Western Australian lithium producer Pilbara Minerals shares rose 5.2%, while IGO gained 4.5% and received an upgrade from UBS. Lithium brine producer Alchem rose his 3.5%.
“IGO’s main game in the near term is spodumene prices, so while expected spodumene price increases over the next six months will increase revenues, the launch of Train 1 in Kwinana will continue to be at an upgraded price point. It will boost lithium hydroxide production and earnings in line with the outlook.” Mr. Shaw.
On Tuesday, gains in the materials, technology and consumer goods sectors contributed to the rise in S.&The P/ASX 200 Index rose for the 10th time in a row and its 13th gain in 15 days, rising 0.4% (33.1 points) to a nine-month high of 7490.9 points. It is now just 1.8% below the August 2021 all-time high of 7628.9.
For lithium, UBS has raised its medium-term forecasts for hard rock lithium and hydroxide prices, but expects the current high price to moderate as more supplies reach the tight market. “From a 12- to 18-month perspective, [lithium] Prices will fall,” Shaw said. “But not so fast.”
market mover
In other news, shares of department store and online retailer Myer surged 5.3% to close at 89.5 cents after posting the highest sales in nearly two decades.
CEO John King said sales for the August-December period jumped 24.8% from the same period last year, the highest for the same period since 2004.
“The results of our highest sales in the first five months are particularly satisfying and, more importantly, they also reflect improved profitability within our business,” said King. increase.
Meyer’s strong day spilled over across the discretionary retail sector, with kitchen appliance business Breville jumping 7.5% and apparel retailer Premier Investments up 3.6%.
Shares of online retailer Kogan climbed 2.1% to $4.42 after announcing excess inventory fell 39% to $98.3 million between July and December. This increased her net cash to $74 million by the end of last year.
The day’s rally among the junior buy-now-pay-later tier weakened on Tuesday after Zip Co’s December quarter earnings fell short of analyst expectations.
Zip said it turned profitable on an adjusted basis in the U.S. in November and December, but its shares fell on fears it would run out of cash before exiting markets outside of Australia and the U.S.
Zip co-founder Peter Gray said:
“For our non-core businesses, we have a goal of zero cash burn by the end of this fiscal year.
The Zip plummeted 15.6% after rising 22.8% the day before, expecting better results. Sezul posted a better-than-expected December quarter, falling 8.7% after rising 37.6% the day before.
In the energy sector, Cooper Energy flagged a decline in gas production in the December quarter. The issue reduced his sales by 17% to $45 million.
Elsewhere in the lithium sector, broker Macquarie raised its price target for Patriot Battery Metals by 30% to $1.60 a share. Macquarie said his Corvette tenement at Patriot Battery Metals, 800 kilometers north of Montreal, could become one of the world’s largest lithium spodumene projects.
