December 18, 2023

The S&P 500 rose Monday as the market maintained the momentum seen during its seven-week winning streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was little changed, gaining just 0.86 points, or 0.00 per cent, to 37,306.02. The S&P 500 climbed 0.45 per cent to 4,740.56. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.61 per cent to 14,904.81. The […]

US Steel, America’s iconic steelmaker, is set to be acquired by the Japanese giant, Nippon Steel, for $14.9 billion in cash (more than $A22 billion) in a deal that will be welcomed on both sides of the Pacific. Thirty or forty years ago, the fear of Japanese business strength would have caused mayhem in US

The Federal Government’s December Resource Quarterly report has confirmed ongoing concerns in the lithium market, with downgraded forecasts for the next two years. According to the report, lithium export revenue has been revised downward due to unexpectedly rapid price drops, leading to a surplus supply situation that is pressuring prices downward. The report indicates that

Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer, Nio, has secured a second investment this year worth billions of dollars from the government wealth fund of Abu Dhabi, resulting in the Gulf state gaining control of approximately 20.1% of the company. The deal, which was revealed on Monday, will see Nio receive $2 billion from the Abu Dhabi

The huge cost overruns on its Kwinana project in WA have exposed Adelaide-based cement giant Adbri (ASX:ABC) to a mop-up offer from the controlling Barro family and CRH of Ireland. The two revealed a $2.1 billion offer on Monday morning via the now usual non-binding offer to acquire 100% of Adbri at $3.20 a piece.

By mid-afternoon, the ASX 200 was down 0.32 per cent. This decline was primarily driven by losses in the real estate sector, particularly Charter Hall (ASX:CHC) and Dexus (ASX:DXS), which lost 1.6 per cent and 1.7 per cent, respectively. The market’s mood was influenced by comments from New York Federal Reserve President John Williams, who

Cost pressures persist in Western Australia’s mining and construction sector, as one of Australia’s government-funded renewable minerals processing projects experiences a 25% increase in expenses. Iluka’s (ASX:ILU) rare earths processing plant project in Eneabba, near Perth, initially estimated at $1.25 billion through a non-recourse funding deal with the Federal government unveiled in April 2022, now

Azure Minerals (ASX:AZS) and its four significant investors, who have spent the majority of the past month in a wary standoff, are finally making amends this week. A flurry of share buying and transactions led to substantial holdings, followed by a period of silence. However, recent reports suggest that discussions are now underway between SQM,

Buried in last week’s data drop from China’s National Bureau of Statistics was the usual monthly update from the black hole of the country’s economy: property. Despite two rate cuts, two easings in the level of reserve ratios at banks large and small, and a number of moves to make it easier to buy homes

The forecast for a slowdown in Australia’s export earnings from resources and energy looks set to continue over the next year to 18 months, but perhaps not at a pace as deep as seen a few months ago. Falling prices for key commodity exports such as iron ore, liquefied natural gas, lithium, nickel, and coal