Closing Bell: The ASX has had a Tuesday win after buyers returned for more of Kali

ASX200 is back, rising almost 1%

10 of 11 ASX sectors higher

Small cap winners led by Rincon and Kali

The ASX200 has come out on top for only the second time this year after a bright showing overnight on Wall Street.

Local markets were in the kind of ebullient form on Tuesday which comes only from having been in a stupor for several days previous.

At 4.15pm on Tuesday, the S&P/ASX 200 was up 69 points or 0.93% to 7,520.5

Via Google

The ASX benchmark has been bleeding out since missing out on a new record high on the first trading session of 2024, but that’s all been put to bed for a day at least.

In New York, Wall Street logged a strong session overnight amid an upturn in tech stocks ahead of what is really an uncertain looking Q4 earnings season.

At home, retail sales lifted by 2% MoM in November, way, way beating market estimates of a 1.2% rise.

According to the Australian Bureau of Stats, this read was the damndest acceleration in retail trade since November 2021, driven by a terrific response to Black Friday events last year.

The response on markets was emphatic. All 11 sessions save for Energy were ahead on Tuesday in Sydney. IT, Healthcare and Consumer stocks were leading gains after November sales delivered a big win for retailers.

Zip Co, Block and Xero had blockbusting sessions for local tech.

All the iron ore majors rallied as commodity prices improved and optimism around China emerged.

Fortescue led the trio, up almost 1.5%. Although iron ore minnow Pear Gull eclipsed them all, ahead almost 13.5%.

ASX SECTORS at 4pm on TUESDAY

Via MarketIndex

In local company news, uranium, small cap lithium and goldies were all in demand.

Even Core Lithium, down about 1 million per cent after mothballing its NT ops gained more than 2%.

Around the region, Asian-Pacific equity markets were comparatively euphoric for 2024.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 and South Korea’s Kopsi were in the green around lunchtime.

Shares in Hong Kong were doing their best to get off that 14 month mat, with morning gains for healthcare, utilities, and consumers.

Mainland stocks were also higher – that part of the world feeling upbeat after a PBoC official seemed to say there could be a shadow of a plan to boost lending with a bit more liquidity sloshing about.

Lenovo led the gains in HK, up circa 6% before lunch.

Wall Street is bracing later in the week for the release of key inflation data, which would drop some dots around the Fed’s massive cash rate plot. Hell. It’s a conspiracy.

US stockmarket futures at 4.30pm on Tuesday in Sydney:

Via Fox

ASX SMALL CAP LEADERS

Today’s best performing small cap stocks:

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Code Company Price % Volume Market Cap AVW Avira Resources Ltd 0.002 33% 3,000,000 $3,200,685 FAU First Au Ltd 0.004 33% 15,971,679 $4,985,980 JAV Javelin Minerals Ltd 0.002 33% 6,366,834 $1,632,173 RCR Rincon 0.046 31% 28,634,424 $6,218,201 KLI Killiresources 0.063 26% 276,056 $2,978,753 RC1 Redcastle Resources 0.015 25% 184,908 $3,939,410 WIN Widgienickellimited 0.11 24% 737,316 $26,517,110 LBT LBT Innovations 0.011 22% 271,155 $11,337,093 KM1 Kalimetalslimited 0.53 22% 12,524,917 $33,208,811 AMD Arrow Minerals 0.0085 21% 79,971,322 $24,316,356 LV1 Live Verdure Ltd 0.46 21% 552,406 $45,294,691 OAR OAR Resources Ltd 0.003 20% 331,875 $6,609,319 RGS Regeneus Ltd 0.006 20% 559,213 $1,532,185 AS1 Asara Resources Ltd 0.013 18% 1,423,063 $8,720,040 COY Coppermoly Limited 0.013 18% 50,000 $7,657,490 PHL Propell Holdings Ltd 0.013 18% 75,300 $1,323,911 CSS Clean Seas Ltd 0.305 17% 577,435 $49,621,083 PGD Peregrine Gold 0.34 17% 74,464 $19,428,979 PIL Peppermint Inv Ltd 0.021 17% 9,415,244 $36,681,423 ADY Admiralty Resources. 0.007 17% 554,292 $7,821,475 AVE Avecho Biotech Ltd 0.0035 17% 4,988,878 $9,507,891 PFG Prime Financial 0.25 16% 537,237 $46,781,313 FIN FIN Resources Ltd 0.022 16% 173,911 $12,336,105 EXT Excite Technology 0.008 14% 320,330 $9,304,692 PXX Polarx Limited 0.008 14% 1,940,739 $11,477,317

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Up handsomely on Tuesday was Rincon Resources (ASX:RCR), which last had news for the ASX on 03 January when the company announced that drilling had confirmed wide zones of mineralisation at its Westin Prospect in WA.

Meanwhile, Monday’s debutante Kali Metals (ASX:KAL) fired back into life, adding another 23% to the 78% it stacked on during its first day on the bourse.

And Widgie Nickel (ASX:WIN) enjoyed a boost of its own, after investors took their sweet time digesting an early morning announcement that of an updated JORC-compliant Mineral Resource Estimate for its Gillett nickel deposit.

Widgie says there is a lot more nickel at the site and that’s got investors up and out of their seats, pushing the company nearly 24% higher.

ASX SMALL CAP LAGGARDS

Today’s worst performing small cap stocks:

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

Code Company Price % Volume Market Cap NME Nex Metals Explorat 0.019 -27% 11,530 $9,165,846 NVQ Noviqtech Limited 0.003 -25% 170,000 $5,237,781 AKM Aspire Mining Ltd 0.125 -22% 662,608 $81,221,918 KNB Koonenberrygold 0.043 -22% 119,812 $6,586,200 VN8 Vonex Limited. 0.02 -20% 681,988 $9,045,716 DOU Douugh Limited 0.004 -20% 52,770 $5,410,345 SLM Solismineralsltd 0.16 -16% 656,529 $14,896,134 TLM Talisman Mining 0.245 -16% 831,089 $54,612,901 NWF Newfield Resources 0.11 -15% 50,000 $117,418,915 CR9 Corellares 0.022 -15% 21,136 $12,092,363 SNT Syntara Limited 0.017 -15% 4,476,102 $16,626,268 MAT Matsa Resources 0.03 -14% 254,339 $16,753,591 PUA Peak Minerals Ltd 0.003 -14% 751,633 $3,644,818 TMK TMK Energy Limited 0.006 -14% 37,752,948 $42,858,055 TSL Titanium Sands Ltd 0.012 -14% 1,371,978 $27,912,223 VAL Valor Resources Ltd 0.003 -14% 1,952,581 $14,606,672 NGS NGS Ltd 0.013 -13% 839,249 $3,768,411 SW1 Swift Networks Group 0.013 -13% 1,555,053 $9,698,616 TFL Tasfoods Ltd 0.026 -13% 25,151 $13,112,865 ASE Astute Metals NL 0.033 -13% 20,000 $15,599,741 WTM Waratah Minerals Ltd 0.1 -13% 562,937 $17,176,917 AVL Aust Vanadium Ltd 0.02 -13% 10,584,988 $114,277,956 E33 East 33 Limited. 0.02 -13% 10,772 $12,353,040 AD1 AD1 Holdings Limited 0.007 -13% 100,000 $7,189,187 MHC Manhattan Corp Ltd 0.0035 -13% 603,000 $11,747,919

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TRADING HALTS

Alumina (ASX:AWC) – pending receipt of information in respect of an expected decision by Alcoa Corporation.

NickelX (ASX:NKL) – pending an update to the market in respect of the option agreement the company previously announced regarding the Ransko and Otov exploration projects.

Galena Mining (ASX:G1A) – pending an announcement regarding a strategic review of operations.

Worley (ASX:WOR) – pending a clarificatory announcement to the market.

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