The ASX stocks are shorters targeting and covering - Week 39

Welcome back to the Short Seller Series, where we recap the most shorted stocks on the ASX, along with those experiencing a notable rise and fall in short interest over the past week. 

Short selling data is four days behind today's date because reporting is not mandatory until three business days after the trade. The table below compares short interest changes between 20 September and 13 September 2023.

Most Shorted Stocks

Notable week-on-week changes:

• Pilbara Minerals remains the most shorted stock for a third consecutive week. Short interest in the stock crossed 10% for the first time on record last week.

• Genesis Minerals shorts spike to record highs. It was the 97th most shorted stock last week. The stock joined the ASX 200 on 18 September as part of the quarterly S&P rebalance.

• Core Lithium continues to experience a rise in short interest. The stock is down 17% in the past month and closed at a fresh 2-year low on Tuesday, 26 September.

Where are Shorters Covering?

Short interest continues to unwind stocks that have been sold to oblivion for various reasons (capital raisings with steep discounts, miners facing operational challenges and falling commodity prices, unprofitable tech companies etc.).

Where are Shorters Targeting?

The battery metals and gold sector continues to face mounting short pressure.

There's been no shortage of bearish headlines for the lithium sector. Below are a few key highlights from various sources:

• Volkswagen said it will suspend the production of two EV models in Germany in the first two weeks of October due to weaker than expected demand, according to Reuters

• Ford paused its US$3.5 billion EV battery plant in Michigan, according to Barron's

• Chinese lithium prices continued to fall last week amid weak demand, bearish sentiment and weak futures pricing, according to a Fastmarkets report

• “We haven’t purchased spot lithium carbonate over the past week because our supply is well covered by our long-term agreements. In general, cathode producers dare not stock up while the lithium price downtrend is expected to persist,” a Chinese cathode producer source said.