Daily Special: Olympio Metals, Brookside Energy, Cleo Diagnostics, Zinc of Ireland, Macarthur Minerals

Australian shares recover after three days of losses as bond markets steady, while inflation and interest rate concerns remain. The Australian sharemarket traded higher on Thursday, with the S&P/ASX 200 up 35.2 points, or 0.39 per cent, to 9,013.6 at 12.15pm AEST. The rebound followed three days of losses and a stronger Wall Street session, with the banks helping support the local market.

Australian bond yields eased slightly after a volatile week, with the three-year yield at 4.77 per cent and the 10-year at 5.17 per cent. Markets are pricing in a 65 per cent chance of an RBA rate rise this month, as the Iran war adds to concerns that inflation could remain elevated.

Corporate Travel plunged 81 per cent after returning to trade, while energy stocks fell, miners and gold stocks were mostly higher, and NAB, Westpac and ANZ gained more than 1 per cent.

In small cap company news:

Olympio Metals (ASX:OLY) has commenced exploration at its Jacknife Project in Idaho and Raven Project in Montana, targeting historically high-grade silver mineralisation. Drill pads are being prepared at Jacknife, with a diamond rig expected to mobilise shortly for the company’s maiden drilling program. The program will target the historical Conjecture Mine, the Conjecture Shear Zone and other priority targets, while rock chip and soil sampling is also underway across Jacknife and Raven.

Brookside Energy (ASX:BRK) has successfully completed drilling at its Suttles Pad in Oklahoma after the Whalers well reached its planned total depth. Production casing has been installed and the drilling rig has now been released. Both the Sabres and Whalers wells have now been drilled to their planned depths, with Brookside moving towards completion and stimulation operations. The wells are planned to be completed using a zipper-frac configuration before being brought into sales.

Cleo Diagnostics (ASX:COV) has received the first production batch of commercially manufactured test kits for its Pre-Surgical Ovarian Cancer Test. The company received 125 kits manufactured by Bio-Techne and expects analytical validation to begin following quality control and documentation procedures. Cleo will evaluate three independently manufactured batches to demonstrate the reliability and consistency of its eight-biomarker assay. Analytical validation is targeted for completion by the end of 2026, with the company continuing to target an FDA 510(k) submission in the first half of 2027.

Zinc of Ireland (ASX:ZMI) has reported strong initial results from testing of its ARGO processing technology, achieving silver recoveries of up to 99 per cent, lead recoveries of up to 100 per cent and copper recoveries of up to 91 per cent. Testing was conducted on zinc leach residue from three European smelters. The company is now completing further testing targeting critical minerals including germanium, gallium and indium. Zinc of Ireland is fast-tracking development of ARGO, with a pilot plant targeted for early 2027.

Macarthur Minerals (ASX:MIO) has received an additional Programme of Work approval for proposed bulk sampling at its Lake Giles Hematite Project in Western Australia. The program is designed to support further assessment of product quality, processing options and potential blending opportunities. The approval covers additional areas of the project, with Destec progressing planning for the proposed bulk sampling program and mobilisation of mining equipment and a mobile crushing plant. Any on-ground activities remain subject to operational requirements, funding, land access and further approvals where required.

To hear from four ASX-listed companies across silver, gold, critical minerals and sovereign AI, join our investor webinar, Uncovering Hidden Gems on September 9th at 12:30 pm AEST.