Those futures were informed by a US inflation read of 3% lower than the expected 3.1%.

Core inflation in the US stands at 3.3%. 

All sectors but one are up today; IT is the only sector to fall into the red, by nearly 1%.

Real Estate is leading – up 2.4%, with Discretionary following closely behind, up 1.6%.

Mining giant BHP (ASX: BHP) is trading down about half a per cent after announcing its suspending operations at its Western Australia nickel mine in October, due to the lower prices of the commodity. 

This decision is expected to result in an underlying earnings loss of $443.5 million, along with an impairment charge as high as A$5.62 billion.

BHP’s stock has been trading around $43.34.

SKS Technologies Group (ASX: SKS) has been up as much as 21% after securing a $90 million data centre project with Built.

The work is part of an expansion to an international hyperscale data centre in Melbourne’s western region, to be completed by August next year.

It brings the company’s work at hand to $178 million.

SKS has been trading around $1.36.

And, Kingsgate Consolidated (ASX: KCN) has gained 2.85% announced that its Thailand local partner Akara Resources has reported more gold intersections near the Chatree Gold Mine. 

The best result from 34 reverse circulation (RC) drill holes was two metres at just over 2 grams per tonne of gold from 36 metres.

KCN has been trading at $1.64.

The telecommunications sector has been the top performer for two consecutive days, up one and a quarter per cent. Utilities and Materials saw the largest declines, both dropping by 1.3%. Energy also fell by three quarters of a per cent.

Catalyst Metal (ASX:CYL) surged by 23% following its announcement of achieving annual production of 110 thousand ounces of gold at the Plutonic mine in Western Australia.

In FY2024, the mine produced 85 thousand ounces, compared to 60koz in FY2023, representing a 41% increase.

At the end of the year, the company reported $37 million in cash and bullion on hand, with $45 million in available liquidity.

CYL closed the day at $1.41.

Infini Resources (ASX:I88) gained 49% following the release of soil assay results from its inaugural field sampling campaign at the Portland Creek Uranium Project in Newfoundland, Canada.

Re-assaying of 17 soil samples revealed promising surface geochemistry, with soil grades of up to 7.5% uranium.

I88 closed the day at 73 cents.

Legacy Minerals Holdings (ASX:LGM) is up 13.2% after intersecting multiple new epithermal veins at the Bauloora Project in New South Wales.

The potential of these targets is supported by gold and silver in surface rock chips and soil samples.

Drill assays are expected by September 2024.

LGM closed the day at 30 cents.

Burgundy Diamond Mines (ASX:BDM) fell as much as 5% despite commencing mine life extension drilling at its Misery underground mine. 

Historically the mine has produced 1.1 million tonnes of ore annually, valued at US$235 million. A 30,000-tonne bulk sample will be collected in Q4 for grade and pricing assessment. 

Results from the Main ore body drilling are expected later this year. 

BDM closed the day at 19.5 cents.

Summit Minerals (ASX:SUM) saw a 6.8% decline following the completion of a highly subscribed equity placement of $2.5 million at an offer price of $0.25 per share.

The funds raised will be used to accelerate exploration and drilling programs at the company’s Tantalum Equador project in Brazil.

Despite the placement, the market did not react positively to the news.

SUM closed the day at 27.5 cents.

Kali Metals (ASX:KM1) reported assay results from its Phase 1 RC drill program at the Spargoville Project, confirming the presence of Spodumene in several shallow dipping pegmatite dykes.

The company plans to commence its Phase 2 RC drill program in Q3 CY24.

Despite this update, the market responded negatively, causing the stock to fall by 2%.

KM1 closed the day at 23.5 cents.

Across all sectors, there was a positive finish. Telecommunications led throughout the day, gaining 1.5%, while Financials followed closely with a 1.2% increase.

Telstra (ASX:TLS) closed the day up 2.2%, following its announcement of a nationwide rise in its mobile phone plan costs by $2-$4, set to take effect later this year.

This contradicts earlier claims made in May that prices would remain unchanged through July.

Over the past five years, Telstra’s mobile network has expanded significantly, more than tripling in size, with an annual growth rate of 20%.

TLS closed the day at $3.73.

Solis Minerals (ASX:SLM) surged 28% following on exploration update at the Cinto Project in Peru.

The company completed its initial geochemical program and secured an access agreement with the local community to accelerate drilling efforts.

Surface grab samples assays showed copper concentrations as high as 7.14%.

SLM closed the day at 11 cents.

Micro-cap Killi Resources (ASX:KLI) gained 83.7% on assays from surface rock chip sampling which returned high-grade gold and copper results at its Mt Rawdon West Project.

Results extend the current mineralisation over 1.8km. Exploration field programs continue with surface mapping and an IP survey currently underway, with a maiden drill program to follow.

KLI closed the day at 7.9 cents.

Health care company, Mesoblast (ASX:MSB) is down 2.2%, on news it has to resubmit an application to the FDA.

Mesoblast was told by the US regulator in March that the Phase 3 trial data for its drug Ryoncil was insufficient to grant an approval.

Mesoblast has resubmitted a biologic license application (BLA) in response.

MSB closed the day at $1.10.

Sunrise Energy Metals (ASX:SRL) dipped by half a percent on the appointment of GR Engineering Services to update the 2016 Feasibility Study for its Syerston Scandium Project in New South Wales.

The study aims to revise capital and operating cost estimates.

SRL closed the day at 49 cents.

In more sombre news, Australian consumer sentiment has remained rangebound in pessimistic territory falling 1.1% to 82.7 points in the latest Westpac index. 

The decline in already depressed conditions comes following last month’s surprise Australian 4% inflation read from the ABS. 

Telstra (ASX:TLS) has announced a nationwide increase in the cost of its mobile phone plans by $2-$4, effective later this year. 

Over the past five years leading up to the end of FY2024, network traffic on Telstra’s mobile network has more than tripled, with a continuing annual growth rate of 20 percent.

The company also claimed in May it wouldn’t be raising prices in July. 

TLS shares are up around 2.3% on the news, trading at $3.74.

Strike Energy (ASX:STX) has secured approval from the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) to proceed with the development of its West Erregulla asset in the onshore Perth Basin. 

The approval was granted through a Ministerial Statement following a three-year period of environmental studies.

The approval relates to the Joint Venture, under which Strike Energy operates the asset in a 50/50 partnership with Warrego Energy.

STX has been trading at 22.3 cents.

Health care company, Mesoblast (ASX:MSB) is down around four and a half per cent, as the company announced it has to resubmit an application to the FDA.

Mesoblast was told by the US regulator in March that the Phase 3 trial data for its drug Ryoncil was insufficient to grant an approval.

Ryoncil is a stem cell-based medical product designed for IV injection and the company has now re-sent off a biologic licence application (BLA).

MSB has been trading at $1.07.

Finally, Spartan Resources (ASX:SPR) has released exploration results and development updates for its Dalgaranga Gold Project in Western Australia. 

The findings from drilling work at the Never Never gold deposit and Pepper gold prospect include grade intercepts of up to 126 grams per tonne of gold.

The market has reacted positively to these results this morning.

SPR shares are up, trading at 93 cents.

The discretionary and IT sectors remained in the green, both closing the day up around 0.3% after the NASDAQ closed at fresh highs on Friday.

All other sectors closed in the red. Materials took the biggest hit, down 1.8%. Energy followed, down 1.45%.

Encounter Resources (ASX:ENR) is up 13% on drilling results at its Aileron project in Western Australia.

The company flagged its latest niobium drilling results at two of its targets, reporting several thick intercepts of niobium at depths less than 70 metres. 

Niobium explorers have fallen into favour with ASX traders of late, given WA1’s stellar performance through the early 2020’s. 

ENR closed the day at 82.5 cents.

Gold explorer, Red 5 (ASX:RED) defied materials sector losses when it gained 5.3% on the repayment of a Loan Facility and the release of its June quarter results.

Red 5 ended the quarter with cash and bullion of $453.7 million and debt of $92.9 million.

RED closed the day at 39.5 cents.

Respiratory imaging technology company, 4DMedical (ASX:4DX) is up 3.7% on a contract with Jones Radiology, a leading provider of imaging services in South Australia.

The contract follows a successful pilot at three of Jones Radiology’s Adelaide clinics and will further expand patient access to 4DMedical’s XV Technology platform.

4DX closed the day at 55 cents.

Looking at today’s fallers, Meteoric Resources NL (ASX:MEI) fell nearly 14% after releasing aScoping Study for its Caldeira Project in Brazil.

The company engaged Ausenco to establish metallurgical recoveries and assist with process flowsheet development.

Despite the results, the market didn’t respond positively to the news.

MEI closed the day at 15.5 cents.

Finally, lithium explorer Patriot Battery Metals (ASX:PMT) dropped 6.4% on the final batch of core assay results from the CV13 Spodumene Pegmatite from its 2024 winter drill program at the Corvette Property, in Quebec.

Assay results weren’t enough to impress the market; lithium miners continue to face significant pressure as the battery metal price remains low due to oversupply.

PMT closed the day at 51 cents.

Asia markets are mixed with the Nikkei green but Chinese and New Zealand markets red ahead of the latest US inflation data on Thursday night Australian time.

ASX traders will also absorb China’s latest inflation data on Wednesday, which will inform sentiment around the direction of the Chinese economy and iron ore prices.

The IT sector is leading intraday gains, up 0.8%. Discretionary has also pushed into the green, more than half a percent. 

All other sectors are in the red, Energy and materials have fallen the most, both down 1.3% respectively, affected by an overnight dip in iron ore prices.

Encounter Resources (ASX:ENR) has shot up 19% on drilling results at its Aileron project in Western Australia.

The company flagged its latest niobium drilling results at the Crean and Emily targets with the company reporting several thick intercepts of niobium at depths less than 70 metres. 

One key result saw a 46 metre thick intersection at 3.1% niobium  – sending the stock to top gainer status in morning trades.

ENR has been trading at 87 cents.

Rex Minerals (ASX:RXM shares soared 61.8% as the company fields a $400M takeover bid from an Indonesian-owned company.

Under a scheme deed with MACH Metals Australia (MACH), Rex will see all shares not currently owned by MACH acquired at a value of 47 cents a share.

Rex’s board unanimously recommended shareholders take the deal.

RXM has been trading at 44.8 cents.

Hot Chili (ASX:HCH) has announced its establishment of Huasco Water, a new joint venture water company formed to supply both sea water and desalinated water to the Huasco Valley region of Chile.

While the company spoke of building desalination water facilities for local villagers, the company is also seeking to sell water to other mining companies. An intense drought has gripped Chile in recent years. 

HCH has been trading at 97 cents.

Health Care led sector gains, up three quarters of a per cent, driven by top performers including Clinuvel, Race Oncology, and Immutep.

On the other end, Materials and Financials suffered the worst losses, down 0.5% and 0.45% respectively.

Red Hill Minerals (ASX:RHI) signed a conditional binding Heads of Agreement with Peel Far West, a subsidiary of ASX-listed Peel Mining (ASX:PEX), to explore the Curnamona Project in NSW.

The agreement allows Red Hill to earn a 75% interest by investing $6.5 million in exploration over five years.

The project is known for its potential Tier 1 Zinc-Lead-Silver deposits.

Both companies’ investors were supportive of the joint venture news.

RHI closed the day up 1.56% at $7.82.

PEX shot up 7.7% to close at 14 cents.

Copper explorer, KGL Resources (ASX:KGL) gained 9.5% after reporting grades exceeding 19% from diamond drilling at its Rockface prospect in the Northern Territory.

The company aims to expand the resource of its Rockface North Lode deposit.

KGL closed the day at 11.5 cents.

Tivan (ASX:TVN) and its project partner Earth AI are preparing drill rigs to begin a new drill campaign at the Northern Territory based Sandover lead-silver project.

The company reported high-grade surface lead mineralization at the Aileron Station target, with grades up to 23.8% based on rock chip samples.

Despite this development, the news did not favourably impact its share price.

TVN closed the day down three-quarters of a percent at 6.8 cents.

MRG Metals (ASX:MRQ) fell 20% following the completion of an $800,000 capital raising.

The funds will support working capital for advancing MRG’s HMS Projects with Joint Venture Partners towards decision-making and subsequent mine development, as well as selective exploration across their portfolio.

MRQ closed the day at 0.4 cents.

Healthcare was in front, up 0.52% – partially driven by strong results from Clinuvel. 

Materials and Financials were the top draggers on the bourse on Friday in contrast to Thursday – that comes despite a rally in coal stocks and a rebound in the iron ore price. 

CLINUVEL Pharmaceuticals (ASX:CUV) is up around 15% on results from a study evaluating the DNA-repair capacity of afamelanotide on skin of healthy volunteers exposed to ultraviolet (UV) radiation.

The test results were presented by Clinuvel at the British Association of Dermatologists meeting in Manchester.

CUV has been trading at $17.38.

Two months on from receiving a $160 million contract from the WA government to take on the Collie battery project, Southern Cross Eletrcial Egineering (ASX:SXE) has announced it has added another $50 million to the value of the project, with the awarding of a battery storage system from Synergy.

The company will now add the Collie Battery Energy Storage System 330kiloVolts Switchyard Package to its original deal with Synergy.

This increases the total project value to $210 million, scheduled for completion by Q2 2025.

SXE has been trading at $1.73.

Red Hill Minerals (ASX:RHI) has signed a conditional binding Heads of Agreement with Peel Far West Pty, a subsidiary of ASX-listed Peel Mining (ASX:PEX), to explore the Curnamona Project in NSW. This agreement allows Red Hill to earn a 75% interest by investing $6.5 million in exploration over five years.

The Curnamona Project covers over 1,460 km² in the Broken Hill region of NSW, known for its potential Tier 1 Zinc-Lead-Silver deposits.

RHI has been trading at $7.91.

Auric Mining (ASX:AWJ) shot up 7.5% after it announced it expects to generate $3 million revenue in Q3, driven by $2 million in gold sales and an additional $1 million repayment.

The company has issued a milling notice to toll treat 150,000 tonnes of ore starting from late July 24th, spanning 6-7 weeks.

Currently, 75,000 tonnes of product are on-site. At Greenfields, AWJ aims to process 300,000 tonnes through the mill over the next eighteen months.

AWJ has been trading at 21.5 cents.

The agreement can see Red Hill earn a 75% interest by spending $6.5 million on exploration over five years.

Upon earning the 75% interest, a Joint Venture will be established with Red Hill as the Manager, and future funding will follow a standard contribute or dilute arrangement.

“Red Hill is looking forward to working closely with Peel to apply systematic and innovative exploration approaches to unlock value from these tenements,” Red Hill’s Executive Chairman Joshua Pitt said.

“The company is excited to progress exploration of the Curnamona tenements in parallel with the West Pilbara Gold and Base Metals Project, and will continue to assess future projects to add to the exploration portfolio.”

The Curnamona Project tenements span over 1,460 km² in the Broken Hill province of New South Wales and extend into South Australia’s Anabama Project.

The company believes the Broken Hill Project has Tier 1 potential for Zinc-Lead-Silver deposits, along with the Anabama Project considered promising for Copper and Gold, with an existing non-JORC compliant resource estimate of 4.2Mt at 0.52% Copper.

Red Hill Minerals’ share price has steadily increased since selling its 40% interest in the Red Hill Iron Ore Joint Venture to Mineral Resources (ASX:MIN) in September 2021 for $400 million in cash and a 0.75% royalty.

With a market cap now at $500 million, the company is well-positioned to establish new joint ventures and continue growing its exploration portfolio.

Shareholders reacted favourably to the latest joint venture news, with shares up 3% this morning. RHI last traded at $7.90.

PEX last traded at 13 cents.

The materials sector shot up 2.25% to lead sector gains, with financials, real estate, and energy also having strong days. Utilities and IT fell into the red.

While it was a busy day for the materials sector, it wasn’t just stocks taking off this week. Headed by WA billionaire Chris Ellison, Mineral Resources’ (ASX:MIN) own airline made its debut flight from Brisbane early this week, delivering FIFO workers from the east coast to WA.

The company has long been seeking to establish its own logistics solution for its fly-in fly-out workforce.

MIN closed the day up 4.9% at $58.04.

Finnish and Australian-based company Latitude 66 (ASX:LAT) skyrocketed 7150% following an exploration update on its flagship project in Northern Finland.

The project boasts a substantial high-grade gold-cobalt mineral resource and has had previous drilling success from its 2021 and 2022 drilling programs.

LAT closed the day at 14.5 cents.

AIC Mines (ASX:A1M) gained 7% after a positive response to copper grading picked up through a program of follow-up drilling at its Swagman discovery in Queensland.

The company carried out wide-spaced drilling, obtaining intercepts such as 3.9 meters grading at 1.77% copper and 0.32 grams per tonne gold from 453 meters.

A1M closed the day at 45.5 cents.

Gold mining company, West African Resources (ASX:WAF) dropped 13.2% after it received commitments from institutional and sophisticated investors for a placement of 109.5 million new fully paid ordinary shares priced at $1.37 per share.

The placement will support development activities at the Kiaka Gold Project, which West African expects to be a long-life, low-cost project.

WAF closed at $1.38.

And, Superior Resources (ASX:SPQ) fell 10% as the company commenced exploration drilling at its Steam Engine Gold Project (SEGP) in Queensland.

The company is accelerating mining study work with the aim of realising early revenue generation.

SPQ closed the day at 9 cents.

It’s been a big day for the energy sector with Santos jumping on reports it’s being looked at by Saudi buyer Aramco.

Elsewhere, the price of Brent Crude climbed over $87 per barrel overnight as US oil reserves were withdrawn more than expected in June.

Tamboran Resources shares have had a good week at their new home on the New York Stock Exchange. Since listing only a fortnight ago at $22, Tamboran’s shares on Wall Street have climbed 9.47% to $23.81.

Morgan Stanley has revealed its Australian analysts are betting on metallurgical coal being a good commodity heading into 2025. The investment bank expects a recent fire at Anglo American’s QLD Grosvenor mine, and a similar incident in the US, to impact global supply.

Morgan Stanley predicts metallurgical coal, used to make steel, will climb 15% to $290 per tonne by 2025. This news echoes the second year of COVID-19 when global energy supply shocks caused coal prices to skyrocket.

Boss Energy (ASX:BOE) is set to make its first delivery of triuranium octoxide (U308) from its Honeymoon mine in South Australia to nuclear utilities in Europe, anticipating revenue within this quarter.

Managing Director Duncan Craib said the project, located 80 kilometres northwest of Broken Hill, is meeting expectations in terms of production and economics.

Boss has been trading at $4.14.

xReality Group (ASX:XRG) has announced its receipt of an $800K contract from the Australian Government to provide its Virtual Reality (VR) training tech.

The contract is set for delivery in Q1 of FY2025, rolling out its ‘Operator XR’ branded VR training system to one Australian state government left undisclosed.

Shares jumped 16% on the news. XRG has been trading at 5.6 cents.

Finnish and Australian-based company, Latitude 66 (ASX:LAT) saw its shares skyrocket during morning trades, up as much as 8900% following an exploration update on its flagship Kuusamo Schist Belt Project in Northern Finland.

The project boasts a substantial high-grade gold-cobalt mineral resource.

Latitude has had previous drilling success in the K-South region, with highlights from the 2021 and 2022 drilling programs. The stock, which traded at $0.002 in March, has seen a positive investor reaction due to past success at the project.

LAT has been trading at 16 cents.

The company’s focus is on the exploration and development of gold and critical minerals, particularly within its flagship project, which boasts a substantial high-grade gold-cobalt mineral resource.

“After completing the corporate transaction between Latitude 66 Cobalt and DiscovEx Resources and the capital raise of $4 million, we are excited to continue exploration activities at our flagship KSB Project in Finland,” LAT’s Managing Director Grant Coyle said.

“The drilling planned over the past few months confirms the significant potential for continued high-grade gold and cobalt mineralisation in K-South. We look forward to providing the assay results from the drilling in the coming weeks.”

To date, the program has targeted K-South and K-North mineralisation extensions to confirm potential strike, plunge, and grade continuity. Follow-up step-out drilling will proceed if initial results are successful, with the aim of defining a maiden JORC Resource Estimate at K-South.

Latitude has had previous drilling success in the K-South region, with highlights from the 2021 and 2022 drilling programs, past success likely contributes to the strong investor backing of this news.

In addition to the KSB Project, Latitude 66 holds a 17.5% interest in Carnaby Resources’ Greater Duchess Project, located in the Mt Isa Copper district, and is actively exploring two gold projects in Western Australia, the Sylvania and Edjudina Projects.

LAT’s share price has surged dramatically since March when it traded at $0.002 per share.

As of 11:30 am AEST, LAT last traded at 16 cents.

Triton Minerals has released an announcement relating to a material transaction concerning the divestiture of part interest in its Mozambique based Ancuabe Project. The company’s executive director, Adrian Castello joins me now to discuss. Welcome Adrian. Tell us about this announcement.

Adrian Costello:

Thank you very much. Yes, today we announced that we’re selling 70% of our three major projects in Mozambique and Ancuabe project, Cobra Plains Project, and the IP related to Nicanda Hill and Nicanda West.

Keely Lynch:

And Adrian, what is the upside here for both Triton and its shareholders?

Adrian Costello:

There’s two sides to the upside. There’s the fastest pathway to development. Our partner, Yulong, who are buying in, are very keen on their experience in Mozambique and in developing the graphite projects. The other side of the upside is the $17 million that we’re able to generate through the 70% sale. That provides an opportunity not just to develop the project, but also look at other projects.

Keely Lynch:

And how might this change the company’s strategy moving forward?

Adrian Costello:

It doesn’t entirely change it, we still retain exposure to the graphite market with retaining 30% of the project, but the $17 million allows us to explore other business opportunities and look at other minerals and other places in the world to invest.

Keely Lynch:

And lastly, Adrian, what are some of the next steps from here?

Adrian Costello:

The next step is subject to pretty standard completion requirements. There’s a foreign investment review board approval. There’s shareholder approvals from both Yulong and also Triton, and then there’s also the Mozambique and governmental approvals. But these are all pretty stock standard and we expect to be completed within six to eight months. This transaction provides $17 million to the company, and it provides us with the fastest development pathway for the Ancuabe and Cobra Plains projects, and also leaves the company with a good cash position to explore other business opportunities.

Keely Lynch:

Well, thank you so much for joining us today, Adrian. We look forward to speaking again soon.

Adrian Costello:

Thank you very much.

RCE Pharmaceuticals has announced a capital raise following the completion of its phase one and two UTI trial. To discuss this further, I’m joined by the company CEO, James Graham. Welcome James. It’s been a busy few weeks for the company. Take us through these highlights.

James Graham:

It has certainly been a busy few weeks. I mean from World Health Organisation announcing that our compound R327 or Recce 327 is clinically the most advanced new class of antibiotic to the world at this time, and in fact works faster than any other antibiotic known to date. We announced, we’ve completed our fast infusion IV dosing study. We not only did we demonstrate our compound to be again, safe and well-tolerated, we demonstrated it to be efficacious. And that’s really, really important when we step into a phase two B study. Now, knowing that the compound works, of course, when passed through the human urine retract infection or UTI I should say. And of course then we step into our capital raise. I mean, we had an oversubscribed institution round of around $8 million and open up to a share purchase plan of about $2 million, which when we add our US Department of Defence grants, we add our R&D rebate. It actually funds us all the way through into FY of 26

Keely Lynch:

And expanding a little more into the UTI trial completion. What is the significance of these results?

James Graham:

Yeah, look, it’s significant when you can take a compound that’s been IV administered into human vein in as fast a time period of say 15 or 20 minutes in a concentration as high as 4,000 milligrams. And you can take from the human urine having passed through the human vein and kidney and into the urine tract and demonstrate the compound to be efficacious. We’ve demonstrated efficacy against e coli from these humans. And of course e coli is about 80% of all UTI infections. And when we look to urosepsis, so urinary tract infection derived blood poisoning, 30% of all patients have an underlying UTI. So that the ability to position not only for the chance of success in a phase two B study, but the chance of potential success of having an active compound that’s gone through the human blood and beyond for a utero septic patient is really pivotal when it’s such an unmet medical need of large patient populations.

Keely Lynch:

Well, there’s certainly a lot of progress being made by the company. Looking at the capital raise, what is this funding going to be used for?

James Lynch:

Yeah, so the capital raises for the purposes of launching the phase two B UTI or Euro septic patient study, it’s for launching a registrational phase three diabetic foot infection study, actually in Indonesia of all places. The majority of that study is actually sponsored by the Indonesian government. But the term registrational is a key important term because if we do succeed in this study, which we expect first patient dosing soon, we would expect the results to see a drug approval. And a drug approval means sales, and sales when you look to Indonesia, 280 million people, 11% population, 48% of those get a diabetic foot infection and 60% of those get infected. You’re really talking in the millions and millions of people worldwide each year. We also, of course raise money to support our extended topical study, our expanded topical study, not just from diabetic foot infections or burn wounds, postoperative wound infections, but all topical infections, which we were recently approved for in Australia. So there’s a little bit of a mouthful, but it’s a mouthful because of all the excitement we have around these major unmet medical needs of large patient populations.

Keely Lynch:

And lastly, before we go, what are some of the key takeaways for investors?

James Graham:

News flow, News flow, news flow. This is the year of efficacy for Recce. So whether it be efficacy, which we demonstrated from a UTI perspective, and we’ll be launching a formal Euro septic patient study on that demonstrated of course against diabetic foot ulcer infections to date. And we’re launching a registrational study on that. And then of course, demonstrated on multiple different topical infections to date. And we have a present study capturing all that. This is a year of efficacy and where you have a company that is now funded into next financial year. So a very long way away from where we are at the start of this financial year. Today you have a company with a lot of news flow and opportunity ahead.

Keely Lynch:

Well, it’s certainly an exciting but busy time for the company. I look forward to hearing about the next update. Thank you so much for your time, James Graham from Recce Pharmaceuticals.

James Graham:

Many thanks.

The Calmer Co has advised that the renounceable rights issue announced on June 3rd, 2024 has closed heavily oversubscribed and raised approximately $2 million. I’m joined by the company’s managing director and CEO Anthony Noble to discuss. Welcome Anthony. Tell us about this news.

Anthony Noble:

Yeah, thank you very much for having me. We had a rights issue ongoing for the last period of time to raise just over 2 million. We got a significant oversubscription for that rights issue, about 2 million of the bids beyond what we were able to allocate. We also did upsize that using what capacity we had left to give an additional $600,000 to people who were applying for shortfall. So a really successful rights issue and a great vote of confidence in the company from our shareholders.

Keely Lynch:

Anthony, what does this news mean for The Calmer Co?

Anthony Noble:

Primarily this rights issue was about continuing to expand our sales trajectory through e-commerce and support the launch into the US market. The first activity that is going to support that is the upgrade that we’re making to our processing facility in Navua. So that will roughly double to triple the amount of Kava that we can process there on a weekly basis to around about 20 tons a week. So that’s enough to really three x our revenue or even more than that. And that’s the kind of output we are expecting to require to start to build what we’re seeing in the US market e-commerce now, reflecting the growth story that we’ve had here in the Australian market

Keely Lynch:

And you also released a new independent research note. What are the main highlights from this?

Anthony Noble:

Yeah, so East Coast Research did an independent research note for us on the company some time ago. They gave a fair valuation of about 1.4 to 1.7 cents there. They’ve increased that a little bit to around 1.9 cents. So showing that we’re still fundamentally undervalued at the current share price, which I think is a great, great endorsement of just how good value that rights issue was. We thought that was very positive news to release to the market on the back of the successful capital raising.

Keely Lynch:

And lastly, Anthony, is there any other news regarding the company that you would want to share and what can investors expect in the next coming months?

Anthony Noble:

Yeah, so I’ll just finish the June month and the trend of growth that we’ve seen in the e-commerce channels has continued. So we’ve gone up by around about another two and a half thousand dollars a day of average sales there from 16,000 to about 18,500 a day. So well over half a million dollars per month now of e-commerce revenue strongly. That’s mainly in the Australian market, still US Amazon going very well, but we are seeing for the first three or four months that we’ve been in the US Shopify market, sales are doubling month on month there. So the trend in the US does indicate we should be able to replicate what we’ve done in Australia in the US, which is the strategy for the business in the coming year. And I guess exciting stuff for us coming up soon will be the launch of our Taki Mai Kava shot in bulk formats to the e-commerce channel in Australia. We have some interesting flavors, fruit flavors that people will be able to buy and add to their Kava to make the drink a little bit more delicious for them in the coming months. And we’re about to launch some products with coconut flavored Kava in partnership with Fiji Rugby Union, so Fiji rugby branded products, which people will be able to pick up in Fiji, and then hopefully in the US as well. So great tasting new products and just continuing to stick to our strategy of e-commerce expansion in the US to replicate what we’ve done here in Australia. Well,

Keely Lynch:

Certainly fantastic news for the company. Thank you so much for your update, Anthony Noble from The Calmer Co.

Anthony Noble:

Thank you.

The IT and Materials closed firmly in the lead, with Real Estate following in the green. Utilities and telecoms led the fallers.

In economic news, ASIC reported that nearly 3,000 construction companies in Australia went bankrupt through the 2024 financial year.

This datapoint comes as housing prices continue to soar across Australia, driven by dismal supply. It is unclear how long it will take for Australia to restore this capacity.

Health and wellness company, The Calmer Co. (ASX:CCO), is up 25% after it reported average daily eCommerce sales grew by $2,500 to over $18,500 per day in June, showing a month-on-month growth over the full financial year of FY24.

Sales via eCommerce channels also grew at an average of 17% month on month for FY24.

CCO closed the day at 1 cent.

Sun Silver (ASX:SS1) is up nearly 4% after it confirmed its inaugural drill campaign at its Maverick Springs Project in Nevada, US has been finalised.

The campaign will initially consist of 7,500m of RC drilling and will include a mix of both in-fill and extensional drill targets.

Drilling is set to commence on 8 July 2024.

SS1 closed the day at 53 cents.

Power Minerals (ASX:PNN) gained 19% after announcing the option to acquire the Lítio Project in Brazil.

The project is considered highly prospective for niobium, rare earth elements (REE), and lithium.

PNN closed the day at 15.5 cents.

Chalice Mining (ASX:CHN) dropped 17% on the execution of an MOU with Mitsubishi Corporation to develop the closely-watched Gonneville project in WA.

Chalice and Mitsubishi will work towards an ongoing Pre-Feasibility Study process with the intention of forming a strategic partnership.

However, the MOU is non-exclusive and allows Chalice to keep looking for other partners.

CHN closed at $1.26.

Ramelius Resources (ASX:RMS) fell more than half a percent after it executed a Syndicated Facility Agreement (SFA) with the Australia and New Zealand Banking Group, Commonwealth, NAB, CIB, and Westpac.

The agreement will provide Ramelius with a corporate facility of $175M for a four-year term with the option to extend by a further year.

The new facility is an upsized replacement to the previous $100M facility.

RMS closed the day at $1.87.

Its gains were partially driven by iron ore prices climbing back to US$110.40 in Singapore; around a three-week high. 

Recent Chinese stimulus measures, and growth in some areas of manufacturing, were partly responsible for the shift in sentiment where iron ore is concerned.

Australia’s latest retail trade data from the ABS shows Australian consumers boosted spending by 0.6% in May 2024.

The ABS attributed the jump in sales to consumers chasing ‘bargains,’ which was notably hotter than the 0.1% growth in April.

The data comes weeks after Australian inflation came in hotter than expected at 4% in the June data, while core inflation only slowed 0.1%.

Dwellings approvals in the country increased by 5.5% in May after a 1.9% jump in April.

The lion’s share of the increase was driven by private sector dwellings excluding houses, which climbed 16.3% month-on-month.

However, private sector house approvals only increased by 2.1%.

Chalice Mining (ASX:CHN) has announced its execution of an MOU with Mitsubishi Corporation to develop the closely-watched Gonneville project in WA.

The memorandum, which is non-binding, will see Chalice and Mitsubishi working together through an ongoing Pre-Feasibility Study (PFS) process with the intention of forming a potential strategic partnership.

However, the MOU is non-exclusive and allows Chalice to keep window shopping for partners.

CHN has been trading at $1.35.

Sun Silver (ASX:SS1) is up nearly 8% after the company announced this morning that the plan for its inaugural drill campaign at its Maverick Springs Project in Nevada, US has been finalised.

The campaign will initially consist of 7,500m of RC drilling and will include a mix of both in-fill and extensional drill targets.

Drilling is set to commence on 8 July 2024.

SS1 has been trading at 56 cents.

Mining giant Rio Tinto (ASX:RIO) has increased its shareholding in Sovereign Metals (ASX:SVM) by 19.7%, reflecting its interest in supporting the Soverigns, Kasiya Rutile-Graphite Project in Malawi.

The funds will be used by Sovereign to advance the project.

Both companies are up just short of a percent on the news.

RIO has been trading at $120.38.

SVM has been trading at 66.5 cents.

The market was spooked by the RBA Minutes released this morning, where the central bank confirmed it considered raising interest rates.

While this had been widely expected, it rattled the market – but not enough to hold back the energy sector, which was up 2.08%.

Clean energy storage company, Redflow (ASX:RFX) gained 11.7% after signing an MOU with Queensland’s largest energy generator, Stanwell Corporation.

The collaboration focuses on developing and deploying Redflow’s X10 battery for a 400 megawatt large-scale project, potentially serving as an anchor order for Redflow’s planned manufacturing facility in Queensland.

RFX closed the day at 10.5 cents.

Ark Mines (ASX:AHK) shot up 26.7% after reporting an Exploration Target at its 100% owned Sandy Mitchell rare earth and heavy mineral project in North Queensland.

Most of the target lies north of the project’s Indicated Mineral Resources, estimated to be 21.7 million tonnes at 1420 parts per million of Monazite Equivalent (MzEq).

AHK closed the day at 19 cents.

AML3D (ASX:AL3) is up 4.2% on the $1.1 million sale of its 2600 Edition ARCEMY system to Laser Welding Solutions (LWS).

LWS has been operating the system under a lease agreement since September 2023 for a Nickel Aluminium Bronze alloy program for the US Navy.

The system is the company’s smallest industrial-scale metal 3D printing system.

AL3 closed the day at 10 cents.

Deep Yellow (ASX:DYL) fell 2% following the appointment of Nedbank as the Mandated Lead Arranger to coordinate project financing for its flagship Tumas Project in Namibia.

The move aims to launch the project during a time of historically stable uranium prices.

DYL closed the day at $1.30.

Software licensing company, RPMGlobal Holdings (ASX:RUL), fell 13% following the release of its updated software sales and expected FY2024 results.

Despite positive results, the company reported lower-than-forecasted profitability, leading to a negative investor response.

RUL closed the day at $2.41.

Summit Minerals (ASX:SUM) dropped 17.5% after releasing ongoing exploration fieldwork, which discovered and mapped multiple Pegmatites across the Equador Niobium and Tantalum project in northeastern Brazil.

Assays included Partial Rare Earth Oxides (PREO) from surface pegmatite rock chip samples.

SUM closed the day at 28.5 cents.

The market was flattish red before the minutes were released; following their publication the ASX200 has slipped trading down 0.3%. 

Woodside Energy is leading the energy sector higher, making the sector the top gainer in morning trades, up 1.1%.

Meanwhile, Brent Crude has climbed back above $86 American dollars per barrel, according to reports, Baker Hughes has also agreed to stand by Woodside and its plans to expand Australia’s LNG supply chain.

Deep Yellow (ASX:DYL) is down around 3.4% after appointing Nedbank as the Mandated Lead Arranger and Book-runner to coordinate and arrange project financing for its flagship Tumas Project in Namibia.

This move aims to launch Tumas amid historically stable uranium prices.

DYL has been trading at $1.29.

Mayne Pharma (ASX:MYX) has dipped more than 4.75% in morning trades in response to its $38M settlement payout as part of a class action.

The class action, brought in Victoria’s Supreme Court in 2021, related to alleged conduct in the US. Mayne assumed no liability regarding the allegations.

MYX has been trading at $4.42.

Energy minerals developer, Walkabout Resources (ASX:WKT) has announced the first graphite concentrate shipment from Lindi Jumbo is set to sail to Europe.

Lindi Jumbo is Walkabout’s 100% owned graphite project in Tanzania’s Mozambique Belt.

The maiden shipment will sail in the coming days, with pilot orders trickling through.

WKT has been trading at 11.5 cents.

The IT sector was the biggest drag, shedding more than 2.2 per cent.

The best performer today was the Materials sector which gained a per cent as iron ore recovered to US$107.50 a tonne, in the wake of China introducing mortgage relief measures to stimulate its property sector.

BHP Group (ASX:BHP), Fortescue (ASX:FMG), and Rio Tinto (ASX:RIO) all gained around that 1.5% mark.

An outstanding performance for a small cap stock today was by Infini Resources (ASX:I88), with shares surging 120% on exceptional uranium assay readings.

The company reported that some hits exceeded laboratory detection limits with 17 samples above 1.18% uranium oxide.

The company has identified another 23 target areas at its Portland Creek project in Canada.

I88 closed the day at 34 cents.

Meanwhile, shares in Australian coal miners spiked on news fire was raging in an underground coal mine in QLD this afternoon.

Reports suggested production from the Anglo American mine could be impacted for months, giving coal players a boost.

Coronado Global Resources (ASX:CRN) jumped nearly 9% to close around $1.29. Bowen Coking Coal (ASX:BCB) was up nearly 13.5% to 5.9 cents; and Whitehaven Coal (ASX:WHC) gained more than 6% to $8.13.

Meanwhile, Africa-focused exploration company, Lindian Resources (ASX:LIN) soared 47.5% after a feasibility study suggested the first stage of its Rare Earths Project in Malawi should be low-cost.

The project’s payback period could be less than two years.

Lindian closed the day at 15 cents.

It wasn’t so bright for Guzman Y Gomez (ASX:GYG) as shares were sold off again today seeing the value of the Mexican fast-food chain stock fall 9.5%, to a new low.

GYG closed the day below $24.83.

And as the IT sector struggled, $31B market cap company Wisetech Global (ASX:WTC) lost 5 per cent to close at $95.10 and Xero (ASX:XRO) also lost ground, down 1.25% to $134.70.