The ASX200 just nearly skimmed its intraday all time high peaking at around 8,566 points today, which then triggered a sell off – something I pondered aloud yesterday afternoon. The market closed not far off where it opened in the 8,530points range on Thursday. 

As for sectors, tech reared its volatile head as the top gainer throughout the day as health care and utilities led the laggards. 

Let’s turn to companies in the green. 

IperionX, a US-based Titanium specialist, jumped close to 30% and stood as the day’s top gainer as the company won a contract from the US defence department to research and supply titanium parts for defence applications with the company first turning attention to titanium screws. It effectively has $150M Australian to draw down from, thus the gains. 

Elsewhere Mineral Resources popped more than 10% on Thursday as the often volatile stock, a favourite with day traders, seemed to rebound on a whim driven by renewed sentiment for materials stocks broadly. MinRes is volatile at the best of times, to say the least, the company issued no news, and iron ore prices didn’t really shift either. 

Finally, Clarity Pharmaceuticals joined the top gainers as its latest cancer trial results were digested by the market, and there was no acid reflux to talk of. At least not yet.

As for companies in the red, 

IDP Education fell into the red for a second day this week as the market continues to digest a poor trading update it released earlier this week which severely tanked prices. While we saw some green on Wednesday, it looks like profit taker Thursday hit the company. 

In financials, Tyro Payments took a dip over 10% as its CEO and Managing Director shook investors by quitting out of the blue. Jon Davey is stepping down to move into private equity, that coupled with weak GDP this week is likely creating a cocktail of caution for investors. 

Finally, spare a thought for once gargantuan toy brand Toys R Us. The company’s shares were suspended today as the stock brought in administrators, which isn’t too surprising when one considers the macroeconomic juncture of commercial real estate, a cost of living crisis, and of course, the rise of online shopping. 

That’s Market Close for Thursday, I’m Jon Davidson, have a great night and we’ll see you tomorrow for HotCopper Highlights. 

Join the discussion: See what’s trending right now on HotCopper, Australia’s largest stock forum, and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

Listen to the HotCopper podcast for in-depth discussions and insights on all the biggest headlines from throughout the week. On Spotify, Apple, and more.

That seed funding program is called Small Business Innovation Research, or SBIR. IperionX has snagged a Phase III contract for “Low-Cost Domestic Titanium for Defence Applications.” Titanium is often used in aerospace applications (vehicles) as well as some weapons manufacturing.

In this instance, IperionX will first go ahead with manufacturing titanium fasteners – in other words, high-performance nuts and bolts. The name of the game? High strength, light weight.

While it’s not a US$99M contract in itself, the market didn’t care on Thursday.

The company can now request that much from the US DoD in moving forward with its research program under the Phase III deal. Whether it draws down the full US$99M remains to be seen – but in Australian dollars, that’s $152M.

(Investors will likely be keen to see what, if any, R&D tax rebates may apply.)

In the company’s own words: “The contract establishes a funding mechanism through which qualifying U.S. Government agencies can place project-specific task orders – collectively capped at US$99 million – for the supply of IperionX titanium components and parts.”

“[The contract] validates the performance of our technologies and underscores the Department of Defence’s commitment to reshore an all-American titanium supply chain,” IPX CEO Taso Arima said.

More market news

Forget U.S. tariff talk: Aussies just got a worrying signal from the ABS

Meet GeoGeorge: The HotCopper poster so accurate he got hired as an analyst

Mr Arima added: “We look forward to delivering mission-critical components that are lighter, stronger and more cost-effective.”

Another day, another defence stock benefitting from the global remilitarisation thematic.

IPX last traded at $4.68/sh.

Join the discussion: See what HotCopper users are saying about IperionX and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

Listen to the HotCopper podcast for in-depth discussions and insights on all the biggest headlines from throughout the week. On Spotify, Apple, and more.

Specifically chasing out esophageal adenocarcinoma, Proteomics reports its PromarkerEso blood test showed 98.9% specificity in a clinical validation study. The condition is typically caused by acid reflux.

The study from which these claims are borne recruited 259 participants and was published in the journal Proteomes.

Now, the company expects commercialisation in Australia “shortly.”

The name of the blood test harks back to ‘biomarkers,’ which are proteins or other naturally occurring compounds in the human body that express themselves in higher levels when a cancer is present.

One well-known and simple example is that in some types of blood cancers, early detection can be spotted when certain immune cells start to proliferate above baseline averages.

In other instances, it can be more difficult, tracking specific proteins that may only spike in certain cancers attached to certain organs.

In this case, Proteomics is now intending to deliver such a product for a specific type of targeted throat cancer (esophageal adenocarcinoma).

Esophageal cancers, broadly, Proteomics relayed on Thursday, rank seventh in cancer-related mortality globally. Survival rates are, perhaps unsurprisingly for where the cancer originates, low. Less than 20% across a five-year span, and one study cites a “median survival time less than one year.”

Herein is the value prop of Proteomics’ news on Thursday – early detection offers more time for other treatments to potentially mitigate severity. That, and the blood test is less invasive than any kind of physical inspection of the oesophagus.

More market news

Forget U.S. tariff talk: Aussies just got a worrying signal from the ABS

Meet GeoGeorge: The HotCopper poster so accurate he got hired as an analyst

“PromarkerEso has the potential to revolutionise how doctors manage the risk of esophageal cancer – offering a standard blood test that could reduce reliance on invasive procedures and improve early detection rates,” company chief Dr. Richard Lipscombe said.

PIQ last traded at 42cps.

Join the discussion: See what HotCopper users are saying about Proteomics International and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

We offer companies something NONE of our competitors can – direct access to the largest community of Australian investors, both sophisticated and retail. 

DealRoom is a game-changing development in Australia’s finance landscape. We’re here to disrupt the traditional methods through which Australian publicly-listed companies have raised capital in the past. 

We already have access to the largest Australian investor-base in the country. 

From today, sophisticated investors can simply sign up for DealRoom from the comfort of their own homes and participate in pre-IPO and capital raising opportunities. 

And early-stage interest has been incredibly strong.

In the works since late last year, HotCopper has been battling geopolitical macro in 1HFY25 to bring this service to market. 

Now, it’s finally here. For both interested investors, and, interested companies. 

There’s nothing else like it on the market right now.

With all necessary compliance checks well and truly executed, HotCopper stands at the fore of a brand new way of raising capital in Australia.

“This is a ground-breaking development for the Australian market,” HotCopper Head of Growth Tim Sylvester said.  

“This is about matching up the ASX-listed companies looking to raise capital, with investors looking to invest in opportunities.  

“We can very much facilitate the flow of capital in a much more efficient and cost-effective manner, for not only the companies, but also for the investors looking to access the deals as well.”

Join the discussion: See what’s trending right now on HotCopper, Australia’s largest stock forum, and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

It was another good day for the bourse down under as we came within 9 points of the Valentine’s Day all time high of 8,555 points – but whether or not profit takers move in tomorrow remains to be seen. Also helping is that Commonwealth broke $180 a share, bringing its market cap to $300 billion.

Looking at sectors, energy won the day up nearly 2% as crude oil prices lifted back to $65 American per barrel on concerns of Canadian wildfires hitting supply; telecomms led the laggards, along with consumer staples. A low GDP read of 0.2% for Oz likely hurt sentiment there. 

Smallcap West Africa based gold explorer WIA Gold shook off recent geopolitical concerns in the region, climbing over 6% intraday as gold prices continue to remain compelling. While thinly traded, investors in that company are looking at year to date returns up 75%. 

Elsewhere, another day, another defence stock benefitting from recent funding announcements. Electro Optic Systems popped up above $2 per share as investors look for companies likely to benefit at home and overseas from ramped up defence funding in the West.

And sticking to familiar thematics, SILEX Systems was among a basket of uranium stocks that jumped on Wednesday as nuclear stocks remain popular, especially after Facebook owner Meta announced it too wants to see nuclear ramped up in the States, though for its own benefit. 

Mayne Pharma group fell over -6% even after reassuring the market that a recent takeover offer falling through isn’t the final straw, and that its takeover partner might still buy the company. Clearly, many investors weren’t convinced. 

Elsewhere, Strike Energy sunk after it announced a new leadership team. The company has been somewhat adrift since former chief Stuart Nicholls left on not-great terms; and despite a good handful of HotCopper users being bullish on the appointment, the stock ended the day in the red.

Finally, Brickworks sold off to make the days biggest fallers even after Wednesday’s ripper deal with Soul Pattison to form a $14B construction and real estate company, but that’s perhaps to be expected when you make money for nothing. Profit taking is, after all, the entire point.

That’s Market Close for Wednesday, I’m Jon Davidson, have a great night and we’ll see you on Thursday. 

Join the discussion: See what’s trending right now on HotCopper, Australia’s largest stock forum, and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

Listen to the HotCopper podcast for in-depth discussions and insights on all the biggest headlines from throughout the week. On Spotify, Apple, and more.

This finance journalist still remembers the day he figured that out, and if its liquidity at the time was anything to go by, he wasn’t alone.

But in 2019 at least, Yowie was the talk of the town (for some), seeing as controversial figure Nick Bolton’s Keybridge Capital made a move on Yowie. That was six years ago, and the world has changed a lot since then.

HotCopper readers in 2025 would also be relatively further forgiven, seeing as shares have been suspended for some time now.

That suspension could be in part informed by an ongoing dispute among the major shareholders of YOW, which includes Wilson Asset Management (WAM) and another entity called HHY Fund, which controls 10.06% of Yowie’s ordinary shares.

But it’s Keybridge Capital Limited (ASX:KBC) that has gone to the Takeovers Panel to complain about HHY’s conduct as a Yowie shareholder.

In an application released Wednesday, Keybridge has alleged to the Takeovers Panel that “without notice of a capital raising and prior to it receiving access to the HHY members’ register, [HHY] issued 42% new HHY units, including to Yowie directors and their associated entities, significantly diluting … voting power.”

It may be amusing to some to see Bolton’s Keybridge itself complaining of corporate shenanigans, given that’s what Bolton was once hated for (by some) in Australia’s finance ecosystem.

Keybridge further complained to Takeovers that the dilution of HHY unitholders – “for the improper purpose of preventing a change of responsible entity” – reduced Keybridge’s voting power ahead of a key meeting.

More market news

Forget U.S. tariff talk: Aussies just got a worrying signal from the ABS

Meet GeoGeorge: The HotCopper poster so accurate he got hired as an analyst

It’s all quite technical, and admittedly dry: The big story is that Yowie Group now appears it may be investigated by the Takeovers Panel, suggesting shares will stay in suspension for a good while yet.

That is, of course, if you don’t consider the fact that Yowie is on the ASX at all to be the bigger story.

YOW last traded at 1.4cps; shares are suspended.

Join the discussion: See what HotCopper users are saying about Yowie Group and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

Listen to the HotCopper podcast for in-depth discussions and insights on all the biggest headlines from throughout the week. On Spotify, Apple, and more.

Once short sellers moved in, however, the stock sharply sold off – this occurred rapidly after the stock hit $2.60 – pretty much exactly reflecting a $2B market cap. Perhaps short sellers hadn’t needed to make a move on the stock, seeing as this seemed a fairly obvious psychological level from which to sell the stock.

Its decline may also have been driven by broad investor fatigue towards the Russia-Ukraine war, which was the real catalyst that drove interest in Droneshield originally.

Not helping matters for the stock is that it trickled through a number of deals sub-US$10 million, and never declared another shipment of tech to Ukraine, the contract that put the stock on the map.

But that was then, and this is now.

In a world where the U.S. government has begun demanding Western allies boost defence spending; and in an Australia where we’ve done just that, Droneshield has been quietly climbing back to its former volatility over the last few months.

(It probably also helps that Ukraine’s latest surprise drone attacks on Russian airbases have led to some excitement around the C-UAS proposition.)

As of midday Wednesday, the stock notched $1.51/ea, bringing its market cap to $1.3 billion. That’s still well above where Droneshield’s fundamental revenues sit, but it appears that right now, the market doesn’t really care.

Liquidity is back for the counter-drone (“C-UAS”) technology provider, with 17M shares trading hands on Tuesday for $26.6M worth of trades, compared to a four-week average of 8.5M shares trading hands per day.

More market news

Forget U.S. tariff talk: Aussies just got a worrying signal from the ABS

Meet GeoGeorge: The HotCopper poster so accurate he got hired as an analyst

The question now is how long the stock can last in this renewed thematic environment – again, Droneshield’s fundamentals haven’t drastically changed – but it’s been on a good run since shares first climbed back to $1.00/sh in mid-April.

Maybe the better question to ask is: what might the next sell level be for traders?

DRO last traded at $1.50/eah.

Join the discussion: See what HotCopper users are saying about DroneShield and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

The ASX200 had a fairly choppy day, with the index rocketing up out the gate, paring gains, then climbing again into close. Profit takers, global uncertainty, and the fact we’re heading back to 8,500 points on the XJO are all factors.

Looking at sectors, financials ended up top –  despite an overnight jump for gold prices, materials didn’t jump too much as iron ore price stay low. Health Care and Discretionary competed with one another for the biggest laggards of the day.

Let’s take a look at stocks in the green. 

Thinly traded nanocap Sunshine Metals saw a fat boost to liquidity on Tuesday as it reported hitting fairly high grades close to surface, including a 6 grams per tonne hit from surface. The company will fast track mining studies, but with 2 billion shares on issue, investors mightn’t be truly enticed yet. 

Elsewhere, Droneshield popped today climbing well over $1.35 a share as the company enjoys a renewed enthusiasm among ASX investors of late. Why exactly the counter drone defence stock is getting juiced isn’t entirely clear, but, Tuesday’s jump comes after pressure from the US for Albo to boost defence spending. 

Finally, ASX bank stock Judo Capital shook off some recent downside as it jumped on an investor day presentation. The bank says it’s done scaling itself larger, and will now work on optimising itself. With year to date returns down nearly -20% in the final hour, that remains to be seen. Still, brokers appear mostly happy to rate the stock a buy.

So now let’s turn to the reds. 

Already heavily shorted foreign student player IDP Education tanked as it pointed to persistent headwinds at home and in Canada, and fresh concerns regarding foreign student intake in the UK economy. The stock sunk, once again, likely to the delight of short sellers but not so much shareholders. 

Elsewhere, Treasury Wine Estates took a dip on Tuesday as it watered down FY25 guidance by around $10M, pointing to weak demand and issues with distributing its products in the US state of California. US consumers without much money for wine are also suffering; product sales under US$15 a bottle have been suffering. Still, the stock managed to eke out a green close. 

Finally, a reminder to beware the ruthlessness of profit takers. Dateline Resources, made hot by recent direct mentions from Trump himself, sunk -20% as the stock sold off on Tuesday following a rapid climb to 15 cents per share on Monday. At least a few investors on Tuesday are looking forward to salmon dinner. 

That’s Market Close for Tuesday, I’m Jon Davidson, have a great night and we’ll see you tomorrow. 

Join the discussion: See what’s trending right now on HotCopper, Australia’s largest stock forum, and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

Listen to the HotCopper podcast for in-depth discussions and insights on all the biggest headlines from throughout the week. On Spotify, Apple, and more.

Using Cboe live pricing data at 2pm AEST, shares had surged 15.8% – to 1.1cps. Beware the ides of the nanocap; Sunshine has two billion stocks on issue.

Still, it’s clear Sunshine has engendered a fresh wave of interest. Across the last four weeks, on average, Sunshine traded 5.5M shares each day.

On Tuesday, heading into afternoon trades, over 35.8M shares in Sunshine Metals had swapped hands. That’s how you get a 33% rise, even if only to 1.2cps. (Thank the amount of shares on issue for that one.)

While the company headlined its Tuesday news with the fact it hit 10m of gold at 31.9g/t gold from 41m depth at its Liontown prospect, part of Ravenswood, this finance journo can’t help but feel another result is probably of more immediate interest.

That was a 9m intersection hitting 6.3g/t gold from surface at Liontown – offering the tantalising prospect that relatively high-grade gold could be sitting there just waiting for auger drills.

Far more data is needed to confirm that theory, but this journo has seen enough to know the shallower the grade, the better.

(Then again, 40m is relatively shallow too, all things considered.)

To date, today’s data reflects roughly half of the assays pending – another 13 are still waiting to come back to the company.

Probably most noteworthy is that the company’s chief, Dr. Damien Keys, added an exclamation mark to his disclosure commentary.

“The stunning intersection of gold in the shallows of the Liontown Resource is a “Back to the Future” moment,” Keys wrote.

(Let’s be fair: It’s a pretty good movie.)

“Liontown began as a gold mine in 1905 with an estimated 28koz of gold mined at a grade of 22g/t. It is certainly reassuring that the first miners did not take all of the high-grade gold mineralisation!”

More market news

Forget U.S. tariff talk: Aussies just got a worrying signal from the ABS

Meet GeoGeorge: The HotCopper poster so accurate he got hired as an analyst

Whether enthusiasm persists likely depends on the look and feel of future gold grade readouts – also on investors’ radars will be updated JORC resource(s), metallurgical testwork results, and a plan to fast-track further mining studies.

Still: The stock might need either more liquidity or a consolidation to truly entice the masses.

SHN last traded at 1.1cps in early afternoon trade.

Join the discussion: See what HotCopper users are saying about Sunshine Metals and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

Listen to the HotCopper podcast for in-depth discussions and insights on all the biggest headlines from throughout the week. On Spotify, Apple, and more.

At around midday trade on Tuesday, stocks were down -40.96% to $4.41/sh. That brings 1Y returns further down to -72%.

The culprit today for IDP is a further set of macro headwinds ultimately hurting foreign student numbers both at home and, following the release of a fresh white paper, now the UK poses concerns for IDP’s fundamental business model, too.

(Enrolling foreign students is, in a sentence, IDP’s bread and butter.)

“In FY25, IDP’s Student Placement volumes are now expected to decrease by… 28% to 30%, and IDP’s Language Testing volumes are now expected to decrease by 18% to 20% compared to FY24,” the company wrote.

“The impact on revenue will be partially mitigated by continued strong average fee growth.”

Clearly, not mitigated enough. Overall, EBIT is now forecast to hit $115 million to $125 million. The fact that shares sold off -40% gives you an idea of how the market felt about that one.

I say shorters are probably in a better mood, because at the time of writing, short sale data on IDP shows it’s the sixth most shorted stock on the ASX. (About a year ago, at one point, this finance journalist recalls the stock was briefly #1 most shorted.)

For now, the company’s market cap remains around A$1.2B. So, there’s that. But in between the lines, IDP clearly doesn’t see any light on the horizon.

“With policy uncertainty expected to continue into FY26 as well as the anticipated impact of FY25 enrolment pipeline on FY26 volumes, the business is completing a detailed review of longer-term cost, productivity, investment and commercial levers.”

IEL last traded at $4.41/sh.

Join the discussion: See what HotCopper users are saying about IDP Education and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

Listen to the HotCopper podcast for in-depth discussions and insights on all the biggest headlines from throughout the week. On Spotify, Apple, and more.

The stock was briefly in the green – +0.11% – according to live pricing around midday. But that optimism hasn’t held.

Despite Chinese trade relationships fairing better in recent history than they did after Scott Morrison claimed COVID-19 was designed in a Wuhanese lab, there’s still one big comeback narrative to be unlocked for TWE.

Today’s (relatively slight) FY24 EBIT downgrade from $780 million to $770 million hasn’t necessarily helped. But it looks like pain was already priced in.

Just consider TWE’s 1Y returns are down -30%. Or, for an even quicker understanding, just look at the company’s 1Y stock price chart.

So what was driving TWE’s downgrade announcement on Tuesday? Basically, less demand in the U.S. – especially, it seems, from bargain-hunter consumers.

“TWE now expects F25 EBITS to be approximately $770m, with the variance to the previously provided outlook of ‘approximately $780m’ driven by lower than expected Premium portfolio shipments in the US,” TWE wrote on Tuesday.

“Economic uncertainty and weaker consumer demand has recently impacted wine category performance at price points below US$15.”

Also of concern to the company is that its U.S. operations in California are set to be hit as distributor Republic National Distributing Company (RNDC) is winding up its Cali operations.

The company’s shareholders might want to start paying attention to RNDC’s books: “TWE’s relationship with RNDC spans 25 U.S. states, including California,” the company wrote.

More market news

Forget U.S. tariff talk: Aussies just got a worrying signal from the ABS

Meet GeoGeorge: The HotCopper poster so accurate he got hired as an analyst

“The closure of RNDC’s California operations is not expected to impact the remainder of its business.” Surely, TWE shareholders will be hoping so.

But lingering behind all of this is, perhaps, a more worrying factoid – though not one that hasn’t already been more or less the case since April.

If you look at TWE’s 20Y chart, the stock is currently at a decade low.

TWE last traded at $8.04/sh.

Join the discussion: See what HotCopper users are saying about Treasury Wine Estates and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

The ASX200 ended down a quarter of a percent as the Australian market digested Wall Street’s Friday finish, informed by renewed trade uncertainty. 

Looking at sectors, telecomms were the winner of the day up point four percent; energy was the day’s biggest laggard down -1.4%. 

But some companies did have a green day. 

The big ticket item was Washington H Soul Pattison’s merger with Brickworks to create a $14B dollar company catering to real estate and construction. Soul Pattison is one of the oldest companies on the ASX, operating since 1903, and the move was particularly good news for Brickworks holders. The deal is valued at the same as James Hardie’s takeover of USA-based AZEK, however, the market was far more in favor of this deal than the latter. 

Elsewhere, Dateline Resources had another day of massive gains, up 50%, as the company believes it has found strong evidence pointing to rare earth mineralisation on-site its Collosseum project in the USA. The market liked that news because Donald Trump himself namedropped the company’s project on Truth Social in relatively recent history. 

Finally, talking of Trump, Bluescope Steel was a winner as the American President threatened to double existing tariffs on steel and aluminum from 25% to 50%, which is good news in the eyes of Bluescope investors, because a lot of its sales are in the US – meaning it will probably be charging higher prices. 

And so let’s look at the reds, 

Mineral Resources fell -10% below $20 a share as the company was hit by lower iron ore prices, the steelmaking feedstock hit US$95 per tonne on Monday as renewed fears around a Chinese-US trade war put downside pressure on hopes for Chinese steel demand to return to something approximating pre-COVID levels. 

Elsewhere, Alcoa proved to be the opposite of Bluescope when it came to Trump’s latest steel and aluminum tariff threats, the company sunk nearly -4.5% after investors interpreted higher aluminum tariffs in the US as bad news for the company. 

Finally, Commonwealth Bank ended the day flattish red down just 2 pips, outperforming peers NAB and Westpac as the big banks all took a red dip following the Friday Wall Street session. BHP also fell on Monday. 

That’s HotCopper’s Market Close for Monday June 2nd, I’m Jon Davidson, have a great night and we’ll see you on Tuesday. 

Market watchers are ever-present in the small-end of the ASX – typically microcap explorers, predominantly WA based (but not always as we’ll soon find out) – and it’s not rare for certain stocks to come out of nowhere.

There’s at least two good examples to consider on the ASX on Monday.

Datline Resources (ASX:DTR) is something I’ve covered for HotCopper before, most recently last week, when it came in as one of the most-discussed stocks on the boards.

And on Monday, it’s surged back to the top of the hottest attention-grabbers list with its latest news surrounding its US-based REE project called Colosseum.

Just take a look at the company’s share price chart on Monday, heading into the final hour of trades:

So what’s going on? Dateline has recently come onto the scene after Donald Trump directly referenced the company’s flagship REE project in a Truth Social post.

Trump, a pro-mining, pro-business, anti-red-tape force in his own right, is seen as fostering the right conditions for the project to take off.

Helping matters dramatically on Monday, the company reported possible evidence of significant underground mineralisation associated with key REEs and critical minerals that America wants for defence manufacturing.

MTM Critical Metals (ASX:MTM) has been on a tear in recent history ever since it brought one interesting claim to market: it can recover gold from e-waste at grades of over 550 grams per tonne (g/t).

(I covered that with my colleague Isaac McIntyre for the HotCopper Wire podcast back in Week 9 of 2025.)

While the company also claims its Flash Joule Heating technology – a way to recycle e-waste that is more eco-friendly than existing methods – can help meet ESG targets, investors have been far more interested in the gold recovery proposition.

Just take a look at its chart across the last year (and consider also the strength of gold through 2024 into 2025.)

Back on May 23, the company confirmed it was ready to start commercially rolling-out a “production-scale FJH unit,” which appears to have turned some investors bullish on the prospects of what could lie ahead.

Join the discussion: See what’s trending right now on HotCopper, Australia’s largest stock forum, and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

Disclaimer: HotCopper did not have a commercial relationship with either Dateline nor MTM Critical Metals at the time this article was crafted and published.

The Nordic country’s coalition government is currently heading towards a referral process to vote on overturning the ban, wherein it appears enthusiasm to overturn an existing uranium ban has defined some lawmakers’ worldview.

This follows a 2024 government-led inquiry which ultimately recommended the government start re-allowing Swedish uranium miners to extract the country’s natural resources.

(According to David Dalton, a writer for nuclear trade publication Nucnet, the inquiry has pointed towards Jan 1 2026 as a milestone for the ban to be overturned in legislation.)

The kicker here is that the ban doesn’t harmonise with Sweden’s energy security goals, given that it imports the uranium it uses to fuel its nuclear power plants.

The issue with that is Sweden’s energy generation mix is entirely one third nuclear and in a world where Russia has invaded Ukraine, European energy supply chains have all been re-drawn. Now it’s time for Sweden to do the same.

And that would bode well for Aura: it oversees its Hagan project in the country which it calls the fourth largest uranium project globally. (The company attaches a foot-note to that claim.)

Underpinning the company’s confidence is that it reports recent discussions with lawmakers in Stockholm ahead of what is expected to be a vote later this year, the conclusion of the inquiry process.

“The Swedish Government’s step towards lifting the uranium mining ban mark a transformational moment for the country’s energy future,” company chief Phil Mitchell said.

Aura plans to keep engaging with Sweden’s government throughout 2025, including a planned investor symposium event. The company will team up with Aussie-based privately-held Neu Horizon Uranium. which also has interests in Sweden, in collaborating on the country’s nuclear industry broadly.

AEE last traded at 13cps.

Join the discussion: See what HotCopper users are saying about AEE and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

That relates to its flagship ‘Conneqt Pulse’ device, which is ultimately a smartphone-compatible cardiovascular health biometrics tracking product.

“The Pulse is a world-first clinical-grade vascular biometric monitoring device designed for use in both clinical and remote patient monitoring or at-home … it enables the capture of a broad range of arterial health biomarkers, including central blood pressure and arterial stiffness,” Cardiex wrote on Monday.

Last month, Cardiex got a key app onto the Apple app store, which was met with little fanfare from investors. But two major approvals later – one from the TGA, and more importantly, an earlier approval from the USA’s FDA – and the company’s share price is looking somewhat healthier.

(Worth noting is that there’s far less hurdles to tackle getting the TGA to approve a health device as opposed to a new drug.)

Still, that Australian landscape isn’t necessarily Cardiex’s foremost market of interest.

“While the U.S. remains our primary focus at this stage, we’re excited to begin laying the foundation for growth in Australia,” CDX chief Craig Cooper said.

“TGA approval of the Pulse is another milestone for Cardiex as we expand our regulatory and commercial opportunities.”

The question, of course, is whether Conneqt Pulse can stand out in a well-established market of biometrics devices.

CDX last traded at 4.7cps.

Join the discussion: See what HotCopper users are saying about CDX and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

But that’s about as much as we need to, because it’s relevant to what we learned from the ABS this week.

Here’s the important bit: private business investment into machinery in Australia (non-mining) has fallen to yearly lows, down -1.3% in the March quarter, a drop we haven’t seen since the first year of COVID.

Some analysts have called current Australian business conditions for the March quarter as “recessionary.” So, there’s that.

The culprit is, indeed, global macro uncertainty borne from…well, you can guess what. Starts with “T”, rhymes with “Rump.”

Not helping matters at all, then, is we got some more gloom this week: US QoQ GDP actually came in negative at -0.2%. Another quarter of that, and the US will be in a technical recession. Finally, some good news!

(Just for absolute clarity, I am being sarcastic.)

What does the future of Australia look like for CY2025, let alone FY26? That depends on what happens in the coming weeks and months. Don’t forget Trump’s “reciprocal tariffs” are set to be un-paused in July when that 90-day period winds up.

Still, further evidence that world economies just can’t catch a break in the 2020’s. But while many economies may be floundering (while India expects GDP growth over 6% this year,) stock markets remain robust.

Helping the USA’s was NVDIA earnings this week. The company says AI demand is still going strong, it’s still very bullish on AI – so is the computer company Dell, a surprise winner in this week’s US earnings reports.

However, market reaction wasn’t as strong as last year’s NVIDIA results which one SAXO Markets analyst described as “insane.” When it comes to the AI narrative around NVIDIA in 2025, it looks like the market has been given a nice tranquilliser.

Costco came out too as a surprise winner – though, a lot of that is because Americans are bulk buying while they can, ahead of an apparent trade war and probably motivated by memories of bulk buying for COVID lockdowns.

Good news, at any rate, for CostCo.

Macquarie Bank believes that copper’s bull run (as a commodity) could be about to commence, given large production issues on the international stage.

Earlier this month, Ivanhoe Mines’ Kamoa-Kakula copper mine as effectively shut down due to flooding, and now Macquarie analysts see possible continued upside for the orange metal – tariffs be damned.

There was Oz inflation, too, with TMI (core) jumping +0.1% and actually beating estimates somewhat – but not by much. And seeing as the RBA see Australian inflation climbing back up later this year, well, it’s not like nobody’s been warned.

Uranium also climbed over +5% in May – we’ll see how long that lasts.

In the background, gold is more or less trading sideways (if you average it) and Bitcoin, the new digital safe haven (with an investor base more wiling to tolerate Trump) is currently outperforming.

One last note on the USA: Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell was summoned to the White House for a meeting with an agenda that is probably obvious. Following that, the central bank released a rare statement outlining its independence.

Until next week.

Australian Equities 

Woodside popped nearly +9% in May as projects come online; oil swings; earnings impress

Predictive Discovery and Resolute Mining caught up in latest permit cancellations in Africa

Woodside chasing minnow Far Ltd for $10M; FAR Ltd tells Woodside to get stuffed

International Equities 

NVIDIA earnings continue to point to increasing demand for AI, market hyped but not like 2024

In a similar fashion, once again, AI news also helps lift Dell in minds of investors

Costco beats estimates as consumers bulk buy in the midst of Trump’s tariff tirades

Australian Economy 

Oz Inflation comes in slightly higher than expected in line with RBA forecasts but not analysts

Non-mining private business investment Oz-wide falls -0.9% in March quarter

Retail sales come in flat down -0.1% for April as consumers keep behaviour unchanged

International Economies 

US QoQ GDP Growth comes in at -0.2% using 2nd estimates 

Japan’s national debt now twice the size of its GDP 

India expecting to hit a GDP growth rate of up to +6.8% for FY26 as world toils

Commodities 

Uranium up +5.4% in May as Trump helps to boost nuclear narratives

Gold rides waves of volatility but ultimately traded sideways through May 

But Bitcoin outperforms, acting like a Trump-motivated safe haven

Geopolitics, Regulatory, Odds & Ends 

Trump meets with Jerome Powell in direct push to sway Fed into cutting rates 

Days after calling Trump great, NVIDIA’s Huang makes rare criticism of Trump-China chip ban

More strife in Libya as Eastern Government says oilfields could see insurance write-off

Join the discussion: See what’s trending right now on HotCopper, Australia’s largest stock forum, and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

Starting with the most viewed, 

ASX explorer Predictive Discovery, based in the West African nation of Guinea, tanked this week as it lost two key exploration licences as that country’s junta government revoked 130 exploration permits – something not exactly unheard of for the region. Spare a thought for Resolute Mining who last year had to pay Mali’s junta government to get its CEO back – that company was also hit, again, as it too has assets in Guinea. 

Elsewhere, energy explorer minnow FAR Limited clashed with Woodside this week as the supermajor asks the far smaller player for a neat $10M, given that it can’t recover costs from the government of Senegal. For context, FAR Limited actually sold Woodside its Sangomar project acreage, but under the contract, Far was on the hook – for some reason – if the Senegal government didn’t play ball. 

Finally, Jade Gas Holdings had a milestone to announce: it says it’s the first Australian company to produce a commercially productive gas fracking well in the Mongolian Gobi Desert. While a handful of small players were active in the Mongolian desert through the early 2020’s, Jade Gas is the last standing.

And as for the most discussed, 

Strickland Metals generated chatter midweek as it uncovered deep-lying gold hits below 300m depth. With one result coming in at 10 grams of gold per tonne, investors seemingly shook off concerns around how the company will get down to the gold, even as the commodity traded more or less sideways through May looking back on the month that was.

Elsewhere, Origin Energy holders discussed what its -5% drop on Monday means moving forward, seeing as Origin’s energy business in the UK saw revenues slammed given the third hottest April on record in that jurisdiction. Basically, less demand for home heating means less money for Origin’s UK power retail business. 

Finally, Dateline Resources remains highly popular among HotCopper users, given that it’s only been a few weeks since Donald Trump directly referenced the company’s US rare earths project on Truth Social. That’s a kind of celebrity endorsement sure to enthuse. 

That’s HotCopper Highlights for this week, I’m Jon Davidson, have a great weekend and we’ll see you on Monday.

The site of a former silver mine in WA’s relatively recent past (as far as 200 years of gold mining goes,) the company is lured to the area in part by high grades previously found in surface materials nearly 1,000g/t of silver.

(That was the determination of a portable xray scan analysis; fully blown lab assays will be needed to determine underground grades but on-site scanning will continue through the drill run launched today.)

Diamond tipped drill rigs capable of plugging great depths are on-site Elizabeth Hill to collect 1,500m of core in this first iteration.

What is most noteworthy, perhaps, is that the company has previously told HotCopper former miners at Elizabeth Hill back in the mid-20th never went below 100m depth.

That in itself is a tantalising prospect for geotechs; so too are underexplored areas around the current drill locations already known to the team and sparking interest.

The ultimate goal of drilling will be to test how far known mineralised zones extend for more than it will be to go hunting for known unknowns, but the company will use what data it gets from this first run to inform future drill runs.

“We’re extremely excited to have drilling now underway at Elizabeth Hill. It’s a significant milestone for West Coast Silver as we test the additional potential of this historic, high-grade silver project with modern techniques for the first time,” WCE chief Bruce Garlick said.

“We’ll soon be assessing fresh drill core – and that’s when the real geological work begins. Our team is ready to interpret and adapt in real-time, and we’re looking forward to sharing updates with shareholders as results come to hand.”

WCE last traded at 6cps.

Join the discussion: See what HotCopper users are saying about WCE and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

Disclaimer: HotCopper had a commercial relationship with West Coast Silver when this article was published.

Listen to the HotCopper podcast for in-depth discussions and insights on all the biggest headlines from throughout the week. On Spotify, Apple, and more.

The company’s ACTION 3 trial stands for: “Angiotensin II Type 1 Receptor (AT1R) & Chemokine Receptor 2 (CCR2) Targets for Inflammatory Nephrosis.”

It’s a Phase 3 trial looking at patients taking an angiotensin II receptor blocker and who present with a kidney disease called FSGS. Anybody who satisfies all of those requirements will be taking DXB’s “DMX200,” the flagship drug of interest being developed by Dimerix.

Phase 3 trials are the big kahunas when it comes to most countries’ health regulatory bureaucracies; indeed, the company is hoping the data it gets from ACTION3 ultimately locks in its path to a world where it can sell DMX200.

As part of its trial, Dimerix will also receive $4.3M from a partner on milestone grounds.

More market news

Trims: An RBA cut was locked. Beijing’s identical chop spotlights larger macro forces

Meet GeoGeorge: The HotCopper poster so accurate he got hired as an analyst

“Opening the first clinical site in Japan is another major step forward for our global ACTION3 clinical program, as we aim to bring much-needed and new treatments to patients with FSGS around the world,” DXB CEO Dr. Nina Webster said.

“This milestone reflects the strength of our data to date, the rigour of our clinical trial design, and the expertise from our local partner in Japan, FUSO.”

DXB last traded at 58cps.

Join the discussion: See what HotCopper users are saying about Dimerix and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.

Listen to the HotCopper podcast for in-depth discussions and insights on all the biggest headlines from throughout the week. On Spotify, Apple, and more.

A key U.S. federal court has recently ruled the Trump admin’s wide-sweeping tariffs were invalid, given the President’s myriad actions weren’t protected by emergency power laws enacted by Trump.

Laws that he believed – or perhaps not – did allow him to do such a thing.

But here, the situation is interesting because Trump doesn’t really have any actual economic or social policies apart from (seemingly unending) tariffs.

So really, his whole entire political deal has just been knocked off its feet. For now.

Sure, he’s against anything “woke,” but that seems to reflect a global fascination with the kinds of issues once reserved for first-year university students, and doesn’t really possess anything necessarily Trumpian in itself. Conservative backlashes are, once you look back, older than the steam engine.

What is almost definite: Right now, there are lawyers in some suite somewhere in the White House, or perhaps somewhere offside a golf course, burning the midnight oil as I write this.

As of Thursday afternoon, when it comes to a response from the White House, it’s eerily quiet.

The big question is: Will the American President abide by this ruling?

That’s unfortunately a decent question, given he’s already shown a flagrant enthusiasm for ignoring court requests to return deported immigrants, which unfortunately, seems to be getting swept under the rug by constant economic news.

(Maybe that’s the point.)

News of the court’s decision swept across the globe on Thursday, Australian time, and that’s not surprising, given that there is a poetic element to Trump being stopped by his own country.

NASDAQ futures were up +2% at 3pm on Thursday; the S&P500 is set to pop +1.5%.

Maybe most telling is CME Group’s futures product for the Russell 2000 smallcap index shows it’s set to jump +2.6% – a sign, perhaps, that smaller investors are bullish; not just algos and bankers.

It doesn’t take a psychologist to realise Trump, the human being, isn’t going to be enjoying this hit the news. It also doesn’t take a savant to realise any kind of flagrant subversion of the US legal system will probably send futures back in the other direction.

It’s also unfortunate timing for Donny, as a trade court effectively ruled his April 2 tariff regime illegal, within the same week a new acronym has started doing the rounds – ‘Trump Always Chickens Out,’ or TACO. One brave journalist asked him about that new nickname, and copped a spray for it.

HotCopper editor Isaac McIntyre and I discussed TACO and Trump’s latest stumblings in this week’s HotCopper Wire podcast. As of 3.30pm AEST, Trump hadn’t come out swinging on Truth Social, or Twitter.

There, his last post was resharing the thoughts of an analyst who really wants the Fed to cut rates. Make of that what you will.

Join the discussion: See what’s trending right now on HotCopper, Australia’s largest stock forum, and be part of the conversations that move the markets.

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Viewers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. For full disclaimer information, please click here.