Runners of the Week: Kaili, Magnetite Mines, | Australian Markets

It was a wild outdated week on the ASX, with information tumbling like dominoes as the index soared previous the 9000-mark for the first time in its historical past.

Globally, United States president Donald Trump commanded the highlight, as standard, basking in a single of his favorite actions – picture ops with world leaders. The chief of the free world kicked off the week with talks in Alaska alongside Russian president Vladimir Putin to attempt to broker peace in Ukraine. He then jetted to trade negotiations with European Union leaders at the White House to mood his cherished tariff threats.

Though it appeared a constructive week for the US, sadly, the high and tech-heavy market caught a chill, as the world’s largest company Nvidia slumped, dragging the Nasdaq down 3 per cent.

Locally, unhedged gold miners had been showcased during this reporting season. Australia’s largest goldie, Northern Star Resources, astounded the market with a document $536 million in underlying free money circulation – a 16 per cent leap from final yr – and FY25 income up 30 per cent to $6.4 billion.

Northern Star’s sturdy stability sheet has simply absorbed final yr’s blockbuster $5 billion acquisition of De Grey Mining, sparking envy throughout the industry for the nation’s latest 10-million-ounce monster.

Most sectors look geared up for a stronger 2026, buoyed by bullish steerage throughout the board.

The lithium market held onto its good points, for a change, with spodumene costs surging from beneath US$700 a tonne (A$1100/t) to US$1000/t (A$1560/t) in latest weeks, sparked by mine closures in China.

Australian hard-rock producers are hopeful, although solely lithium titan Pilbara Minerals is managing to remain comfortably afloat in the languishing lithium price.

More than 50 per cent of international lithium assets and 40 per cent of manufacturing stay locked in the salt flats of South America’s famed Lithium Triangle. And Australia has discovered it powerful to compete on price with brine tasks, which proceed to dominate the lowest-cost quartile of manufacturing.

As has turn into a acquainted tune in the weekly Runners column, uncommon earths juniors dominated, crawling out of the woodwork to show ‘rare earths’ may not be so uncommon after all.

The Runner of the Week, a Chinese-held minnow, didn’t simply break information – it obliterated them with a run so wild it’s already folklore, even when the news behind it was, frankly, a bit underwhelming. The company’s Monday run affords a masterclass in capital structuring because it vaulted from one of the ASX’s tiniest valuations to a $500 million market cap in beneath two days.

KAILI RESOURCES (ASX: KLR) Up 8333% (3.6c – $3.18)

Bulls N’ Bears’ Runner of the Week, nay, the century, is Kaili Resources, which waltzed its solution to ASX legend standing with a gobsmacking 8333 per cent surge on Monday, from 3.6 cents a share to $3.18 per share in a single day.

There wasn’t any news on the week, however the tightly Chinese-held stock briefly ballooned its market cap from sub-$1 million to a dizzying $500 million by Monday afternoon on simply $1.9 million in stock traded.

The earlier document holder, Stemcell United, jumped a whopping 3054 per cent in someday in 2017’s cannabis-crazed market – a margin that appears positively minuscule subsequent to this Aussie uncommon earths hopeful.

Things kicked off Friday on the ‘earth-shattering’ news that the junior had acquired approval from South Australia’s mining regulator to drill its uncommon earths tasks throughout Lameroo, Karte and Coodalya on the Limestone Coast in the state’s southeast. Kaili’s share price closed up 500 per cent on Friday at 3.6c on simply $6000 of stock traded.

The company hasn’t even employed a driller but – that will be powerful with solely $15,000 in the bank. Kaili has assays from historic holes recording 1-metre hits up to 356 components per million (ppm) whole uncommon earth oxides (TREO) from 18m, which is hardly a bonanza intersection.

By Monday, it was pure chaos. Kaili opened at 4.1c to begin the show and with 94 per cent of its shares locked up by its high 20 shareholders – principally Chinese traders – the trading bots went berserk, driving the price up and up on the restricted stock put up on the promote facet to a staggering high of $3.18 per share by 3:30pm AEST.

Largest shareholder Treasure Unicorn, which owns 51 per cent of Kaili’s holding company, hit a paper fortune of effectively over $250 million, earlier than the stock plummeted to $1.08 a share in beneath 20 minutes to close the day early.

The ASX didn’t sit on its arms and slapped seven trading halts and a dashing ticket all through the day, lastly halting Kaili six minutes earlier than close. There’s no doubt day merchants had been trapped on this lovely Chinese finger entice.

The company didn’t recommence trading till Thursday, when it inevitably opened decrease at 53ca share, which means lots of day merchants would have needed to pony up the money for his or her day trades on Monday – earlier than dropping a bundle on Thursday.

With simply $15,000 money and a $4.6 million loan from a Hong Kong investment firm, Kaili’s stability sheet is as skinny as its assay outcomes. If you’re chasing the subsequent uncommon earths hype prepare in South Australia, beware: this record-breaking run is perhaps more mirage than miracle.

Kaili is aiming to faucet into its Limestone Coast project for clay-hosted uncommon earths, impressed by close by Australian Rare Earths’ 236-million-tonne assets grading 748ppm TREO.

But with no drilling underway, no driller booked and no line of website to outcomes, the news that broke information wouldn’t excite a geologist’s pet rock.

Monday’s insanity appears more about a tight share registry than a real breakthrough. If this minnow can ship a useful resource value its $500 million peak, it’ll be the comeback story of the century – however for now, it’s a lesson in market hype over substance.

MAGNETITE MINES (ASX: MGT) Up 308% (7.1c – 29c)

Snagging silver on this week’s Bulls N’ Bears Runners record is iron ore-turned-rare earths participant Magnetite Mines, which joined the prevailing winds in South Australia by figuring out a bounty of uncommon earths at its Ironback Hill project, conveniently up the street from Kaili.

Magnetite says the near-surface, clay-hosted mineralisation lies adjoining to its iron ore deposit and was recognized by re-assays of archived drill samples. The project was initially drilled for iron ore however returned promising intercepts comparable to 8m grading 1153ppm TREO, together with a useful 215ppm neodymium, from simply 12m depth.

The outcomes are a lot more promising than its record-breaking neighbour and severely trace at a twin iron-rare earth play rising in the Festival State. Magnetite Mines is primarily targeted on its Razorback iron ore project in South Australia, the place it goals to develop one of Australia’s largest undeveloped magnetite deposits.

Magnetite’s Ironback project is adjoining to Razorback, can also be exhibiting its uncommon earth credentials. The company plans to run low-cost leachability assessments at the project to evaluate whether or not its metallurgy warrants broader exploration.

It tried its best to tug a Kaili on Tuesday as its shares shot up to a high of 29c from final week’s close of 7.1c a share, giving Magnetite a more than respectable 308 per cent spike on $1.5 million in stock traded.

The company’s geology crew is scouring its huge tenements for more crucial minerals, whereas balancing its iron ore ambitions with the growing attract of uncommon earths.

Investors driving the South Australian uncommon earths wave may hope it makes a pivot, as magnetite takes second fiddle in a red-hot Aussie uncommon earths market. If these assays result in a viable uncommon earths deposit, Magnetite could possibly be that includes as Australia’s subsequent crucial minerals contender.

ARGENT BIOPHARMA (ASX: RGT) Up 300% (8c – 32c)

Falling simply a nostril behind Magnetite – and a nation mile behind Kaili – on the Runners record this week is newly topped hashish participant Argent BioPharma, which conjured recollections of Stemcell and 2017’s pot stock mania with a 300 per cent rocket on Tuesday.

The set off was a blockbuster deal to accumulate key property from Aussie hashish participant AusCann Group Holdings for its Neuvis SEDDS drug supply platform, a 48 per cent stake in CannPal Animal Therapeutics and a 19.99 per cent holding in ECC Pharm Limited.

In return, Argent will concern 25 million shares valued at US$15 million ($23.37 million), pending shareholder approval, in a deal that appears set to strengthen its international pharma ambitions.

Argent BioPharma is already a huge time clinical-stage biotech participant for cannabinoid-based therapies, significantly for epilepsy and power ailments. Its new concentrate on modern drug supply systems and European manufacturing probably enticed it in the direction of the Neuvis platform.

Argent says its acquisition provides German distribution to its European muscle and aligns with the company’s push for a US itemizing.

From final Friday’s close of 8c a share to a high of 32c, the 300 per cent stock surge occurred on simply $500,000 in paper altering arms, as the play tried to show the sector has nonetheless received the legs to match it with the booming uncommon earths sector.

With a strengthened pipeline and European Union infrastructure, Argent seems to be able to scale its IP-driven model worldwide. If it clears regulatory hurdles and secures a US itemizing, this biotech could possibly be off to the races in the bigger US cannabinoid market.

OCTAVA MINERALS (ASX: OCT) Up 109% (3.3c – 6.9c)

Rounding out this week’s Runners record is crucial minerals maverick Octava Minerals. Another in the record of uncommon earths hopefuls, this feisty minnow unveiled an ingenious, cost-effective and environmentally sustainable extraction methodology for crucial minerals at its Byro uncommon earths and lithium project in Western Australia’s Gascoyne area.

The company revealed on Thursday that it achieved a biomining breakthrough for its Permian black shales at Byro. European associate BiotaTec achieved a staggering 68–75 per cent extraction for the magnet uncommon earths neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium, alongside a 40 per cent restoration for accompanying lithium, vanadium and terbium in mineralisation.

The thrilling outcomes had been achieved within 24–48 hours utilizing microbial cultures – micro organism, fungi or plant cells that break down rocks. The methodology is already utilized in Australia’s highest-grade gold mine, Fosterville.

As the market drilled down on Octava’s microbe-derived crucial mineral credentials, its share price buzzed back to life. It flew up 109 per cent on Thursday to a high of 6.9c per share from final week’s close of 3.3c on almost $1 million in stock traded. This was the company’s highest turnover in almost a yr.

The project’s 30-kilometre strike of black shales, that are up to 100m thick, might host a low-cost, sustainable provide of metals for magnets and batteries. With export potential by means of the area’s Port of Geraldton and entry to renewable power hubs, BiotaTec’s confirmed bio-heap-leaching guarantees a speedy, eco-friendly extraction in comparison with chemical-heavy strategies of outdated.

If Octava scales its microbial success to industrial ranges, it might be a part of the ranks of WA’s low-cost crucial minerals suppliers. Rare earths are back in vogue – and it’s all about the all-important processing. Byro’s new potential could possibly be this plucky junior’s ticket to the huge leagues.

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