The S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries (XSO) came under pressure at the open on Friday, falling 1.58% to 3,368.60 at market open, down 54.20 points from Thursday’s close of 3,422.80.
The index opened at 3,422.80 before quickly dropping to an early low of 3,377.00, while the latest reading shortly after the open showed the XSO around 3,367. Over the past five sessions, the small-cap benchmark has fallen 2.99%.
eMetals Ltd (ASX:EMT) is preparing to launch its maiden drilling campaign at the Mineral Range Tungsten Project in Utah, with site works complete and the drilling contractor expected to mobilise in the week beginning September 28, 2026.
The company has completed grading of access tracks and clearing of drill pad locations, while all logistical preparations are now in place for the program targeting high-grade tungsten mineralisation in Beaver County.
Immutep Ltd (ASX:IMM) has outlined a more focused development strategy for eftilagimod alfa (efti), targeting head and neck cancer patients with negative PD-L1 expression and the neoadjuvant treatment of soft tissue sarcoma (STS).
The biotechnology company is preparing for its next clinical trials, with studies targeted to begin in the second half of 2027, subject to final trial design, regulatory discussions, manufacturing timelines, partnering and available resources.
Invictus Energy Ltd (ASX:IVZ) has awarded SLB, formerly Schlumberger, a key drilling and well services contract for the high-impact Musuma-1 exploration well at its Cabora Bassa Project in Zimbabwe, keeping the campaign on track for a November 2026 spud.
The contract is a major operational milestone as Invictus advances several workstreams in parallel, including construction of the Musuma-1 wellpad and access roads, preparation of drilling equipment and maintenance of Exalo Rig 202 ahead of mobilisation.
Ariana Resources PLC (AIM:AAU, ASX:AA2, FRA:4A6) told investors that drilling at its 1.6-million-ounce Dokwe Gold Project in Zimbabwe returned broad zones of gold mineralisation as work advances on the project’s definitive feasibility study.
Metallurgical drilling at Dokwe North included 24 metres grading 4.71 grams per tonne (g/t) gold from 172 metres, including 2 metres at 46.95g/t, while another hole returned 68 metres at 2.03g/t. At Dokwe Central, drilling intercepted 98 metres at 2.85g/t from 91 metres, including one metre at 93.72g/t.
Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA, XETRA:NVD) is stepping up its Australian infrastructure push, partnering with some of the country’s largest data centre and cloud operators on plans to deliver up to 2 gigawatts of AI computing infrastructure by 2027.
The chip giant is working with Firmus, Sharon AI, IREN, ResetData, CDC, NEXTDC (ASX:NXT), Megaport and AirTrunk to develop infrastructure capable of hosting successive generations of Nvidia’s DSX AI factories.
Identifai Genetics Ltd (ASX:ID1) is seeking to raise $10 million ahead of a proposed ASX listing under the code ID1, as it moves its AI-powered Windrose™ prenatal genetic testing platform towards clinical validation and commercialisation in the United States.
The company is offering 50 million shares at $0.20 each, implying an indicative undiluted market capitalisation of about $38.4 million on completion of the offer. The offer opened on September 10 and is scheduled to close on September 29, with ASX trading expected to begin on October 16, subject to satisfaction of the offer conditions.
Bitcoin remained under pressure around US$78,000 on Thursday morning as surging oil prices, rising bond yields and growing expectations of another US interest rate hike kept cryptocurrency investors cautious.
The world's largest cryptocurrency was trading around US$78,300, while Ethereum changed hands near US$2,470. XRP was around US$1.40 and Solana near US$102, with most major tokens slipping over the past 24 hours.
Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:META, XETRA:FB2A, SIX:FB) shares jumped more than 6% after the company unveiled Muse, a personal artificial intelligence agent designed to carry out tasks including sending emails, booking travel and making purchases.
The market reaction suggested investors see Muse as a potential step towards monetising Meta's heavy AI spending, which is expected to reach US$130 billion to US$145 billion in capital expenditure in 2026
American Rare Earths Ltd (ASX:ARR, OTCQX:ARRNF) has appointed minerals processing specialist Dr Sanja Miskovic as chief technical advisor to support feasibility work and process optimisation at its Halleck Creek Rare Earths Project in Wyoming.
Effective immediately, Dr Miskovic will guide flowsheet development, beneficiation, hydrometallurgical recovery and scale-up activities aimed at supporting production of separated rare earth oxides in Wyoming.
Ora Banda Mining Ltd (ASX:OBM, OTC:ESGFF, FRA:M6N) has started underground mining at its Waihi gold mine near Davyhurst in Western Australia. This is the company's third underground mine development in three years while new drilling has highlighted further high-grade potential at the nearby Midnight prospect.
Waihi, around three kilometres west of Ora Banda’s Davyhurst processing plant, is expected to begin contributing high-grade ore from mid-2027, ahead of the planned commissioning of the company’s new 3.0 million tonnes per annum processing plant in early 2028.
First Graphene Ltd (ASX:FGR, OTCQB:FGPHF, FRA:M11) has secured its first production purchase order from Australian manufacturer Pacific Urethanes Pty Ltd for PureGRAPH® graphene to be used in polyurethane systems targeting fire-retardant applications in the mining industry.
The order introduces both a new commercial customer and a new application for PureGRAPH®, with the graphene material to be incorporated into polyurethane formulations aimed at improving fire performance while maintaining the durability and wear resistance required in harsh mining environments.
Critical Resources Ltd (ASX:CRR, FRA:9S70) has completed more than a month of continuous cycling of a full-format laboratory pouch cell using its solvent-free Dry Supersonic Deposition (DSD) cathode technology, establishing an engineering baseline for the next phase of its solid-state battery development program.
The hand-assembled cell underwent around 780 hours of continuous electrochemical testing at a 0.2C charge-discharge rate, completing 65 cycles and retaining approximately 75% of its initial capacity.
Aruma Resources Ltd (ASX:AAJ) has identified three high-priority exploration areas at its 100%-owned Fiery Creek Copper Project in Queensland’s Mt Isa copper belt after completing a project-wide geological study and new 3D structural model.
The study integrated geological mapping, drilling, geochemistry, airborne magnetics, gravity data and three-dimensional inversion modelling, producing what Aruma described as the first comprehensive geological and structural interpretation of the project area.
The S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries (ASX) finished yesterday at 3,451.80 points, down 0.23% or 7.90 points, although the index remained 0.15% higher, or 5.20 points, over the past five sessions.
Despite the softer session for the broader small-cap market, several companies delivered project, technology and commercial updates spanning copper exploration, battery materials, advanced graphene applications and gold development.
Sovereign Metals Ltd (ASX:SVM, OTCQX:SVMLF, AIM:SVML, FRA:SVM) traded at 27.70p, up 4%, on Wednesday as a scoping study indicated the potential for $84 million in additional annual EBITDA at Kasiya.
The scoping study estimates a $722 million increase in Kasiya’s pre-tax net present value, discounted at 8%, from $29 million of additional initial capital.
Sovereign Metals Ltd (ASX:SVM, OTCQX:SVMLF, AIM:SVML, FRA:SVM) said adding rare earth recovery to its Kasiya project in Malawi could generate an incremental US$722 million pre-tax NPV, for around US$29 million of capital to first production.
A scoping study estimated a 151% pre-tax internal rate of return and payback of about 1.5 years, with the proposed circuit recovering monazite from mineral streams already generated by the rutile and graphite processing flowsheet.
Austal Limited (ASX:ASB) shares jumped 6% to $4.61 after the Australian shipbuilder confirmed its board and advisers would consider a higher proposal for its US operations from Miami-based Wildcat Infrastructure.
Wildcat has submitted a non-binding proposal valuing Austal USA at between US$1.25 billion and US$1.35 billion on a cash-free, debt-free basis, exceeding an earlier approach from South Korea’s Hanwha.
Innovaero is scheduled to list on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) on September 22 after completing a fully subscribed initial public offering (IPO) that raised A$40 million before costs to accelerate its sovereign defence and aerospace manufacturing ambitions.
The Perth-based aerospace and defence original equipment manufacturer issued 80 million shares at A$0.50 each, giving the company an indicative market capitalisation of A$158.3 million on listing.
QBiotics Group Limited has lodged a prospectus with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) for an offer seeking to raise up to A$40 million from new and existing shareholders, as the company advances its tigilanol tiglate oncology program following encouraging Phase II head and neck cancer results.
The offer has a minimum raising of A$5 million, with full details contained in the prospectus.
WhiteRock Lithium Corp (ASX:WLC) has more than doubled the known strike length of the Spodumene Mountain lithium system at its 100%-owned Banana Lithium Project in Québec, Canada, after all seven holes from the opening phase of its 2026 drilling campaign intersected pegmatite containing visually identified spodumene.
The drilling extended the known strike by 115%, from around 650 metres to 1.4 kilometres, adding 350 metres to the southwest and 400 metres to the northeast beyond the limits of WhiteRock’s 2024 program. Pegmatite intersections reached up to 77.4 metres, with coarse-grained spodumene observed in all seven holes.
D3 Energy Ltd (ASX:D3E, OTCQX:DNRGF) will undertake remedial cementing work at its Nooitgedacht Project in South Africa after downhole logging confirmed gas-bearing zones in both the NGT245 D and NGT245 E wells, while identifying deeper water inflows that are currently restricting gas flow.
Analysis of recent geophysical logging showed water from deeper production zones had risen above the gas-bearing intervals in both wells. With reservoir pressure at the location extremely low, the elevated water level is inhibiting gas flow.
Bitcoin retreated below US$79,000 on Wednesday as investors reduced exposure to risk assets ahead of US inflation data and next week’s Federal Reserve interest-rate decision.
The world’s largest cryptocurrency was trading at about US$78,751, down 0.7%, after moving between an intraday low of US$77,680 and a high of US$79,432.
Europe’s ambition to reduce its dependence on US artificial intelligence platforms has received its biggest financial boost yet, with France’s Mistral AI raising €3 billion in a Samsung-led funding round.
The Series D valued the three-year-old company at more than €21 billion after the investment, almost doubling its valuation in roughly a year and representing the largest equity fundraising completed by a European technology company.
Noble Helium Ltd (ASX:NHE, OTC:NBHEF, FRA:GN1) has begun mobilising a drilling rig for its 2026 helium exploration campaign at the 100%-owned North Rukwa Project in Tanzania, with the Kinambo-1 well expected to spud in early October.
BoreXpert will move the Schramm T130 XD rig from Kenya to the Kinambo site, with arrival expected during the final week of September.
Sovereign Metals Ltd (ASX:SVM, OTCQX:SVMLF, AIM:SVML, FRA:SVM) has outlined the potential to add US$722 million in pre-tax net present value to its Kasiya Critical Minerals Project in Malawi by recovering a rare earth-rich monazite concentrate as a by-product.
A new scoping study estimates the rare earth circuit would require incremental capital of around US$29 million and could deliver a pre-tax internal rate of return of 151%, with payback in approximately 18 months.
Bitcoin remained pinned around US$79,000 on Tuesday as cryptocurrency markets absorbed stronger-than-expected US employment data and the prospect that interest rates could remain higher for longer.
The world's largest cryptocurrency was changing hands at roughly US$78,950, down around 1.4%, while Ethereum slipped about 1% to US$2,483. Solana was around US$103.60 after losing more than 2%, with XRP down a similar amount at about US$1.39.
Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL, XETRA:APC) is preparing for one of its most closely watched product launches in years, with its September 9 event expected to feature the company’s first foldable iPhone alongside the new iPhone 18 Pro range.
The potential launch marks a significant change for Apple, which has so far left the foldable smartphone market to rivals including Samsung and Huawei.
Astral Resources NL (ASX:AAR) has delivered another batch of thick, high-grade gold intersections from infill drilling at the Theia deposit, further strengthening the proposed Stage 1 open pit at its 100%-owned Mandilla Gold Project near Kalgoorlie.
Assays from the latest 41 reverse circulation holes covering 4,456 metres returned a weighted average grade of 1.54 g/t gold, above the 1.1 g/t Mineral Resource grade within the Stage 1 pit and continuing to validate Astral’s geological and resource models.
The Australian small-cap market opened modestly higher on Tuesday as record copper prices and stronger iron ore provided support for resources stocks.
The S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries was up 4 points, or 0.12%, at 3,475.20.
Aruma Resources Ltd (ASX:AAJ) is progressing its Phase 2 diamond drilling campaign at the Tillex Copper-Silver Project in Ontario’s Timmins mining district, with six holes completed for 1,046 metres and first assay results expected within the next two weeks.
The 3,600-metre program is testing strike, width and depth extensions to the known high-grade copper-silver mineralisation at Tillex, with drilling now about 100 metres southwest along strike of the southern end of the existing drill-defined high-grade pod.
archTIS Ltd (ASX:AR9, OTCQB:ARHLF) has secured a three-year contract worth about A$445,000 with a leading US-based private aviation services company, extending the reach of its data-centric security technology beyond its traditional government and defence markets.
The customer will deploy archTIS’ Spirion Sensitive Data Platform (SDP) across its Microsoft 365 environment, workstations and enterprise file shares to improve the discovery, classification and protection of sensitive information.
Krakatoa Resources Ltd (ASX:KTA, LSE:, AIM:) has delivered high-grade gold and antimony from the first batch of assays from its 2026 drilling program at the Zopkhito Antimony-Gold Project in Georgia.
The standout result came from DD26ZOP001, which returned 1.8 metres at 11.09 g/t gold and 3.56% antimony from 52.6 metres, including 1.15 metres at 10.86 g/t gold and 5.51% antimony.
Prescient Therapeutics Ltd (ASX:PTX) has extended the closing date of its share purchase plan (SPP) by one week, giving eligible shareholders additional time to participate in the raising of up to $7 million.
The clinical-stage oncology company's SPP will now close at 5 pm AEST on Tuesday, September 15, rather than September 8, after several shareholders requested more time because of delays in receiving offer documentation.
Titan Minerals Ltd (ASX:TTM, OTC:TTTNF) has extended wide, high-grade gold-silver mineralisation at the 100%-owned Dynasty Gold Project in southern Ecuador.
Extensional drilling at the Brecha-Comanche target has confirmed a 30-metre lateral extension to mineralisation discovered during the company’s 2025 drilling campaign.
The Australian sharemarket is expected to open slightly lower as rising oil prices renew inflation concerns, although record copper prices could support heavyweight mining stocks.
ASX 200 futures were pointing to a decline of 7 points, or 0.1%, at the open.
Bitcoin was holding around the US$80,000 mark on Monday morning as cryptocurrency markets weighed strong institutional buying against renewed uncertainty over the path of US interest rates.
The world's largest cryptocurrency was little changed over 24 hours after a volatile week that saw it briefly climb above US$82,000, its highest level since May, before retreating following stronger-than-expected US employment data.
Anthropic is moving closer to what could become one of the largest initial public offerings in history, with the Claude developer reportedly preparing to begin marketing its IPO from mid-October and investors discussing a valuation of around US$2 trillion.
The artificial intelligence company confidentially submitted a draft S-1 registration statement to the US Securities and Exchange Commission on June 1, giving it the option to proceed with a listing once the regulatory review is completed. Anthropic has not formally set an offering price, number of shares or valuation.
Josh Gilbert, lead analyst for APAC at eToro Group Ltd (Unlisted (US):ETRO), shares his two things to watch in Australia in the coming days.
Aussie earnings season is done, and the results overall were better than what many investors would have expected going in.
Anteris Technologies Pty Ltd (ASX:AVR, NASDAQ:AVR) has appointed experienced financial executive Brent Moen as chief financial officer, effective September 12, 2026 AEST.
Moen brings more than 25 years of leadership experience across public and private companies, with expertise spanning capital markets, investor relations, mergers and acquisitions and scaling growth-focused organisations, including medical technology businesses.
Tamboran Resources Corporation (NYSE:TBN, ASX:TBN, OTC:TBNRL, FRA:O8R) has begun initial gas sales from the Shenandoah South Pilot Project in the Northern Territory’s Beetaloo Basin, marking the first volumes from the basin to enter the Northern Territory gas market.
Tamboran and joint venture partner Daly Waters Energy, LP (DWE) delivered the first gas into the Northern Territory network over the weekend, beginning the commissioning phase of the project.
Minds by Animoca Brands Corporation Ltd (Unlisted (AU):AB1) has teamed up with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to launch the AWS Agentic Football Cup – Virtual League, a global competition designed to give participants hands-on experience building and managing teams of artificial intelligence agents.
The inaugural Alpha Season will begin on September 11, with participants competing for the chance to attend the finals at AWS re in Las Vegas and share in a US$50,000 prize pool.
It's an uncertain start to the week for the Australian sharemarket after unexpectedly strong US employment growth increased expectations that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates this month.
ASX 200 futures were down just 1 point at 9,002, pointing to a broadly flat open. However, that indication preceded a weekend escalation in tensions between the US and Iran, adding uncertainty to Monday’s session.
