January 2024

If the 2022 experience is any indication, the impact from the surge in retail sales in November, due to the ‘Black Friday’ sales event held by many chains and stores, will prove to be a temporary benefit. December retail sales are expected to fall as shoppers brought forward their purchases. Last year, a 1.4% rise […]

Australian shares surged on Tuesday, driven by a strong performance on Wall Street and the best monthly retail sales report in two years. The S&P/ASX index closed 0.9% higher, marking its largest rise of the year and nearing its 2021 historical peak. The tech sector led the gains, influenced by the Nasdaq’s strength, with companies

Alumina (ASX:AWC) shares went into a trading halt on Tuesday as Alcoa plans to announce production cutbacks at its Kwinana alumina refiner in Western Australia. Overseas reports said Alcoa is looking to cut costs because of weak demand and prices for aluminium. The cost cuts at the refinery will involve job losses. Alcoa had previously

On Sunday night, Saudi Arabia admitted defeat in its attempt to maintain high world oil prices. They acknowledged being bested by the realities of the oil markets and consequently cut prices to their lowest point in over two years. OPEC+ (mainly Saudi Arabia and Russia) did not discuss further production cuts, only providing the usual

Australian shares rallied by 1.09 per cent during mid-afternoon trading, boosted by a strong performance on Wall Street and the best monthly retail sales report in three years. Key gainers included Zip, Block, and Megaport, while major banks and some mining companies also advanced. The energy sector was the only one in decline, albeit slightly.

Is small Western Australian lead-silver miner Galena Mining (ASX:G1A) about to follow in the footsteps of Core Lithium and Panoramic’s administrators, suspending operations at its 60% owned mine in WA’s Gascoyne? Or does Galena require additional capital to enhance the performance of the Abra mine, which is also 40% owned by Japan’s major lead producer,

Si6 Metals (ASX:SI6) has announced, following shareholder approval and agreement of final terms of the formal acquisition and JV agreements, that the company expects to complete the acquisition of a 50 per cent interest in a portfolio of exploration licences in Brazil from Foxfire Metals in early 2024. Foxfire Metals is a diversified exploration company

Australian retail trade exceeded market expectations by rising 2% in November, driven by Black Friday sales, with a year-on-year increase of 2.2%. This data holds significance as the central bank monitors economic slowdown signals to address inflation, with a key event being the upcoming quarterly consumer price index report in February after the bank’s extended