ASX 200 Live Today - Friday, 18th July
The S&P/ASX 200 is set to push another fresh all-time high on Friday. Here are today's top stories.
Today’s ASX 200 Updates
Welcome to our live ASX coverage for Thursday, July 17. We’re excited to be trialing this new format. Expect a high volume of posts pre-market and more periodic updates throughout the day. Today's live blog will wrap up around 3:00 pm AEST. Be sure to refresh manually for the latest updates — and let us know how we can make it even better.
ASX 200 now closer to 8,800
[2:35 pm] Today's turning into a historic day, where the market is not far from crossing the 8,800 level.
The S&P/ASX 200 is currently up 129 pts (+1.50%) to 8,768. Every sector has continued to trend higher intraday, with strong gains from heavyweight names like CSL (+3.5%), BHP (+3.1%), Rio Tinto (+2.0%) and Westpac (+2.0%).
BHP rallies on strong FY25 production
[1:41 pm] BHP is trading 3.0% higher to $40.27 after reporting a clean operational beat for FY25. As we noted earlier today:
Q4 iron ore production up 2.0% year-on-year to 70.3Mt and above 69.2Mt consensus (1.6% beat)
Q4 copper production up 2% to 516.2kt and above 499.0kt ests (3.4% beat)
FY25 iron ore production up 1.0% to 263Mt vs. 255-265.5Mt guidance (1.1% beat vs. midpoint)
FY25 copper production up 8% to 2,016.7kt vs. 1,845-2,045kt guidance (3.7% beat vs. midpoint)
The strong operational beat was slightly offset by ballooning costs for its Jansen potash project stage 1, with capex estimates soaring from US$5.7 billion to US$7.0-7.4 billion.
Tali Resources doubles on debut
[12:24 pm] Tali Resources made its debut at 12:00 pm AEST, opening at 42 cents vs. its IPO offer price of 20 cents.
The stock briefly traded as high as 42 cents.
Tali is actively advancing the flagship West Arunta Project in Western Australia, where its landholding extends over 4,000 km2.
Company prospectus: Link | Company page: Tali Resources (TR2)
ASX 200 hits 8,700 for the first time
[12:18 pm] Markets are running hot today, with the S&P/ASX 200 crossing the 8,700 for the first time around 10:50 am and continuing to push intraday highs. Every sector is red, with BHP lifting the Materials sector and Healthcare also receiving some love (third worst performing sector in the past 12-months).
S&P/ASX 200 sectors as at 12:20 pm AEST
Chinese lithium futures open higher
[11:33 am] Chinese lithium futures opened 2% higher at 11:00 am AEST, currently up 3.9% to 70,720 yuan a tonne.
Prices haven't traded with a "7" handle since April 2025.
Lithium stocks opened broadly higher, with most stocks trading around intraday highs.
Ticker | Company | % Chg | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
PLL | Piedmont Lithium | 8.70% | $0.13 |
PLS | Pilbara Minerals | 6.16% | $1.67 |
LTR | Liontown Resources | 5.60% | $0.89 |
GL1 | Global Lithium Resources | 5.13% | $0.21 |
PMT | Patriot Battery Metals | 4.23% | $0.37 |
LLL | Leo Lithium | 2.02% | $0.51 |
CXO | Core Lithium | 1.90% | $0.11 |
VUL | Vulcan Energy Resources | 1.12% | $3.62 |
Small caps making moves
[10:50 am] Here are the top small caps ($200m to $1bn market cap) gainers and losers in early trade.
Ticker | Company | % Chg | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
SYR | Syrah Resources | 18.97% | $0.35 |
NVX | Novonix | 15.96% | $0.55 |
PLL | Piedmont Lithium | 8.70% | $0.13 |
GG8 | Gorilla Gold Mines | 6.94% | $0.39 |
STX | Strike Energy | 6.90% | $0.16 |
MEI | Meteoric Resources | 6.67% | $0.16 |
MPW | Metal Powder Works | 6.10% | $1.83 |
CRN | Coronado Global | 6.06% | $0.18 |
WC8 | Wildcat Resources | 5.88% | $0.18 |
ARU | Arafura Rare Earths | 5.85% | $0.22 |
Ticker | Company | % Chg | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
GMN | Gold Mountain | -33.33% | $5.00 |
EOS | Electro Optic Systems | -7.43% | $3.43 |
LGL | Lynch Group Holdings | -7.08% | $1.71 |
ASL | Andean Silver | -5.78% | $1.31 |
GMNDA | Gold Mountain | -4.35% | $0.11 |
VYS | Vysarn | -3.64% | $0.53 |
BBT | Betr Entertainment | -3.33% | $0.29 |
29M | 29Metals | -3.03% | $0.32 |
BMN | Bannerman Energy | -3.01% | $2.90 |
SHV | Select Harvests | -2.93% | $3.81 |
Droneshield extends pullback
[10:43 am] Droneshield (-6.8%) is down for a second straight session, with today's weakness likely driven by a downgrade from Bell Potter.
The analysts downgraded the stock to Hold (from Buy) but upgraded their target price to $3.80 (from $2.60) to reflect recent contract wins.
"Listed peers in the drone/counter-drone sectors have undergone major re-ratings both domestically (ELS, EOS) and internationally (AVAV, KTOS), however, whilst we are bullish on the sector and view DRO as a market leader, the downside risk is prevalent at the current valuation," the analysts said in a note this morning.
Top gainers and losers in early trade
[10:27 am] Here are the top S&P/ASX 200 gainers and losers in early trade.
Ticker | Company | % Chg | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
MSB | Mesoblast | 19.55% | $2.14 |
PLS | Pilbara Minerals | 6.67% | $1.68 |
ILU | Iluka Resources | 4.99% | $5.26 |
LTR | Liontown Resources | 4.76% | $0.88 |
MIN | Mineral Resources | 4.40% | $28.97 |
IGO | IGO | 3.42% | $5.00 |
LOV | Lovisa Holdings | 3.34% | $33.85 |
ZIP | Zip | 3.18% | $2.92 |
IFL | Insignia Financial | 2.79% | $4.05 |
XYZ | Block | 2.73% | $109.31 |
Ticker | Company | % Chg | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
DRO | Droneshield | -7.69% | $3.24 |
SNZ | Summerset Group | -6.70% | $10.31 |
YAL | Yancoal Australia | -4.52% | $5.92 |
DYL | Deep Yellow | -3.26% | $1.78 |
EDV | Endeavour Group | -2.06% | $4.05 |
ALX | Atlas Arteria | -1.74% | $5.08 |
PDN | Paladin Energy | -1.21% | $7.77 |
MPL | Medibank Private | -1.07% | $5.10 |
REH | Reece | -1.06% | $13.09 |
GMD | Genesis Minerals | -1.01% | $3.91 |
Syrah opens 34% higher
[10:04 am] Syrah Resources opened 34.4% higher to 39 cents following overnight news that the US imposed a 93.5% anti-dumping duty on Chinese graphite imports.
The stock struggled for further upside, currently up 25.8% to 36.5 cents.
BHP delivers record copper and iron ore production in 2025
[9:49 am] "BHP delivered record iron ore and copper production, which demonstrates the strength and resilience of our business and underpins our ability to deliver growth and returns to shareholders amid global volatility and uncertainty," said CEO Mike Henry.
The key highlights from the quarterly include:
Q4 iron ore production of 70.3Mt, up 2% YoY and above 69.2Mt ests (1.6% beat)
Q4 copper production of 516.2kt, up 2% YoY and above 499.0kt ests (3.4% beat)
FY25 iron ore production of 263Mt vs. 255-265.5Mt guidance (1.1% beat vs. midpoint)
FY25 copper production of 2,016.7kt vs. 1,845-2,045kt guidance (3.7% beat vs. midpoint)
"We remain on track to achieve FY25 unit cost guidance at Escondida, Spence, Copper SA and WAIO, and revised guidance at BMA."
Jansen Stage 1 potash project is 68% complete
Overall, the quarterly and full-year numbers look very strong vs. consensus and company guidance.
Source: ASX Announcement | Company page: BHP (BHP)
Watch graphite stocks this morning
[9:39 am] The US imposed a 93.5% anti-dumping duty on Chinese graphite imports, with a total effective tariff 160%. These new tariffs follow a complaint by the American Active Anode Material Producers over unfair pricing by Chinese firms.
The Commerce Department issued the preliminary determination affirming the anti-dumping duties in a document on Friday, and said the final determination should be announced by 5 December, according to Bloomberg. Graphite is a key component in EV batteries and China supplied approximately two-thirds of US imports in 2023.
Overseas graphite names rallied sharply (all tiny market caps), including Graphite One (+19.7%), Westwater Resources (+15.3%), Nouveau Monde Graphite (+25.8%) and Northern Graphite Corp (+4.2%).
Source: Bloomberg
A tailwind for lithium stocks
[9:29 am] Lithium stocks experienced a sharp rebound in the last two hours of trade on Thursday, following an unexpected announcement out of China.
Chinese authorities ordered Zangge Mining to immediately suspend operations at its 11 kt LCE Qarhan brine project in Qinghai, citing “illegal mining” activity. The rare government-led shutdown highlights a stricter regulatory approach to lithium resource oversight. This follows recent restrictions on Yichun lepidolite production and adds to the narrative of increasing regulatory risk in China.
Although the production loss is relatively small (~1% of expected global LCE supply in 2025), the move has lifted market sentiment, with SQM’s latest SC6 auction clearing at US$750 a tonne — above current spot prices. Should the suspension continue into the December quarter, it may tighten Chinese supply and provide further support to lithium prices.
Pilbara Minerals was trading around 5% lower at 2:30 pm AEST on Thursday, and aggressively rallied to a +1.9% close. Let's see if this momentum continues on Friday.
Pilbara Minerals intraday price chart (Source: TradingView)
CC Capital readies binding offer
[9:18 am] Insignia Financial is set to receive a binding offer from CC Capital 'any day', according to The Australian.
Sources say the two sides remain "fully engaged" and the offer price is likely to be above $4.00 per share.
CC Capital previously submitted a non-binding proposal in March 2025, valuing Insignia Financial at approximately $3.35 billion, with a bid of A$5 per share.
Bain Capital, another private equity firm, withdrew its A$3.34 billion buyout offer in May 2025, citing "macro uncertainty caused by volatility in global capital markets." This left CC Capital as the sole remaining suitor in the takeover process.
Source: The Australian
Yancoal reports Q2 production and outlook
[9:11 am] Yancoal reported its quarterly report after market close on Thursday. A few bits of new data, including:
Q2 attributable ROM coal production up 17% to 12.7Mt
Q2 attributable saleable coal production up 15%to 9.4Mt
Q2 average realised coal price down 22% to A$142 a tonne
Closing cash balance of $1.8bn as at 30 June 2025 (vs. $8.2bn market cap)
CEO comment: "We have delivered the best first-half operational performance of the past five years ... If we sustain the first-half attributable saleable coal production rate, we will be in the upper half of the guidance range this year."
Coal market commentary: "International coal indices faced a soft pricing environment due to strong supply and subdued demand in both the thermal and metallurgical coal markets during Q2."
Yancoal said it expects 2025 production to "potentially be toward the upper end" of its 35-39Mt guidance and reaffirmed its cash and capex guidance.
Source: ASX Announcement | Company page: Yancoal (YAL)
Netflix tops high expectations
[9:07 am] Netflix (+1.9%) topped Q2 earnings expectations overnight and lifted its full-year outlook for sales and profit margins. Key highlights from the result include:
Q2 beat across the board: Revenue rose 16% YoY to $11.1bn, EPS jumped to $7.19 (both ahead of estimates).
Raised FY guidance: Now sees FY revenue up to $45.2bn, margins at 29.5%, and net income over $10bn.
Global strength: Over two-thirds of customers are outside the US; FX also provided a tailwind.
Content key to growth: Strong performance from Ginny & Georgia S3 and Squid Game finale helped offset seasonality.
Ad tier gaining traction: Ad revenue is expected to double in 2024, with lower-cost plans in a dozen markets.
US subscriber growth slowing: Password-sharing crackdown gains have tapered, but domestic revenue still rose 15%.
PepsiCo, TSMC and United Airlines earnings at a glance
[9:04 am] A few key takeaways from key Q2 reporters last night.
United Airlines (+3.1%):
Q2 result: Adjusted diluted EPS of $3.87 beat consensus estimates by approximately 5%, though total revenue per available seat mile declined 4% year-over-year with pre-tax margin at 8.2%
Key Drivers: Operational constraints at Newark hit margins by 1.2 points, but travel demand picked up significantly since July with CEO describing it as "like a light switch at the end of June for business"
Taiwan Semiconductor (+3.3%)
Q2 result: Consolidated revenue of NT$933.79 billion with net income of NT$398.27 billion (diluted EPS US$2.47) representing 38.6% revenue growth and beating consensus estimates
Key Drivers: Strong AI demand boosted advanced technology sales to record levels, though gross margins are forecast between 57-59% due to Foundry 2.0 cost drag from Arizona and Kumamoto facility expansions
PepsiCo (+7.4%):
Q2 result: Adjusted EPS of $2.12 beat consensus of $2.03 on net sales of $22.73 billion (up 1% year-over-year) with organic revenue growth of 2.1%
Key Drivers: International business delivered 6% organic revenue growth with margin expansion, prompting the company to improve 2025 EPS outlook from a 3% decline to just 1.5% decline
S&P 500 and Nasdaq at record highs
[8:57 am] S&P 500 (+0.54%) and Nasdaq (+0.75%) both hit fresh all-time highs overnight.
A relatively broad-based rally, with Financials (+0.92%), Tech (+0.89%), Industrials (+0.87%) and Staples (+0.87%) leading the move
Real Estate (-0.16%) and Healthcare (-1.18%) were the only sectors that finished lower
Equal-weight S&P 500 outperformed the official benchmark by 28 bps, suggesting strength was coming from other pockets of the market (not just tech)
JPMorgan (+1.4%) has nudged its way into the top ten largest US companies
Markets further bolstered by strong US retail sales data, lack of major trade/tariff escalations
Netflix, United Airlines, Pepsi and TSMC all posted strong Q2 earnings
US retail sales surge
[8:51 am] US retail sales rose 0.6% month-on-month in June, smashing expectations of 0.1% growth and rebounding after two straight monthly declines. A few key data points include:
Sales excluding autos rose 0.5% (vs. +0.3% est)
Control group sales (feeds into GDP) also up 0.5% (vs. +0.3% est), suggesting a strong end to first half
Gains were broad-based with 10 of 13 categories up, led by a surprise rebound in motor vehicle sales
Auto strength was unexpected, as administrative data showed lower unit sales and car prices declined in June CPI
Restaurants and bars spending rose 0.6%, showing continued strength in services demand
The stronger-than-expected data pushed Fed rate cut expectations 3 bps lower to 41 bp of cuts by year end.
Good morning!
[8:36 am] S&P/ASX 200 futures are up 32pts (+0.37%), suggesting the market is set to mark another all-time high and eye the 8,700 level.
If you’re new to the blog – catch up quick via today’s Morning Wrap.
