Downturn in gold exploration will hit future production - Lawrence Williams

``exploration activity by juniors -- which historically have been the most significant finders of major new gold deposits, was down 40% last year as funding dried up. Indeed, many are struggling to stay alive, let alone spend more money on exploration.  Ideally, this should be a time when exploration expenditures increased, but human nature suggests that even those with traditionally large budgets will be cutting back expenditure items like exploration''