Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX), Newmont (NYSE:NEM) Up Early

Although gold futures have been quiet and level today, gold miners Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) and Newmont Mining (NYSE:NEM) are up, with Freeport rising almost five percent and Newmont increasing by a little over 3 percent as of 1:00 p.m. EDT.

These are evidently investors and not speculators and traders mostly driving the prices, as volume was about normal for the 3-month average for both companies.

A growing number of analysts are recommending larger gold miners for investors, even though it seems the junior gold miners will make investors more money.

But the large miners like Freeport and Newmont are much safer and have a more predictable future, whereas junior miners will continue to be all over the place until they receive the type of financing which brings them to more stable players.

Watch the investment money in the companies to see who will emerge in the case of the miners, as if the projected resources their mining can be confirmed as real, then it's just a matter of finding those willing to invest in them to bring the resources out.