The Globe and Mail attempts to identify companies that are well positioned to withstand the volatility surrounding gold prices, measured by low levels of net debt and strong relative valuation metrics in its Wednesday, July 29, edition. The Globe's Ryan Gottschalk writes in the Number Cruncher column that with spot values for gold recently trading at about 58 per cent of their five-year high, the question now becomes which gold companies will be able to withstand this major headwind. Mr. Gottschalk's screen focuses on North American companies listed within the GICS Gold subindustry that have strong fundamental and relative valuation ratios. He only considered companies with a market capitalization of at least $200-million (U.S.), a net debt-to-enterprise-value ratio of less than 40 per cent, and an enterprise value/EBITDA ratio no greater than seven. Mr. Gottschalk's gold stocks with low levels of net debt and strong relative valuations are Kirkland Lake Gold, Lake Shore Gold, Klondex Mines, Newmont Mining, New Gold, Kinross Gold, Eldorado Gold, Iamgold, Alacer Gold and Primero Mining.