RPT-Bay Street Week Ahead-Golds sparkle at Canada mining meet

(Repeats Friday's column)

(In U.S. dollars unless noted)

By Robert Melnbardis

MONTREAL, March 2 (Reuters) - In years past, silk shirts, high-grade rock samples and even a gun or two have flashed at the prospectors and developers convention in Toronto, but junior gold companies are likely to spark the most interest at this year's shindig.

Gold heading toward $1,000 a ounce and widely expected to move a fair bit higher may have something to do with their popularity at the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada convention, which runs Sunday to Wednesday.

Held every year since 1932 in early March -- because that's when grizzled prospectors shuffled in from thawing exploration grounds -- the gathering will feature no less than five separate forums on the outlook for gold resources in Australia, Africa, Eurasia, Latin America and the Americas.

Speakers at other sessions will also address the burning question of where gold is headed and what that means for the global mining industry.

It will be the junior and mid-tier companies' chance to attract attention from the 18,000 registrants as big, deep-pocketed producers seek ways to boost their reserves.

Gold prices rose about 31 percent last year, but gold stocks dropped 5 percent. They have rebounded this year, but analysts figure there is still plenty of catching up to do.