Closing Bell: ASX lifts as CBA, Mac Bank hit record highs; Aruma Resources doubles

UBS analysts recommend buying ASX bank stocks due to better short-term prospects despite high valuations.

ASX closes higher as CBA and Macquarie touch records. Picture Getty

• ASX closes higher as CBA and Macquarie touch records

• Lotus Resources finds significant uranium; gold stocks await US CPI data

• UBS favours ASX banks over miners

The ASX bounced back by 0.4% on Tuesday after  yesterday’s slump, with the Commonwealth Bank (ASX:CBA) and Macquarie Group (ASX:MQG) both touching new record highs.

All 11 ASX sectors flashed green with Financials and Tech leading the way.

Source: MarketIndex

Gold stocks were mixed as the market awaits tomorrow’s (US time) August CPI report, which is the last big piece of the puzzle before the Fed decides on rates on September 18.

The CBA soared to a new high of $145.24 before retreating slightly, capping off an almost 30% gain this year.

Macquarie also climbed 2% to touch its all time high of $228.50, marking a 24% gain for the year.

Macquarie has become the first major Australian institution to reveal a stake in Trump Media & Technology Group (NASDAQ: DJT), disclosing a $800k holding of 25,000 shares to the US SEC overnight. 

Meanwhile, in a note sent  today, UBS analysts recommend buying ASX bank stocks over miners.  

Despite banks' high valuations, UBS believes they offer better short-term prospects compared to miners, which are struggling with economic slowdowns in China.

What else is happening?

Across the region, Asian stocks mostly stayed steady as investors awaited US inflation data for hints at the Fed Reserve’s next move on interest rates. 

While markets in Tokyo and Sydney saw gains, shares in mainland China dipped amid ongoing economic concerns.

The CSI 300 Index neared its lowest close since January 2019 as worries deepen on China’s economic health.

Chinese biotech stocks also fell after a US bill blacklisted some foreign firms.

The new legislation, which passed by a 306 to 81 vote, now heads to the Senate and targets companies like WuXi AppTec and BGI Group due to apparent concerns over biosecurity and ‘potential misuse of biological data’.

Alibaba, meanwhile, rose 5% in Hong Kong after announcing that it has joined the Stock Connect program.

The Stock Connect program is a network that allows investors in China and Hong Kong to trade stocks in each other’s markets.

Elsewhere, iron ore prices fluctuated after rebounding to above US$90 a tonne.

ASX SMALL CAP LEADERS

Today’s best performing small cap stocks:

Swipe or scroll to reveal full table. Click headings to sort:

Code	Name	Price	% Change	Volume	Market Cap
AAJ	Aruma Resources Ltd	0.032	100%	62,453,335	$3,552,931
IEC	Intra Energy Corp	0.002	50%	853,272	$1,690,782
ENV	Enova Mining Limited	0.015	36%	10,495,644	$10,834,223
AOK	Australian Oil.	0.004	33%	12,382,672	$2,833,920
FGH	Foresta Group	0.004	33%	1,262,354	$7,066,137
AGD	Austral Gold	0.020	33%	101,553	$9,184,670
AMM	Armada Metals	0.012	33%	368,736	$1,872,000
DGR	DGR Global Ltd	0.014	27%	2,728,228	$11,480,628
88E	88 Energy Ltd	0.003	25%	3,622,520	$57,867,624
AVE	Avecho Biotech Ltd	0.003	25%	500,000	$6,338,594
CRB	Carbine Resources	0.005	25%	3,387,656	$2,206,951
JAV	Javelin Minerals Ltd	0.003	25%	350,000	$8,553,692
LML	Lincoln Minerals	0.005	25%	383,763	$8,225,038
CXL	Calix Limited	1.110	23%	2,195,339	$163,445,630
FCT	Firstwave Cloud Tech	0.022	22%	1,670,793	$30,780,349
EOF	Ecofibre Limited	0.030	20%	271,742	$9,471,848
LNR	Lanthanein Resources	0.003	20%	214,713	$6,109,090
RKT	Rocketdna Ltd.	0.012	20%	7,418,308	$6,561,148
A8G	Australasian Metals	0.125	19%	2,223	$5,472,652
HXG	Hexagon Energy	0.025	19%	1,440,239	$10,771,234
VMS	Venture Minerals	0.013	18%	4,864,449	$29,378,808
XF1	Xref Limited	0.165	18%	55,531	$26,471,657
PWN	Parkway Corp Ltd	0.011	17%	11,668,746	$24,904,025
POS	Poseidon Nick Ltd	0.004	17%	4,191,837	$12,545,926
BMR	Ballymore Resources	0.145	16%	55,369	$22,091,323

One way to put a nitro booster up a stock at the moment is to uncover high grades of two hot commodities at the same time – and Aruma Resources (ASX:AAJ) has done just that. Assays from initial surface sampling of rock chips at its Fiery Creek project in the Mt Isa copper belt in QLD has cropped up multiple, very high-grade copper (Cu) and antimony (Sb) grades. Mineralisation was found to be consistent across 600m of strike at the Piper prospect and include grades of up to 11.83% Cu and 10,883ppm Sb – along with high-grade silver (Ag) assays up to 31.3g/t.

The assays confirm historical rock chip samples at the target area, which contained 36% Cu, 25.4% Cu and 15.2% Cu. Fiery Creek is a freshly acquired asset, part of a portfolio expansion for early-stage projects in May this year where Aruma also snapped up an IOC-uranium project near BHP’s (ASX:BHP) prolific Olympic Dam operations and Bortala – another copper play in Queensland.

Intra Energy Corporation (ASX:IEC) has released an update to its announcement of results from a 1,960-metre reconnaissance drilling program which identified a large-scale lithium-caesium-tantalum system and a large-scale gold system at the Maggie Hays Hill project, in the Lake Johnston Greenstone Belt, Western Australia. The numbers are the same as previously reported on September 04, 2024 – the update includes drill hole details and sectional views as required by the JORC code.

Austral Gold (ASX:AGD) was rising after being reinstated to the ASX, after it was suspended for not filing its FY24 financial reports on time.

Noble Helium (ASX:NHE) was rising on news that new NHE data available for NSAI evaluation indicates better reservoir properties, higher helium concentrations and more or larger prospective structures than previously at the Western Margin of the North Rukwa basin. The company says the total Western Margin P50 Helium Prospective Resource has increased by 66%, and the Lake Beds P50 Helium Prospective Resource has increased by 31%, while the deeper Karoo P50 Helium Prospective Resource jumped 500% after mapping with the 2023 seismic.

Audeara (ASX:AUA) was climbing earlier on news that it has signed a binding Letter of Intent with prominent, Hong Kong based technology services provider Eastern Asia Technology, to deliver Audeara’s healthy hearing technology into the Chinese medical device market. Eastech has “a strong presence in China and a proven track record of successfully delivering advanced technology products and solutions, ensuring high standards of quality and customer satisfaction.” the company says.

Lotus Resources (ASX:LOT)  has found some of the thickest zones of uranium mineralisation at its Letlhakane project in Botswana, with recent drilling revealing significant new intersections. The updated resource estimate shows large quantities of uranium, with drilling continuing to confirm mineralisation and enhance the project's resource classification. The company expects to complete the drilling by September and update the resource estimate by November, while also advancing development at its other project in Malawi.

They say things come in threes and it’s no different for explorer Metals Australia (ASX:MLS), where drilling and exploration is kicking off across (you guessed it!) three projects in WA and the NT, testing for gold, lithium-pegmatite and nickel-copper-cobalt mineralisation. The tenure is just 10km from SQM and Hancock Prospecting’s Andover lithium discovery, bought in the takeover of Azure Minerals for $1.7bn back in May.

A 6000m AC drill program is also underway at MLS' Warrambie project in WA’s Pilbara – a set of tenements straddling the Scholl Shear Zone, which is analogous to the Mallina Shear – and host to the De Grey Mining’s (ASX:DEG) monster +10Moz Hemi gold deposit. In WA’s Murchison, a 120-hole AC drill program has been permitted to follow an extensive soil sampling and gravity program underway at Big Bell North, prospective for gold as it’s along strike from Westgold Resources’ (ASX:WGX) +5Moz Big Bell deposit.

Rising in share price for a second day in a row, Stavely Minerals (ASX:SVY) has laid eyes on copper oxide minerals (azurite and malachite) and copper sulphides as part of a now-completed AC drilling campaign at its Stavely project in Victoria. While assays are pending, the visual identification of mineralisation bodes well to complement significant historical intercepts at the Junction prospect, which included 35m at 3.44% Cu and 26g/t Ag from 24m to end-of-hole.

Phase 1 drilling at New Age Exploration's (ASX:NAE) Wagyu gold project in WA’s Pilbara – nestled between De Grey’s tenements and right near its monster +10Moz Hemi gold deposit – has just been completed. The four-week exploration program involved the drilling and sampling of 156 AC drill holes for a total of 7460m. It’s looking for the same ‘Hemi-style’ intrusive system and Phase 1 is the start of a thoroughly formulated six-month exploration program.

Phase 2 will include follow-up AC drilling and sampling based on pending results, which NAE says will be crucial to further exploration planning. Additional ground gravity and passive seismic surveys are also in the mix at Wagyu, including carrying out work on the dry Yule Riverbed.

After analysing new data that became available for auditor evaluation of Noble Helium's (ASX:NHE) North Rukwa Western Margin helium resource, larger and higher concentrations of the finite gasseous element have been realised.

The total Western Margin P50 helium prospective resource has now increased by 66%, including Lake Beds by 31% and the deeper Karoo resource jumping a whopping 500% after mapping the 2023 seismic data.

The gas play says the revelation has significant implications for Eastern Margin and a prospective resource update is now in progress.

ASX SMALL CAP LAGGARDS

Today’s worst performing small cap stocks:

Swipe or scroll to reveal full table. Click headings to sort

Code	Name	Price	% Change	Volume	Market Cap
IVX	Invion Ltd	0.002	-33%	18,415	$19,999,775
PUR	Pursuit Minerals	0.002	-33%	2,336,089	$10,906,200
MTC	Metalstech Ltd	0.180	-31%	1,020,139	$51,183,180
NSX	NSX Limited	0.011	-27%	290,800	$6,866,715
LPD	Lepidico Ltd	0.002	-25%	920,406	$17,178,250
MRQ	Mrg Metals Limited	0.003	-25%	1,289,399	$10,846,075
WEL	Winchester Energy	0.002	-25%	625,000	$2,726,038
BCB	Bowen Coal Limited	0.007	-22%	46,083,045	$25,642,612
MGL	Magontec Limited	0.200	-20%	1,351	$19,910,942
ADD	Adavale Resource Ltd	0.002	-20%	76,105	$3,059,413
EXL	Elixinol Wellness	0.004	-20%	48,539	$6,605,912
SFG	Seafarms Group Ltd	0.002	-20%	3,205	$12,091,498
AZI	Altamin Limited	0.029	-17%	7,875	$15,359,716
ECT	Env Clean Tech Ltd.	0.003	-17%	26,338	$9,515,431
PRM	Prominence Energy	0.005	-17%	177,714	$1,868,258
PVT	Pivotal Metals Ltd	0.011	-15%	1,104,468	$9,153,538
APL	Associate Global	0.140	-15%	7,833	$9,321,250
BXN	Bioxyne Ltd	0.012	-14%	7,700,892	$28,653,036
GTR	Gti Energy Ltd	0.003	-14%	1,000,246	$8,924,815
PAT	Patriot Lithium	0.030	-14%	158,000	$3,621,816
AZ9	Asianbatterymet PLC	0.019	-14%	653,528	$6,648,730
GL1	Globallith	0.165	-13%	1,452,886	$49,511,698
BM8	Battery Age Minerals	0.100	-13%	726,774	$10,697,776

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Equinox Resources (ASX:EQN) has eyes on a Canadian project with historical mining of up to 59.5% antimony ore.It’s tapping into growing interest in antimony after China put export restrictions on the critical mineral and has a binding option agreement to acquire the ultra-high-grade Alps-Alturas project in British Columbia.

Arizona Lithium (ASX:AZL) has begun drilling a third exploration well to meet full production on Pad #1 at its flagship Prairie lithium project in Saskatchewan, Canada, as it prepares for first direct lithium extraction (DLE) from its 6.3Mt LCE resource. With the third well at Pad #1 in place, the lithium explorer can finalise facility design, look to facility construction in H1 2025 and commercial production of lithium brines shortly thereafter.

Firetail Resources (ASX:FTL) initial foray into the York Harbour copper-zinc-silver project in Newfoundland, Canada, is already paying off with the identification of some early opportunities. It’s carrying out site works to support the upcoming program, after previous owners had identified multiple zones of semi-massive, stringer and disseminated sulphide mineralisation adjacent to high-grade ore zones, yet were overlooked for further investigation. The junior has identified eight holes with at least 250m of unsampled drill core for analysis that is believed to have valuable information on the extents and controls of the York Harbour mineralised system.

Resouro Strategic Metals (ASX:RAU) has entered into a binding agreement to buy 100% ownership and title over three mineral rights totalling 4,744 hectares south of and contiguous with the Sao Gotardo block of its Tiros project. With a maiden mineral resource estimate of 1.7 billion tonnes, Tiros is the largest JORC combined REE and titanium deposit of its type known in the world, with the JORC Resource from only 7% of the current tenements.

New Age Exploration (ASX:NAE) has completed the Phase 1 AC drill program at its Wagyu gold project in WA’s Pilbara region and is now waiting to bite into assay results. The 156-hole drill program totalling 7640m had tested Hemi-style gold targets, including four gravity highs identified in the April 2024 geophysics survey, on the eastern side of the project. It found that three of the four gravity highs were intrusive systems with two of these interpreted from drill samples to be intermediate intrusive rocks.

Sun Silver (ASX:SS1) has produced up to 13,199ppm antimony from historical drill core and RC chips from its Maverick Springs project in Nevada, USA.  The timing couldn’t be better, as the US looks to bolster domestic supply off the back of China imposing export restrictions in the critical mineral, which is used in defence applications, semiconductors and clean-energy storage batteries. The company says all five historical drill holes tested to date using pXRF analysis have returned high-grade Antimony (Sb) readings up to 13,199ppm.

Anax Metals (ASX:ANX) and Artemis Resources have signed an MoU to collaborate on a copper-focused Pilbara alliance – with some gold exploration thrown in for good measure. It’s a substantial step in company plans at Whim Creek to develop a copper and base metals hub in WA’s Pilbara region. The MoU will assess the potential to treat Carlow Castle (64,000t copper inferred mineral resource estimate) and other suitable Artemis Resources (ASX:ARV) copper assets at the Whim Creek processing hub.

First Lithium’s (ASX:FL1) second series of drilling at the Blakala project in Mali has confirmed significant depth and strike continuity of the eastern lithium pegmatite at the project. The project is one of only two Tier 1 priority lithium targets in Mali, the other being the giant 211Mt at 1.37% Li₂O Goulamina project – now owned by Chinese lithium and battery major Ganfeng.

Miramar Resources (ASX:M2R)  has provided an update on its quest for nickel, copper, cobalt and PGEs in Western Australia’s Capricorn Orogen.

The company has completed a maiden reverse circulation drilling campaign at the Bangemall project, testing geological and geophysical targets at Mount Vernon and Trouble Bore.

While the company did concede difficulty drilling through Trouble Bore’s alluvial cover, it did successfully test seven targets at Mount Vernon with selected samples already submitted for analysis.

The initial drilling was co-funded by the WA Government’s Exploration Incentive Scheme and was the first of its class to target Norilsk-style Ni-Cu-Co-PGE mineralisation in the region. Miramar will review other options for testing Trouble Bore – including the possibility of implementing diamond drilling.

Argentine explorer Pursuit Minerals (ASX:PUR) has appointed Stephen Layton as non-executive director – effectively immediately.

Layton holds more than 35 years’ experience in equity capital markets in both the United Kingdom and Australia, including years on the trading floor of the London Stock Exchange from 1980 to 1986. After stepping foot in Australia in the late 1980s, Layton worked with a number of stockbroking and corporate advisory firms, specialising in capital raisings and the facilitation of ASX listings.

Layton also currently works as a non-executive director for Mithril Resources (ASX:MTH) and EQ Resources (ASX:EQR).

TRADING HALTS

Bowen Coking Coal (ASX:BCB) – pending an announcement responding to a ‘Price and Volume’ query received from the ASX.

Cauldron Energy (ASX:CXU) – pending an announcement regarding material results from drilling at Manyingee South forming part of Cauldron’s Yanrey uranium project.

At Stockhead, we tell it like it is. While First Lithium, Anax Metals, Sun Silver, New Age Explorations, Resauro Strategic Metals, Miramar Resources, Firetail Resources, Arizona Lithium, Equinox Resources, and Pursuit Minerals are Stockhead advertisers, they did not sponsor this article.

Today’s Closing Bell is brought to you by Webull Securities. Webull Securities (Australia) Pty. Ltd. is a CHESS-sponsored broker and a registered trading participant on the ASX.

Originally published as Closing Bell: ASX lifts as CBA, Mac Bank hit record highs; Aruma Resources doubles