The ASX took a small jump as Trump dialled down his tariff tantrum. Picture via Getty Images
- Trump eases off trade war with EU
- WA flexes as national economic top dog again
- Coal cops a legal blow as ASX edges higher
At Monday lunchtime in the east, the ASX was edging higher by 0.25%.
And fair enough, because the spat that nearly boiled over between the US and Europe has been defused, at least for now.
Donald Trump and EU boss Ursula von der Leyen have announced a fresh trade pact, but still slaps 15% tariffs on most European exports.
But hey, at least it’s not 50%, which is where Trump was originally pointing the bazooka.
Markets loved the clarity, with Wall Street futures rising and the S&P 500 chalking up yet another record last Friday.
Back to the ASX, and it was the steady-Eddie sectors doing the heavy lifting – telcos, healthcare, banks.
Energy, meanwhile, was one of the market’s laggards after a court overturned approval for a coal project in the Hunter Valley.
MACH Energy’s big coal expansion at Mount Pleasant has hit a wall after NSW’s court of appeal overturned its approval.
It’s a major legal shift that could put the brakes on future coal and gas projects across the state.
The ruling rattled coal stocks, with Whitehaven Coal (ASX:WHC) down 3.5% and Yancoal Australia (ASX:YAL) off 1.5%.
In other large cap news, WiseTech Global (ASX:WTC) has officially named Zubin Appoo as permanent CEO.
He’s no stranger to the company, having worked alongside founder Richard White back in the early days and returning now after stints at InLoop, Flexischools and HICAPS. WTC’s shares were down 0.4%.
And, The Lottery Corporation (ASX:TLC) has named Wayne Pickup as its next CEO, taking over from Sue van der Merwe in November. Shares edged down 0.5%.
ASX SMALL CAP WINNERS
Here are the best performing ASX small cap stocks for July 28 [intraday]:
| Security | Description | Last | % | Volume | MktCap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUK | Aumake Limited | 0.004 | 100% | 10,943,487 | $6,046,718 |
| EEL | Enrg Elements Ltd | 0.002 | 100% | 2,000,000 | $3,253,779 |
| JCS | Jcurve Solutions | 0.046 | 53% | 755,433 | $9,910,303 |
| CZN | Corazon Ltd | 0.003 | 50% | 16,815 | $2,369,145 |
| ENT | Enterprise Metals | 0.004 | 33% | 185,000 | $4,113,952 |
| DGR | DGR Global Ltd | 0.009 | 29% | 1,491,125 | $7,305,872 |
| MIO | Macarthur Minerals | 0.019 | 27% | 2,631 | $2,994,983 |
| WBE | Whitebark Energy | 0.005 | 25% | 1,652,800 | $2,802,231 |
| TR2 | Tali Resources Ltd | 0.635 | 25% | 485,994 | $19,127,550 |
| HTG | Harvest Tech Grp Ltd | 0.017 | 21% | 838,520 | $12,726,256 |
| CMB | Cambium Bio Limited | 0.320 | 21% | 47,773 | $4,844,906 |
| SIX | Sprintex Ltd | 0.054 | 20% | 5,656,968 | $28,289,066 |
| ZNC | Zenith Minerals Ltd | 0.036 | 20% | 364,165 | $15,883,665 |
| AAU | Antilles Gold Ltd | 0.006 | 20% | 178,623 | $11,895,340 |
| ADG | Adelong Gold Limited | 0.006 | 20% | 25,356,918 | $11,243,383 |
| ALY | Alchemy Resource Ltd | 0.006 | 20% | 100,000 | $5,890,381 |
| TEM | Tempest Minerals | 0.006 | 20% | 5,968,892 | $5,508,975 |
| BDG | Black Dragon Gold | 0.051 | 19% | 808,996 | $13,672,541 |
| CLA | Celsius Resource Ltd | 0.007 | 17% | 220,101 | $18,812,931 |
| FRX | Flexiroam Limited | 0.007 | 17% | 238 | $9,104,392 |
| VKA | Viking Mines Ltd | 0.007 | 17% | 50,000 | $8,063,692 |
| PL3 | Patagonia Lithium | 0.044 | 16% | 131,441 | $4,537,594 |
| IFG | Infocusgroup Hldltd | 0.019 | 16% | 1,351,167 | $4,671,027 |
| RR1 | Reach Resources Ltd | 0.012 | 15% | 7,280,085 | $8,744,313 |
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Cloud ERP provider JCurve Solutions (ASX:JCS) has locked in a $1 million strategic placement, issuing 20 million shares at 5 cents each to US-based investor Adam Riches. Riches is the founder of Netgain Solutions and a known name in the Oracle NetSuite space. As part of the deal, Riches can nominate a director, expected to be Chris Miller, pending approvals.
Tali Resources (ASX:TR2) is gearing up to kick off drilling in August across five key targets at its West Arunta Project. Fresh geophysical modelling has confirmed strong anomalies at each site, with heritage and drilling approvals already locked in. The prospects show signs of potential copper and IOCG-style systems, especially near the known Pokali copper zone.
Meanwhile, Bubs Australia (ASX:BUB) has tapped Joe Coote, ex-Darigold and Fonterra heavyweight, as its new CEO. Coote has more than 20 years in the dairy and infant nutrition game, and over $2 billion in regional sales under his belt. He replaces Reg Weine, who exits stage left after two years. Bubs’ shares rose 1%.
ASX SMALL CAP LOSERS
Here are the worst performing ASX small cap stocks for July 28 [intraday]:
| Code | Name | Price | % Change | Volume | Market Cap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BOE | Boss Energy Ltd | 1.955 | -43% | 53,930,006 | $1,410,733,137 |
| MOM | Moab Minerals Ltd | 0.001 | -33% | 44,000 | $2,811,999 |
| TMX | Terrain Minerals | 0.002 | -33% | 352,454 | $7,595,443 |
| MTB | Mount Burgess Mining | 0.005 | -29% | 2,887,613 | $2,979,468 |
| AOA | Ausmon Resorces | 0.002 | -25% | 4,330,025 | $2,622,427 |
| EDE | Eden Inv Ltd | 0.002 | -25% | 2,625,071 | $8,219,762 |
| HLX | Helix Resources | 0.002 | -25% | 2,140,006 | $6,728,387 |
| NIM | Nimyresourceslimited | 0.070 | -23% | 3,341,865 | $21,883,752 |
| AZL | Arizona Lithium Ltd | 0.007 | -22% | 5,018,025 | $48,422,830 |
| REZ | Resourc & En Grp Ltd | 0.015 | -21% | 3,357,968 | $14,201,979 |
| ERA | Energy Resources | 0.002 | -20% | 128,350 | $1,013,490,602 |
| MRD | Mount Ridley Mines | 0.002 | -20% | 100,000 | $1,946,223 |
| TMK | TMK Energy Limited | 0.002 | -20% | 5,125,666 | $25,555,958 |
| DAF | Discovery Alaska Ltd | 0.013 | -19% | 20,001 | $3,747,755 |
| GTE | Great Western Exp. | 0.013 | -19% | 3,323,194 | $9,084,127 |
| IS3 | I Synergy Group Ltd | 0.009 | -18% | 1,768,680 | $18,769,299 |
| ASM | Ausstratmaterials | 0.593 | -18% | 2,489,026 | $145,689,194 |
| SMM | Somerset Minerals | 0.015 | -17% | 10,316,361 | $11,611,449 |
| UNT | Unith Ltd | 0.005 | -17% | 2,643,048 | $8,872,713 |
| VEN | Vintage Energy | 0.005 | -17% | 94,260 | $12,521,482 |
| ALB | Albion Resources | 0.096 | -17% | 4,075,427 | $15,172,333 |
| SUM | Summitminerals | 0.041 | -16% | 1,055,178 | $4,340,228 |
| FTI | Fortifai Ltd | 0.140 | -15% | 150,871 | $24,203,497 |
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Boss Energy (ASX:BOE) got absolutely smoked, down 42% after waving a red flag over its Honeymoon uranium project. Recent drilling revealed patchy mineralisation and leachability issues, which could throw a spanner in its production targets. That overshadowed what was otherwise a decent finish to the financial year: 349,000 pounds of U₃O₈ produced (above guidance), $224 million in cash and inventory, and steady costs of US$36/lb.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Neurizon Therapeutics (ASX:NUZ) has submitted a formal response to the US FDA addressing a clinical hold on its investigational new drug application for lead drug NUZ-001.
Octava Minerals (ASX:OCT) has an option to acquire the Federation copper-silver-zinc project in Tasmania where historical drilling returned significant intersections.
Nova Minerals (ASX:NVA) has strengthened ties with key Alaskan lawmakers and other stakeholders during a board visit to its 9.9Moz Estelle gold and critical minerals project.
Prescient Therapeutics (ASX:PTX) is entering a critical stage with clinical progress, regulatory tailwinds and commercial opportunity converging.
LAST ORDERS
QPM Energy (ASX:WPM) has applied for debt financing for the 112MW Isaac Power Station from the Australian government’s Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility. The NAIF has completed the strategic assessment phase and has moved to the due diligence stage of the process.
Magnetic Resources (ASX:MAU) has secured a new mining lease covering the entire area of the Lady Julie North 4 Deposit, the main 1.94Moz resource at the Lady Julie North gold project.
Titanium Sands (ASX:TSL) is advancing environmental studies at the Mannar heavy mineral project in Sri Lanka, with the company’s environmental consultants moving to complete field investigations, technical assessments and data collection on site.
ClearVue Technologies (ASX:CPV) has promoted interim CEO Douglas Hunt to official global CEO, positioning him to lead the company’s global commercialisation strategy. CPV also promoted Tao Zhang to chief operating officer, welcomed Lisa Dreher as global marketing director and tapped Christopher Cole as head of research and development.
At Stockhead, we tell it like it is. While QPM Energy, Magnetic Resources, Titanium Sands and ClearVue Technologies are Stockhead advertisers, they did not sponsor this article.
This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.