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by Will Purcell

The diamond and specialty minerals stocks box score for Thursday was a mediocre 61-79-137. The TSX Venture Exchange fell four points to 713 while polished diamond prices were flat. Ken MacNeill and George Read's Star Diamond Corp. (DIAM) gained one-half cent to 19.5 cents on 1.31 million shares. There is nothing new, but investors have renewed hope that a takeover offer could be in the offing.

That enthusiasm was sparked by news from Eric Friedland and Tom Peregoodoff's Peregrine Diamonds Ltd. (PGD). Peregrine soared 7.5 cents to 23.5 cents on 37.26 million shares on word of a friendly takeover offer by De Beers Canada. The move caught many investors by surprise, but certainly not all: The company's stock had been holding up well despite Peregrine making no sign of carrying out its usual multimillion-dollar exploration program at its Chidliak diamond project this year. Further, the company was open about the fact it was looking for a deal of some kind, saying for the past few years that it has "been in discussions with a number of groups" about Chidliak.

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