October 18, 2023

If China’s economic performance in September and the September quarter were a school report card, it would have earned a bare pass mark of 50%, with the comment “Should be doing better.” Every measure of activity across the month and the quarter was weak to poor as the country continues to grapple with weak demand

The S&P/ASX 200 is trading 0.16 per cent higher at 7,067.40. Futures The SPI futures are down 1 point. Best and worst performers The best-performing sector is Energy, up 1.6 per cent. The worst-performing sector is Information Technology, down 1.18 per cent. The best-performing large cap is Northern Star Resources (ASX:NST), trading 2.57 per cent

Glencore has announced the closure of its copper mining operations in Mount Isa by the end of 2025, resulting in the loss of approximately 1,000 jobs. However, the company plans to maintain its refinery and smelters in North Queensland. The decision to close the three underground copper mines in Mt Isa by the second half

Shares in Credit Corp (ASX:CCP) plunged on Wednesday as the company shocked the market with news of a write-down in the carrying value of its US debt ledger business. The shares fell 30% at one stage on Wednesday morning and were still down more than 20% after the first hour of trading as investors abandoned

Well, Lithium Power International (ASX:LPI) was right when it described as “incorrect” a Bloomberg report suggesting a 50-cent-a-share offer from Codelco, the big state-owned Chilean copper miner. The deal, revealed on Wednesday (instead of the original Monday deadline), was at 57 cents for each LPI share. LPI said it had entered into a binding scheme

BHP (ASX:BHP) has left its 2023-24 production guidance unchanged after making a solid start to the year in the three months to September 30. The world’s biggest miner did well across all businesses as they completed their normal first-quarter maintenance and other work (which always depressed production performance) to set up what the miner hopes

Oil prices surged by up to 1.7% in early Asian trading following a deadly explosion at a Gaza hospital, heightening tensions in the Middle East ahead of US President Joe Biden’s visit. A summit between Biden and leaders of Jordan, Egypt, and the Palestinian Authority was canceled as the US president seeks to prevent further

Don’t miss Friday’s webinar discussing imaging tech, laser tech and agricultural REITs. Click here to register. Whitehaven Coal (ASX:WHC) has been placed in a trading halt following an announcement by BHP that Whitehaven Coal is the preferred bidder for BHP’s Daunia and Blackwater coking coal mines in Queensland. This announcement was made in an unusual manner,