and European Central Bank.

The country failed to come to an agreement over the weekend, with talks continuing into this week. Without the deal, and the funds, Greece will miss a 14.5 billion euro bond payment in March, which would likely lead to a disorderly default.

Negotiations have been dragged out due to disagreements over private-sector wage cuts, and other issues. Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos has distributed a final draft of the terms of the austerity program to party leaders, who are set to meet today to finalize these measures.

According to reports, the European Central Bank is willing to participate in a restructuring of Greek debt, although the bank will not suffer a loss on its holdings.

Commodities were mixed on Wednesday, with gold futures down over 1% to $1,730.8 an ounce, and silver down 1.23% to $33.78 an ounce.

Crude oil for March delivery gained 10 cents to $98.51 a barrel, while the base metal copper contract rose 0.5% to $3.89 a pound.

In Toronto, info tech, energy and metals and mining were the three biggest decliners, with healthcare and industrials posting the most notable gains.

Movers and shakers on Wednesday included copper heavyweight Teck Resources (TSE:TCK.B), which was down 1.25% and Encana Corp (TSE:ECA), which fell more than 3%.

Suncor Energy (TSE:SU) ticked higher by 0.09%.

Gold giants Kinross (TSE:K) and Goldcorp (TSE:G) were down 0.18% and 1.26%, respectively.

Lundin Mining (TSE:LUN) pulled ahead by 1.17%.

Financials edged up as Royal Bank of Canada (TSE:RY) gained 0.2%.

Nevsun Resources (TSE:NSV) saw shares fall more than 4% Wednesday after taking a 30% tumbled on Tuesday. The company reported yesterday it expects gold production from its Bisha mine in Eritrea, East Africa in 2012 to be around half of what it initially anticipated due to over-estimations of the oxide gold resource.

Meanwhile, Yukon-Nevada Gold (TSE:YNG) fell almost 7% after significant gains in the past few days, as the miner announced earlier this week it restarted production at its wholly-owned Jerritt Canyon gold project, located in Nevada, following the installation of new equipment.

In other news in Canada, fertilizer producer Agrium (TSE:AGU) said Wednesday that earnings grew 43 percent in the fourth quarter as it overcame a struggling global economy that has hit commodity prices and made buyers cautious.

Calgary-based Agrium said earnings for the quarter that ended December 31 rose to $193 million, or $1.20 per share, from $135 million, or 86 cents per share, a year earlier.

Adjusted earnings were $2.34 per share for the latest quarter. Agrium's sales were up 32 percent to $3.18 billion. Analysts expected earnings per share of $1.99, on revenues of $3.10 billion, according to Thomson Reuters.

Catalyst Paper Corporation's (TSE:CTL) shares will be delisted from the Toronto Stock Exchange at the close of market on March 8, said the Canadian exchange, due to the specialty paper producer's failure to meet continued listing requirements.

TMX Group (TSE:X) said Wednesday its fourth quarter profits fell 20 percent as the company, which is in talks to be bought by a consortium of Canadian financial institutions, recorded less revenue from its equity markets unit.

For the three months that ended December 31, the operator of Toronto's main stock exchange posted $54.2 million in earnings, or $0.70 per share, down 19.7 percent from $67.5 million, or $0.90 per share, a year earlier.

Adjusted for one-time items, including adjustments related to the potential Maple deal, and other tax adjustments, earnings fell to $0.74 per share, far below analysts' $0.84 per share estimate, according to Thomson Reuters.

ATS Automation Tooling Systems' (TSE:ATS) stock jumped over nine percent Wednesday after releasing third quarter earnings that beat estimates, driven by growth in its transportation unit.

Canadian airline giant WestJet Airlines (TSE:WJA) saw its fourth quarter profit beat Street estimates on Wednesday, as the company announced definitive plans to form a regional carrier business. For the three months that ended December 31, WestJet posted net earnings of $35.6 million, or $0.26 per share, down four percent from $37.2 million, or $0.26 per share, a year ago.

Still, the company's earnings beat analysts' 20-cent per share estimate, according to Thomson Reuters. Shares climbed more than 4%.

On the economic front, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation said Wednesday that housing starts decreased by 1.0% in January to an annualized pace of 197,900. Analysts expected a wider drop to 194,000.

US/Europe

US equities were mixed Wednesday as investors continued to focus on the debt drama in Greece. The Dow was lately down 0.11%, while the Nasdaq and S&P 500 edged up.

Analysts were also focused on corporate earnings reports.

Media company Time Warner (NYSE:TWX) Wednesday said fourth-quarter profits increased thanks to improved advertising revenues at its TV networks, including HBO.

For the quarter that ended December 31, net profit was $773 million, or 76 cents per share, from $769 million, or 68 cents per share, a year earlier. Adjusted fourth-quarter profit rose to 94 cents per share from 67 cents per share. Revenue increased to $8.19 billion, from $7.81 billion a year earlier.

Wall Street analysts expected Time Warner to earn 87 cents per share, on revenue of $8.07 billion, according to a survey by FactSet Research.

Sprint Nextel (NYSE:S) reported a $1.3 billion, or 43 cents per share, loss in its latest quarter, wider than the year-earlier loss of $929 million, or 31 cents per share, due to expenses related to the launch of the iPhone.

UK cable operator Virgin Media (NASDAQ:VMED) beat expectations for its fourth quarter, after customers snapped up the combination of its new TV service and fast broadband offerings.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD) said Wednesday that global comparable sales rose 6.7 percent in January, on strong growth in the US, and internationally, beating the 6.5 percent increase analysts expected.

CVS Caremark's (NYSE:CVS) fourth-quarter earnings climbed nearly four percent as the drugstore operator's pharmacy services revenue grew because of a long-term contract and new business.

Ratings agency Moody's Corp (NYSE:MCO) said Wednesday that fourth-quarrter net income fell 30 percent as expenses rose and companies backed away from issuing bonds during the European debt crisis, hurting a key business segment.

For the three months that ended December 31, net income declined to $96.2 million, or 43 cents per share, from $137.4 million, or 58 cents per share, a year earlier.

After the closing bell, quarterly reports are due from daily deals site Groupon (NASDAQ:GRPN), Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO), News Corp. (NASDAQ:NWSA) and Visa (NYSE:V).

European markets finished lower today with shares in London leading the region. The FTSE 100 was down 0.24% while Germany's DAX was off 0.08% and France's CAC 40 fell lower by 0.05%.

The company said it expects moderating activity in the industrial, and parts and service industries, as well as across most businesses in Asia.

Ingersoll-Rand is expecting full year earnings between $2.90 and $3.10 per share, on revenues in the range of $14.0 and $14.4 billion.

For the first quarter of 2012, the company estimates earnings in the range of $0.20 and $0.26, on revenues between $2.98 and $3.08 billion.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters were expecting $3.12 per share for full year 2012 earnings, on $14.61 billion in revenues. For the first quarter, analysts were estimating $0.45 per share in profits, on $3.16 billion in sales.

For the three months that ended December 31, Ingersoll-Rand posted earnings of $242.2 million, or $0.76 per share, up 14.2 percent from $212.1 million, or $0.62 per share, a year ago.

Total revenues for the period fell to $3.51 billion, down five percent from $3.69 billion in the same period last year.

Analysts had expected 66-cents per share in profits on $3.58 billion in sales for the latest quarter.

"In 2011, we improved the strength of our business operations, driving increased operating margins, and a 19 percent improvement in earnings per share despite a challenging economic backdrop in a number of our key residential and commercial building end markets," said president and CEO, Michael W. Lamach.

"We made notable improvements in pricing capabilities, productivity and working capital management that helped to drive the strong cash flow that supported our share buyback and dividend expansion.

"We have also taken the necessary actions to improve the performance of the residential HVAC business.

"Our management team is focused on accelerating restructuring and cost reduction actions to generate sustained profitable growth in what we expect to be a slow growth economy in 2012."

Revenues under the company's climate solutions business, which involves the company's Trane commercial heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems, as well as its Thermo King businesses, fell eight percent to $1.9 billion, as bookings during the quarter were down three percent.

However, Ingersoll-Rand's industrial technologies segment, which includes air and productivity solutions, and club car businesses, posted an eight percent increase in revenues, to $744.0 million, as volumes rose in all geographic regions, except Asia, and bookings hiked five percent.

The residential solutions division, which includes the Trane and Schlage brands, posted $442.9 million in revenues, down 13 percent as year-over-year bookings declined.

Revenues under the security technology unit fell three percent to $415.2 million, as low volumes more than offset slightly higher prices. Bookings for the quarter also fell five percent.

For the full year fiscal 2011, Ingersoll-Rand posted earnings of $343.2 million, or $1.01 per share, down 47 percent, on revenues of $14.78 billion, up six percent.

The company said it repurchased 19 million shares during the fourth quarter, for a total of about $1.2 billion.

In New York, shares of the Dublin, Ireland-based company rose 1.62 percent to $38.17, as of 12:33 pm EDT.

The company, founded in 1995 and with about 111 employees, offers Internet-based gaming and electronic commerce software products.

Société du jeu virtuel du Québec is the online gaming division of the provincial state lottery corporation Loto-Québec, known as Espacejeux.

Espacejeux – which opened its online gaming platform in 2010 – was granted licensing rights to 14 of Cryptologic’s top performing games.

The games will be rolled out over the next year, with the first game already live on its website. Games will be distributed through the OpenBet fixed-odds games platform, the company said in a statement.

"We are delighted to welcome Espacejeux as the latest customer of Cryptologic, underscoring both our content's quality and global reach," Ian Price, group head of business development at Cryptologic, said.

"Working with governmental organisations such as Loto-Québec underpins Cryptologic's reputation for delivering innovative but also responsible gaming solutions."

Espacejeux’s general manager, François Poulin, added: "We remain at the forefront of the gaming industry by banking on our integrity, dynamism and innovation."

"We are committed to delivering on our mission to manage legal and responsible online gaming and working with Cryptologic will enable us to provide a more diverse array of games for Quebecers, and enhance their online experience."

Earlier this month, Amaya Gaming Group (CVE:AYA) announced that it had struck a deal to acquire all the remaining shares of Cryptologic it does not already own in a transaction valued at US$35.8 million.

Montreal-based Amaya, which already owns seven percent of Cryptologic, said it decided to bid US$2.54 per share for Cryptologic after making its initial bid on December 15, 2011.

Both company boards approved the newest offer, which is a premium of about 56 percent to the closing price on the Toronto Stock Exchange a day before Amaya announced it was considering a bid.

Cryptologic develops and supplies Internet gaming software. With more than 300 games, the company has one of the most comprehensive casino suites on the web.

The company licenses gaming software and services to blue-chip customers that offer their games to non-U.S. based players around the world.

For the three months to December 31, 2011, the company reported a net loss of $163 million, or 80 cents per share, compared to a loss of $52 million, or 47 cent per share loss, in the year-ago period.

Loss from continuing operations was $235 million, or a loss of $1.15 per share, compared to a loss of $53 million, or a loss of $0.48 per share, last year.

Excluding special items, loss for the quarter was $0.62 per share.

According to Thomson Reuters, analysts estimated a loss of $1.10 per share.

Special items in the quarter consisted of the gain on the sale from the discontinued coal operations, the charge for a redemption and repurchase of debt, the impairment of certain wireless spectrum licenses and costs associated with the Global Crossing acquisition, the company said. Level 3 completed the Global Crossing purchase last October.

Revenue jumped to $1.58 billion from $904 million a year ago, with core networks services sales growing 7.9 percent year-over-year, on a constant currency basis.

Excluding inter-company eliminations, revenues for the quarter were $934 million, Level 3 said.

European core network services revenue grew six percent year-over-year on a constant currency basis.

"The company finished 2011 on a strong note, with Level 3 growing both Core Network Services revenue and Adjusted EBITDA and stable performance from the Global Crossing standalone business," said CEO James Crowe.

"We are pleased with the progress we made over the course of the year, significantly expanding the scope of our business through the acquisition of Global Crossing, reducing leverage and positioning the company for the future."

Looking ahead, the company said it expects to grow the business in 2012, with core network services revenue continuing to grow sequentially.

From the starting point of the company's $1.216 billion of consolidated adjusted EBITDA in 2011, it expects adjusted EBITDA to grow 20 to 25 percent for the full year 2012.

Level 3 Communications is a global provider of IP-based communications services to enterprise, content, government and wholesale customers.

Over its fiber networks, the company delivers services including converged, data, voice, video and managed solutions.

Shares moved higher by almost nine percent to trade at $21.3 as of 12:40pm ET.

The world's largest fast food burger chain said sales of stores open at least 13 months rose 7.8 percent in the US during the month, and rose 4.0 percent in Europe.

In the Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa region, comparable sales grew 7.3 percent.

Revenue in restaurants open at least 13 months is a key measure of a restaurant chain's performance, because it excludes the impact of recently opened or closed stores. It does include the Oak Brook, Illinois-based company's temporarily closed restaurants, however.

"January marks another month of sustained sales growth, demonstrating the ongoing appeal of McDonald's winning combination of value, menu variety and convenience," said CEO Jim Skinner.

In the U.S., comparable sales rose on the company's popular breakfast items, core favourites and the most recent addition to the menu - Chicken McBites, it said.

Europe performance was driven by the UK, Russia, Germany and France, despite ongoing economic challenges, as re-imaging and core menu options pushed sales higher for the month.

Comparable sales in Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa increased on strong growth in China, which benefitted in part from the timing of Chinese New Year, and many other markets, said McDonald's.  The unit also saw growth from promotions, and breakfast and lunch value items.

Systemwide sales for the month increased 8.4 percent, or 9.1 percent in constant currencies.

Shares were suspended from trading last week, a day after Catalyst Paper filed for protection under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act, in the wake of a union at its Crofton mill rejecting a labour contract that was a crucial step in the company's prior reorganization plans under the Canada Business Corporations Act (CBCA).

In early January, the paper maker filed for Chapter 15 creditor protection in the US and agreed a restructuring package in Canada that was supported by many of its bondholders. One of the stipulations of this deal required unanimous backing by the company's six union branches for new labour contracts.

Catalyst Paper manufactures diverse specialty mechanical printing papers, newsprint and pulp and sells to retailers, publishers and commercial printers in North America, Latin America, the Pacific Rim and Europe.

The company has three mills in British Columbia and one in Arizona with a combined annual production capacity of 1.9 million tonnes.

Before being suspended from trading, Catalyst's stock had lost 57 percent in value over the past year.

The results reported Wednesday are from seven holes drilled on the spodumene-pegmatite dyke, located on the Nama Creek claim block, the company said.

The aim of the second phase of the program was to add new resources to the NI 43-101 compliant estimate announced in October last year, of 2.36 million indicated tonnes of 1.17% lithium oxide (Li2O) and 4.36 million inferred tonnes of 1.08% Li2O.

The resource estimate was based on the spodumene-bearing pegmatite dykes located on the Nama Creek and Conway claim blocks.

Highlights of the latest drill results include 1.20% Li2O over 8.84 metres, 1.11% Li2O over 3.10 metres, and 0.82% Li2O over 1.0 metres in drill hole NC-11-23.

Drill hole NC-11-24 intersected 1.44% Li2O over 4.57 metres, 0.81% Li2O over 2.70 metres, 1.33% Li2O over 2.0 metres and 0.79% Li2O over 2.0 metres.

Other notable results included 1.44% Li2O over 5.83 metres, 1.11% Li2O over 3.14 metres, 0.70% Li2O over 1.58 metres, 1.70% Li2O over 1.0 metres, and 1.53% Li2O over 0.84 metres in drill hole NC-11-25.

In addition, hole NC-11-27 encountered 1.22% Li2O over 5.77 metres and 1.25% Li2O over 1.0 metres, while hole NC-11-28 hit 1.30% Li2O over 2.0 metres, 1.45% Li2O over 1.58 metres and 1.50% Li2O over 1.07 metres.

Finally, hole NC-11-29 returned 1.09% Li2O over 6.0 metres, 1.17% Li2O over 4.0 metres and 1.18% Li2O over 2.51 metres.

"With the complete set of assay results from Phase 2 of our exploration program received from the lab, we now look forward to an updated NI 43-101 compliant resource estimation from Caracle Creek International Consulting," said president and CEO, Eunho Lee.

"These results, in conjunction with the positive metallurgy, excellent infrastructure and a strong, mutually beneficial working relationship with the local First Nations, reaffirm our confidence in the potential of our Georgia Lake lithium project."

The company said that the second phase drilling also found anomalous values of rare metals, including rubidium, beryllium, cesium, niobium and tantalum.

The program consisted of 4,608 metres of diamond drilling over eighteen drill holes in addition to sixteen channel samples, testing pegmatite dykes located on the Nama Creek, Conway and Newkirk claim blocks.

Rock Tech has already reported very high purity levels from the property earlier this year. In late September last year, the company achieved a purity level of 99.988% lithium carbonate (Li2CO3) from a bulk sample. Battery manufacturers require a purity level of at least 99.5% Li2CO3.

Besides the battery industry, lithium has many uses, including heat-resistant glass and ceramics, casting for HVAC products, additives for greases and oil products, aluminum production, and as a pharmaceutical mood stabilizer.

The Georgia Lake lithium property, located some 145 kilometers northeast of the city of Thunder Bay, Ontario, consists of four claim blocks covering 11,481 hectares.

The company, founded in 1978, custom designs and installs manufacturing solutions in industries like healthcare, computer electronics and consumer products.

It employs about 2,300 people at 20 manufacturing facilities in Canada, the United States, Europe and Southeast Asia and China.

For the quarter that ended January 1, revenue from continuing operations rose 23 percent to $149.1 million, compared to $120.8 million recorded last year.

Net income from continuing operations grew sharply to $17.6 million, or 20 cents a share, compared to a year-earlier profit of $3 million, or three cents a share.

Analysts polled by Bloomberg were looking for profits of 11 cents a share, on revenue of $149 million.

Canada-based ATS' stock traded 65 cents higher climbing to $7.75 today on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

"Strong performance at ASG [automation systems group] in the third quarter reflected higher contributions from acquired and base businesses," chief executive Anthony Caputo said in a statement.

"We have moved beyond the fork in the road on solar separation, our ASG order backlog remains at record levels and our balance sheet provides the capacity to pursue organic and acquisition growth."

Indeed, the company said order bookings jumped 35 percent to $179 million, reflecting higher activity levels in its transportation and life sciences segments.

Despite higher order backlog, revenues from its life sciences unit fell one percent to $48.5 million, as sales from its computer-electronic business slid 39 percent to $5.7 million due to lower activity.

Revenues from its energy segment dropped 47 percent on lower order backlog entering the latest quarter due to lower activity in the solar market.

However, the company posted a whopping 406 percent increase in transportation revenues to $66.8 million, thanks to higher order backlogs.

The company also said it lost $8 million, or nine cents a share, during the quarter from its discontinued Photowatt operations.

On November 8, 2011, a French bankruptcy court placed Photowatt France into a “recovery” proceeding under the supervision of a court-appointed trustee.

The objective of the recovery process is to explore opportunities for Photowatt’s operations in an effort to preserve jobs and maximize value, the company said.

During the recovery process, ATS expects to provide funding for a period of three to six months. ATS noted that the French bankruptcy process is different from the North American one, and requires a more "collaborative approach". 

For the last quarter of 2011, net income rose to $1.06 billion, or 82 cents per share. That compares with $1.03 billion, or 75 cents per share, in the final quarter of 2010.

Adjusted earnings were 89 cents per share, in line with the average analyst forecast, according to FactSet.

In November, CVS predicted earnings of 87 to 91 cents per share and total sales growth of 13 to 15 percent.

Revenue rose 15 percent to $28.32 billion, above the $28.09 billion analysts expected.

The US drugstore chain also said Wednesday that it raised its 2012 earnings forecast by 3 cents per share to account for gains it expects because of a contract dispute between competitors Walgreen Co. (NYSE:WAG) and Express Scripts (NASDAQ:ESRX).

CVS Caremark runs the second-largest chain of drugstores in the US after Walgreen. Its Caremark business is also one of the largest pharmacy benefits managers (PBM). Those businesses handle prescription drug benefits and are paid to reduce costs for health plan sponsors and members.

Revenue from the company's PBM side jumped 32 percent to $15.9 billion in the quarter because of the addition of a long-term contract with health insurer Aetna (NYSE:AET) and new sales that came from the acquisition of insurer Universal American Corp.'s (NYSE:UAM) Medicare prescription drug business.

Pharmacy network claims processed in the quarter climbed 46 percent to 193 million.

Drugstore revenue increased four percent, as pharmacy revenue at stores open at least a year climbed 3.6 percent.

Revenue at stores open at least a year is a key indicator of a retailer's health, because it excludes the impact of recently opened or closed stores.

For the full year, CVS Caremark earned $3.46 billion, or $2.59 per share, on $107.1 billion in revenue.

The company now forecasts 2012 adjusted earnings of $3.18 to $3.28 per share, because of business it expects to gain in the first quarter from the Walgreen-Express Scripts dispute. The company said this new forecast doesn't reflect a benefit beyond the first quarter.

Analysts expect, on average, earnings of $3.26 per share for the year.

Walgreen stopped filling prescriptions for Express Scripts at the end of 2011, when a contract between the two companies ran out. The companies were unable to agree on how much money Express Scripts should pay Walgreen to fill prescriptions.

Walgreen said Friday that January revenue from stores open at least a year fell 4.6 percent, as the Express Scripts split and a weak flu season hurt business. While the dispute has taken a chunk out of Walgreen's sales, the company has said it would prefer to lose that business rather than fill unprofitable prescriptions.

CVS Caremark opened 24 drugstores in the fourth quarter and closed one. It operated 7,327 outlets as of December 31.

For the three months that ended December 31, the insurance provider posted net income of $84 million, or $0.62 per share, down 21 percent from $107 million, or $0.95 per share, a year ago.

Adjusted for certain one-time items, including $42 million in integration costs and $41 million in provisions, each related to the AXA Canada deal, earnings rose 19 percent to $1.14 per share.

Analysts polled by Bloomberg Businessweek had expected $1.12 per share in earnings for the quarter.

"Our excellent fourth quarter results rounded off a strong year for our company as we recorded our best underwriting performance in the past five years," said CEO Charles Brindamour.

"Despite another challenging year for the industry, we demonstrated our strength and resilience and executed on our growth strategy."

Intact reported a 49 percent increase in direct written premiums in the quarter, to $1.6 billion, reflecting the added results from AXA Canada, and a boost in organic growth, the company said.

As a result, net operating income for the quarter also increased, rising 90 percent to $152 million for the latest period.
Brindamour continued: "With the acquisition of AXA Canada now complete, we are beginning to reap the positive benefits of our enhanced leadership position.

"As we enter 2012, our solid financial position and the quality of our operating earnings enabled us to increase our dividend, for the seventh consecutive year."

The company raised its dividend eight percent to $0.40 per share, payable on March 30.

For the full year fiscal 2011, Intact posted earnings of $465 million, or $3.96 per share, down seven percent. Adjusted for items related to the AXA Canada acquisition, earnings rose ten percent to $4.82 per share.

Intact also said Wednesday it has completed the sale of AXA Canada's life insurance business to SSQ Life Insurance Company for $300 million. The rest of AXA Canada is on track to be fully integrated later this year.

Intact estimates $100 million in after-tax savings by the second half of 2013 from the deal, and anticipates positive accretion to net operating income for the full year 2012.

On the TSX, shares of the Toronto-based company fell 0.43 percent to $60.59 as of 10:27 am EDT. In 2011, the company's stock rose 15.08 percent.

"In our opinion, these revised terms for entry into OPL 281 are a very positive development, as they reduce SacOil’s capital exposure and indicate that the work programme will be expedited under a very credible local operator," said analyst Craig Howie.

"The Project has been progressing well with encouraging results announced earlier from our 2011 exploration program.

"We look forward to taking the Project to the next level with WISCO International Resources Development & Investment Limited, a partner in Labec Century to fund $40 million for its further exploration for a 40% therein.”

Century Iron Mines is Canada's largest holder of iron ore land claims, with interests in several properties in the provinces of Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador.

The company is backed by two Chinese strategic partners through financing and off-take agreements: MinMetals and WISCO International Resources, a unit of Wuhan Iron & Steel, also known as China's third-largest steel producer.

Turnover jumped by 61 per cent to £2.1 million in the half year to January 31 as volumes from its three producing fields rose by 23 per cent to 187 barrels per day.

Income was also boosted by a 39% rise in oil prices to US$108.9 per barrel.

The company currently has three producing assets all located in the East Midlandsand consisting of a 100% working interest in the West Firsby and Crosby Warren fields and a 65% working interest in the Whisby 4 well.

Higher output reflected the West Firsby WF-9 well coming on stream and reduced downtime after the blizzards had affected the the previous year.

Hugh Mackay, chief executive, added that daily production has been consistently higher than the previous year despite a recent workover programme for the West Firsby 7 well.

“Our UK production continues to generate more than enough cashflow to cover our operating costs and provides a solid foundation from which we can develop our other highly exciting assets.”

“Little or no value is being attached to our highly prospective portfolio of exploration and development assets that include the Berenx gas appraisal project and the Tarbes Val d'Adour re-development project, both of which are located in France.”

Management is committed to realising the inherent value of Europa’s portfolio, he added.

The plant is being sold for US$13.5 million cash. 

Mtwara is an 18 megawatt gas-to-power plant, which already sells its electricity to TANESCO. The plant is supplied with gas from Wentworth’s nearby Mnazi Bay gas field. 

Wentworth says the deal allows it to streamline its operations and focus on exploring for hydrocarbons and developing its natural gas resources.

"We believe the sale of the power plant is beneficial to both parties and we want to thank TANESCO and the government of Tanzania for their commitment and professionalism throughout the transaction process,” said managing director Geoff Bury.

“This transaction provides us with further non-dilutive capital as we look to focus on our core strategy of exploring for hydrocarbons and developing known natural gas resources. 

“We look forward to continuing to be a reliable, long-term gas supplier to the Mtwara power plant and to being a gas supply partner with TANESCO in other parts of Tanzania".  

Wentworth said that the Mtwara asset has a net book value of US$9.4 million. And in the first nine months of last year it generated revenues of US$5.2 million and a US$206,000 profit.

Today’s deal follows last week’s news that Wentworth had agreed to acquire an additional 16.38 per cent stake in the Mnazi Bay licence, taking its total interest to 41.78 per cent, in an asset swap with Cove Energy (LON:COV).

The firm described that deal as a ‘classic win-win’ situation. 

Wentworth and the operator Maurel et Prom will now take the project forward, alongside the Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation. Maurel et Prom own 38.22 per cent stake in Mnazi Bay and the TPDC owns a 20 per cent stake.

Cove and Maurel et Prom were set to carry Wentworth’s costs for an exploration well and a 3D seismic acquisition programme. Going forward Wentworth will have to cover some of these costs itself. Wentworth will pay 30 per cent of the costs. After the agreed work is complete the costs will be split according to the partners' participating interests.

Wentworth says it will now have a greater strategic influence over Mnazi Bay's gas monetisation plan.

The order is from an unnamed US military radio manufacturer, which will use Sarantel’s GeoHelix GPS antennas across a range of its products.

One use of Sarantel’s GPS antennas is in compact radio systems that are embedded inside a soldier’s body armour.

Sarantel added that the order was part a multi-year supply contract expected to be delivered over the next 12 months.

It is currently considering a number of options for both short and medium term financing, including a commercial loan.

David Wither, chief executive. said: "This is the largest order that we have secured so far and we expect it to have a material impact on our revenues. It is a great endorsement of the importance of our technology to world leading customers."

Broker XCAP said the order was great news for the company and the broker expects eventually to raise its September 2012 sales and operating profit forecasts “materially”.

“Today's order takes Sarantel a long way towards profitability even without any contribution from camera GPS contracts,” it said, while the comments about financing suggest the company believes it can fund itself with bank debt based on the current order book. 

XCAP said if Sarantel does make a breakthrough into consumer products, it may need to riase money to cover the ramp-up, but in that situation the share price “would be far above current levels”.

Today’s order follows on from an award last November from US-based NAL Research Corporation for its second-generation Iridium antenna for a low-power, two-way satellite messaging and personal tracking device. That deal could generate revenues of US$1 million.

It follows the payment of US$800,000 to Brandberg, which was set up by Extract Resources (ASX:EXT).   

The company holds exclusive prospecting licences 3327 and 3328, located near the old tin mining town of Uis in the northwest of Namibia.

A horizontal loop electromagnetic survey over the two licences has identified of two uranium target areas. 

Priority target Orawab is interpreted as a palaeochannel at least 14 kilometres long, between 100-1000 metres wide and up to 50 metres deep.

A secondary target, Ringo, appears to include a less prominent but still significant palaeochannel to the southwest of the Orawab target, which is up to 7 kilometres long, 50-500 metres wide and 30 metres deep. 

The Ringo target is considered a possible downstream extension of the Brandberg uranium occurrence identified in historical literature, North River said.

North River said today Brandberg plans a 1,100-metre drill programme, which may be increased to 1,500-2,000 metres following the receipt of new funds.  

It will commence once the radiation management plan is approved by the National Radiation Protection Authority in Namibia.  The RMP was submitted in mid-November. 

David Steinepreis and Luke Bryan of North River will be appointed to the Brandberg board alongside two Extract directors.

Chief executive Alex Halliday says that thousands of visitors are visiting the company’s website (www.SocialGo.com) each day as they look to grow an online community.

“This growing interest is an excellent opportunity for the company,” he said.

“With the software having proven itself as a stable and flexible platform we are now concentrating our efforts on giving our customers a vibrant and active community that is up and running in minutes and continues to grow and develop over time. 

“We will shortly be introducing a revised customer journey which will feature a new setup process, new network structure and critically, dramatically improved Facebook integration which will help the sites launch, grow and sustain activity.

“The upcoming releases will add definition to how the SocialGo sites exist in parallel with Twitter, Facebook Groups and Facebook Pages.”

In this morning’s trading update the company explained that it continues to receive revenues from the its first product, which is no longer available to new customers, and the sales for the new product are growing month on month.

It said that January saw twice as many new subscriptions as December. Furthermore it said that recent improvements to the way customers sign-up and set-up their social websites has seen a significant increase in customer trials. SocialGo says this is very encouraging.

A joint venture with Muronia Ltd, which specialises in online retail services for the music, entertainment and sports industries, has also benefited the company.

Together they are targeting high value clients that are seeking to directly exploit their commercial rights to their fan bases through their own dedicated social networks.

They have already signed up British rock band Kasabian, which launched its SocialGo powered site (www.kasabianlive.com) in December.

SocialGo hopes to build on this initial success with targeting similar initiatives, this includes promising discussions with a major US media group.

The company also announced today that Lord William Astor has joined the board of directors.

The K1-1 project is located roughly three kilometres to the east of the company's Thierry Mine project in northwestern Ontario, both being within the boundaries of the 11,538 acre Thierry property, occupying only a small portion of the asset.

In late 2011, the company released an initial inferred mineral resource estimate for K1-1 within a Whittle pit shell consisting of 19.89 million tonnes grading 0.10% nickel, 0.42% copper, 2.0 g/t silver, 0.03 g/t gold, 0.05 g/t platinum, 0.15 g/t palladium.

Cadillac also said an exploration target for K1-1 located outside and below the resource pit shell was estimated to contain between 45 to 55 million tonnes grading between 0.08 and 0.12% nickel, and 0.32 to 0.36% copper. But there was not enough "modern data" for the target to complete resource modeling, the company said.

The initial inferred resource reflected the first 16 exploration holes drilled by Cadillac, as well as limited historic data and other exploration carried out on the property.

Within the inferred resource, the company said there were gaps in data, "due simply to lack of drilling to model, which affect the behaviour of the pit, and therefore constrained the resource".

As a result, a 26 hole drill program was designed to address gaps within the pit shell area at K1-1, as well as test for extensions along strike and at depth.

The drilling campaign was also designed to intersect and upgrade mineralization from the exploration target category into the resource statement, and if successful, adding tonnage to both categories using infill drilling.

Cadillac said that including the drill results from the 26 holes in the re-calculation of the resource is expected to boost the estimate by extending the modeled mineralization.

Highlights of these assays included 110 feet of 0.626% copper and 87.5 feet of 0.546% copper.

During the drilling program, there was a total of 20,868 feet drilled over the 26 holes, and a total of 2,590 samples taken.

Cadillac said the update of the K1-1 resource estimate will affect a future production decision at Thierry, as the close proximity of the deposits to each other is expected to result in cost efficiencies - due to the sharing of the infrastructure and processing plant capacity.

"Sharing of facilities between the deposits should enable Cadillac to realize lower production costs, and therefore process material of a lower grade than would be envisioned based upon either deposit operating independently of the other," the company said in a statement.

Cadillac is a development-focused copper company currently advancing its 100 percent-owned Thierry property, near Pickle Lake, Ontario, which consists of the past-producing Thierry Mine and hosts two NI 43-101 compliant resources from the Thierry Mine and K1-1.

The Thierry Mine deposit has a current resource estimate consisting of 8.3 million tonnes measured and indicated grading 1.73% copper and 0.20% nickel, as well as 14.6 million tonnes inferred grading 1.70% copper and 0.16% nickel. The deposit remains open at depth and to the west.

Meanwhile, the K1-1 deposit is a potentially open-pit, large tonnage, low grade deposit located approximately three kilometres from the Thierry Mine.                          

TMX also said the decline is a result of the several changes it made to its equity trading fee schedule, effective March 1, 2011.

Energy market revenues also dropped one percent to $11.8 million, reflecting lower NGX crude oil volumes, as well as increased competition from voice brokers, like Shorcan Energy Brokers.

However, derivative markets posted a 20 percent rise in revenues, to $27.7 million, as trading on the company's Montreal Exchange (MX) increased 23 percent, and trading on its Boston Exchange (BOX) increased 40 percent.

On the TSX, the company reported an 18 percent decline in volume to 24.1 billion, and a nine percent decline in value to $334.6 billion. The number of transactions on the exchange rose nine percent to 53.1 million, while the number of issuers listed rose five percent to 1,587.

For the full year fiscal 2011, TMX posted a three percent rise in earnings to $243.6 million, or $3.17 per share, and an eight percent rise in total revenues to $673.5 million.

In Toronto, TMX shares rose 0.12 percent to $41.95, as of 9:42 am EDT. In 2011, the company's stock gained 12.8 percent.

TMX also said the decline is a result of the several changes it made to its equity trading fee schedule, effective March 1, 2011.

Energy market revenues also dropped one percent to $11.8 million, reflecting lower NGX crude oil volumes, as well as increased competition from voice brokers, like Shorcan Energy Brokers.

However, derivative markets posted a 20 percent rise in revenues, to $27.7 million, as trading on the company's Montreal Exchange (MX) increased 23 percent, and trading on its Boston Exchange (BOX) increased 40 percent.

On the TSX, the company reported an 18 percent decline in volume to 24.1 billion, and a nine percent decline in value to $334.6 billion. The number of transactions on the exchange rose nine percent to 53.1 million, while the number of issuers listed rose five percent to 1,587.

For the full year fiscal 2011, TMX posted a three percent rise in earnings to $243.6 million, or $3.17 per share, and an eight percent rise in total revenues to $673.5 million.

In Toronto, TMX shares rose 0.12 percent to $41.95, as of 9:42 am EDT. In 2011, the company's stock gained 12.8 percent.

For the three months that ended December 31, net income declined to $96.2 million, or 43 cents per share, from $137.4 million, or 58 cents per share, a year earlier.

The average estimate from six analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters was for earnings of 49 cents per share.

Revenue of $567.1 million for the fourth quarter was flat as compared to the fourth quarter of 2010.

Moody's chairman and chief executive officer, Raymond McDaniel, said: "Moody's achieved strong performance for full-year 2011, with growth in all lines of business at both Moody's Investors Service and Moody's Analytics despite volatile business conditions.

"For 2012, we anticipate revenue growth across most areas of our business and earnings per share in the range of $2.62 to $2.72."

Fourth-quarter expenses rose seven percent, which the company said was primarily due to employing more people and spending more on technology to grow.

Ratings revenue declined four percent, driven by a 14 percent drop in corporate finance.

Revenue at ratings competitor Standard & Poor's, a unit of The McGraw-Hill Cos. (NYSE:MHP), fell eight percent in the fourth quarter.

Moody's Analytics business, which sells financial research, risk management tools and consulting services, worked to offset the decline in ratings. Analytics revenue increased 10 percent in the quarter, and made up 35 percent of the corporate total.

Moody's projected that 2012 revenue from the analytics business would increase by a percentage "in the high teens", and that ratings revenue would rise "in the mid-single-digit percentage range".

CEO McDaniel predicted late last year that the financial markets would improve and that companies would issue more bonds.

The company projected a 2012 profit of $2.62 to $2.72 per share, which would be up about five to nine percent from $2.49 in 2011.

The year-ago period included eight cents per share of tax benefits. The provision for income taxes increased in the quarter by $24 million, and the effective tax rate rose to 37 percent from 19.5 percent.

The company said it did not continue buying back shares in the fourth quarter, but issued stock for employee pay.

The company, founded in 1981 and with over 4,895 workers, offers freight transportation and supply chain services in Canada and the United States.

For the quarter that ended December 31, net revenue rose 20 percent to $205 million from $172 million a year ago.
Toronto-based Vitran also posted a narrower net loss of $8.1 million, or 49 cents a share, compared to a year-earlier net loss of $40.2 million, or $2.47 a share.

Excluding one-time items such as write-offs for capitalized financing costs and losses recorded on real estate, adjusted earnings were 14 cents a share.

Analysts polled by Bloomberg were expecting a loss of nine cents, on revenues of $204 million.

"Despite a solid year at both Canadian Less-than-truckload (LTL) and supply chain operation, we did not achieve the momentum we expected in our U.S. LTL business," chief executive Rick Gaetz said in a press release.

"Although the U.S. operations experienced a wage increase in 2011, which totalled $12 million annualized in the fourth quarter, we did not take advantage of a reasonable operating environment to improve results.

"Plagued by bad weather around the Milan acquisition and a less-than-acceptable service level for a period of six months, we were impacted by high operating expenses in many parts of our business that contributed to weak results.

"We are making progress; however, we are not yet monetizing the changes that are occurring in the business."

The Canadian company’s LTL unit – which operates 95 terminals in the U.S., 15 terminals in Canada, and delivers freight shipments within one or two days – saw revenues rise 19 percent to $172 million. But the division also saw a loss from operations of $4.2 million.

Shipments and tonnage both increased 10 percent in the LTL segment over the prior year period – the company added.

Revenue for the Sco, or supply chain operation, business – which provides supply chain solutions and freight brokerage services – jumped 23 percent to $32.7 million. Income from operations rose to $2.9 million from $2.1 million a year earlier.

Shares of the company closed yesterday at $6.83 each in Toronto.

The company said its employees, known internally as 'WestJetters', voted 91 percent in favour of setting up the low-cost, short-haul, regional airline.

President and CEO, Gregg Saretsky, said: "The opportunity presented to WestJetters has been very well received and I thank them for their input and consideration in this important matter.

"Clearly, WestJetters have recognized and embraced that the service we have provided for 16 years is in demand in even more communities across Canada.

"Bringing WestJet to these communities will benefit Canadians while providing increased shareholder value. We now look forward to planning the launch of this new airline as early as 2013."

Following board approval, WestJet said it will send requests for proposals to Bombardier for the Q400 NextGen and to ATR for the ATR 72-600.

For the three months that ended December 31, WestJet posted net earnings of $35.6 million, or $0.26 per share, down four percent from $37.2 million, or $0.26 per share, a year ago.

Still, the company's earnings beat analysts' 20-cent per share estimate, according to Thomson Reuters.

Total revenues climbed 13 percent to $781.5 million, from $692.2 million in the same period last year. Guest revenues hiked 11 percent to $711.2 million.

Expenses for the three months also rose, with fuel costs up 31 percent to $235.6 million. Airport operations expenses increased seven percent to $107.3 million, while flight operations cost $84.8 million, six percent more than a year ago.

During the fourth quarter, WestJet recorded 5.3 million available seat miles (ASM), up six percent. Revenue per ASM rose over six percent to $0.147.

The company's load factor increased by 20 basis points, to 78.7 percent.

For the full year fiscal 2011, the company posted earnings of $148.7 million, or $1.06 per share, up 65 percent. Revenues increased 18 percent to $3.07 billion.

"We are very pleased with our strong fourth quarter and full-year results for 2011," Saretsky said.

"We managed to cover the elevated fuel costs with our revenue growth and improve our profit margin on a full-year basis.

"Low-cost continues to be our focus and I am proud of WestJetters for their efforts throughout 2011 to keep controllable costs per unit relatively flat, while at the same time delivering a remarkable guest experience."

The company signed several code-share agreements with a variety of international airlines in the quarter, allowing their partners to sell seats on WestJet flights under their own flight numbers.

WestJet also has interline agreements, which allow guests to book flights with multiple airlines using a single ticket and facilitate the transfer of baggage to a final destination, with 17 airlines around the world.

WestJet said its board of directors has declared a cash dividend of $0.06 per share, payable on March 30. The airline offers scheduled service throughout its 71-city North American and Caribbean network.