Lunch Wrap: Miners drag the ASX along as copper hits new records
The ASX lifted on copper-fuelled mining gains, while Vulcan tanked on a discounted raise and Pro Medicus admitted a minor cyber incident.
Miners prop up the ASX as copper hits records
Vulcan sinks over discounted mega raise
Pro Medicus’ cyber attack
Well, the ASX was up around 0.15% on Thursday lunchtime in the east … when this copy was filed. It's since, however, slunk back to a bare gain of 0.04% at the time of hitting publish.
Wall Street closed higher overnight after US private employers unexpectedly cut 32,000 jobs in November. The softer jobs print means Fed rate cuts are back on the Christmas menu, so traders shrugged off the economic gloom.
Back home, the early party was clearly being hosted by the miners this morning.
Copper hit yet another record last night so the big diggers did what they do best: carry the rest of the index.
BHP (ASX:BHP) popped around 3%, while Rio Tinto (ASX:RIO) rose 2.5%.
Copper’s rally is being fuelled by tightening inventories and the growing fear that supply can’t keep up with demand, especially with disruptions hitting several top mines this year. Traders are hoarding the red metal like it’s toilet paper in 2020.
Real estate, meanwhile, was the biggest laggard this morning.
In the large caps space, Vulcan Energy Resources (ASX:VUL) completely face-planted after coming out of a trading halt, down 31%.
VUL announced a €398 million ($710m) capital raise to fund Phase One of its Lionheart lithium and renewable energy project in Germany. That’s 178 million new shares priced at $4.00, a brutal 34.7% discount to the last close.
Pro Medicus (ASX:PME) meanwhile traded flat despite admitting a minor cybersecurity incident.
An unauthorised party apparently accessed a single email inbox back in July, prompting the company to call in external forensics to triple check nothing else was touched.
The investigation concluded that no clinical systems, no patient data, and no core imaging platforms were impacted.
ASX LEADERS
Today’s best performing stocks (including small caps) intraday:
| Security | Description | Last | % | Volume | MktCap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DMG | Dragon Mountain Gold | 0.010 | 67% | 2,965,394 | $2,368,030 |
| MEM | Memphasys Ltd | 0.004 | 33% | 575,000 | $7,364,677 |
| APC | APC Minerals | 0.015 | 25% | 31,101,838 | $3,515,200 |
| AVE | Avecho Biotech Ltd | 0.010 | 25% | 9,249,655 | $29,387,709 |
| ERA | Energy Resources | 0.003 | 25% | 2,890 | $810,792,482 |
| AYT | Austin Metals Ltd | 0.006 | 20% | 910,000 | $7,920,957 |
| BUY | Bounty Oil & Gas NL | 0.003 | 20% | 233,130 | $3,904,002 |
| HPC | Thehydration | 0.006 | 20% | 86,666 | $2,154,005 |
| RAN | Range International | 0.003 | 20% | 300,000 | $4,462,785 |
| CVR | Cavalierresources | 0.450 | 18% | 184,581 | $27,108,733 |
| AGN | Argenica | 0.260 | 18% | 1,008,785 | $28,260,477 |
| 1AD | Adalta Limited | 0.004 | 17% | 1,962 | $5,676,588 |
| CTN | Catalina Resources | 0.004 | 17% | 1,322,500 | $8,589,057 |
| ROG | Red Sky Energy. | 0.004 | 17% | 3,065,502 | $16,266,682 |
| CKA | Cokal Ltd | 0.050 | 16% | 1,840,073 | $46,394,806 |
| HMY | Harmoney Corp Ltd | 0.880 | 16% | 138,314 | $79,083,103 |
| G11 | G11 Resources Ltd | 0.370 | 16% | 158,322 | $42,313,499 |
| KFM | Kingfisher Mining | 0.075 | 15% | 150,000 | $6,504,713 |
| AFA | ASF Group Limited | 0.046 | 15% | 14,014 | $31,695,901 |
| FHS | Freehill Mining Ltd. | 0.004 | 14% | 2,250,000 | $12,311,613 |
| NES | Nelson Resources. | 0.008 | 14% | 9,710,797 | $15,376,160 |
| HAV | Havilah Resources | 0.590 | 13% | 880,514 | $182,191,052 |
| HCH | Hot Chili Ltd | 1.200 | 13% | 1,035,319 | $188,003,523 |
Cavalier Resources (ASX:CVR) has wrapped up 4,647m of RC drilling at the 100%-owned Crawford gold project, targeting extensions just outside the Stage 1 starter pit to bulk up the Mineral Resource for future pit stages.
Early results from the Northern Development Area look sharp, including 7m at 5.07g/t gold (with a tasty 2m at 13.60g/t) and 5m at 6.26g/t (including 1m at 21.30g/t).
Argenica Therapeutics (ASX:AGN) has ticked off a key FDA requirement, confirming ARG-007 doesn’t interfere with tenecteplase (TNK), the standard clot-busting drug now approved in the US for acute ischaemic stroke.
This result significantly de-risks ARG-007’s development and strengthens the case for the FDA to lift its current clinical hold, the company said.
Catalina Resources (ASX:CTN) has Phase 1 RC drilling underway at the Evanston Gold Project, testing high-priority structures along a corridor already known for solid historical intercepts, including 21m at 1.13g/t gold and 3m at 6.7g/t gold.
Continuous sampling is being taken from surface to end-of-hole, with the first assays now at ALS Kalgoorlie for PhotonAssay.
And, Nuix (ASX:NXL) rose 2.5% after announcing a €20m deal to acquire French graph-visualisation firm Linkurious.
Graph analysis and crime-fighting-style data mapping are hot right now, and Nuix wants to prove it’s more than just an 'upstream processing' veteran stuck in one lane.
ASX LAGGARDS
Today’s worst performing stocks (including small caps) intraday:
| Code | Name | Price | % Change | Volume | Market Cap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| STP | Step One Limited | 0.300 | -38% | 2,989,563 | $89,890,041 |
| IPB | IPB Petroleum Ltd | 0.006 | -33% | 7,168,566 | $6,357,628 |
| QXR | Qx Resources Limited | 0.003 | -25% | 9,477 | $7,370,653 |
| RLC | Reedy Lagoon Corp. | 0.003 | -25% | 70,000 | $3,106,827 |
| PMM | Pioneerminerals Ltd | 0.145 | -22% | 2,500 | $11,785,340 |
| AKN | Auking Mining Ltd | 0.004 | -20% | 970 | $4,500,155 |
| PIL | Peppermint Inv Ltd | 0.004 | -20% | 4,008,470 | $12,545,104 |
| SFG | Seafarms Group Ltd | 0.002 | -20% | 45,481,935 | $12,091,498 |
| VUL | Vulcan Energy | 4.240 | -17% | 4,147,763 | $1,202,380,471 |
| HCF | Hghighconviction | 0.025 | -17% | 15,836 | $582,194 |
| AOA | Ausmon Resorces | 0.003 | -17% | 505,000 | $3,943,840 |
| CTO | Citigold Corp Ltd | 0.010 | -17% | 3,030,010 | $36,000,000 |
| C7A | Clara Resources | 0.003 | -14% | 6,534,808 | $4,453,549 |
| MPR | MPR Australia Ltd | 0.006 | -14% | 360,000 | $2,405,923 |
| YUG | Yugo Metals Ltd | 0.060 | -14% | 303,616 | $20,766,045 |
| AEI | Aeris Environmental | 0.046 | -13% | 3,190,520 | $13,069,511 |
| DXN | DXN Limited | 0.041 | -13% | 33,000 | $14,665,738 |
| GLL | Galilee Energy Ltd | 0.007 | -13% | 4,843,268 | $5,657,543 |
| LCY | Legacy Iron Ore | 0.007 | -13% | 4,066,668 | $78,096,341 |
| IME | Imexhs Limited | 0.290 | -12% | 10,000 | $17,792,502 |
| BOC | Bougainville Copper | 0.700 | -11% | 110,608 | $316,839,375 |
| IMC | Immuron Limited | 0.063 | -11% | 2,976,480 | $19,727,271 |
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
QPM Energy (ASX:QPM) has locked in funding for its Isaac power station in Queensland, with a $30m placement and $40m note agreement.
Entropy Neurodynamics (ASX: ENP) has dosed the first patient in its IV-psilocin TRP-8803 trial to treat binge eating disorder.
LAST ORDERS
ReNerve (ASX:RNV) has welcomed Maja McGuire and Dr Paul Savage as non-executive directors, with McGuire to take up the mantle of interim chair, effective immediately.
Stephen Cooper and Dr Michael Panaccio have also resigned from the board effective immediately, as part of the company’s renewal process announced last week.
McGuire brings more than 15 years’ experience working as an advisor, non-executive chair, non-executive director, general counsel and company secretary.
At Stockhead, we tell it like it is. While ReNerve is a Stockhead advertiser, it did not sponsor this article.
This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.
Originally published as Lunch Wrap: Miners drag the ASX along as copper hits new records
