The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) experienced a slight downturn today, with the S&P/ASX200 closing at 8,396.9 points, a decrease of 0.13%. Despite this, Hawsons Iron (ASX:HIO), a junior magnetite explorer, saw its share price surge for the second consecutive day, reaching a new 52-week high of $0.04. This increase was driven by significant trading activity, with 30.8 million shares exchanged. The ASX queried Hawsons about the price surge, and Hawsons pointed to a recent update on its dry comminution test work program and mineral resource variability study as a possible explanation for the increased investor interest.
While the materials and industrials sectors experienced declines, the energy sector was the top performer, adding 2.22%. Hawsons Iron is currently collating engineering and cost data for an updated Prefeasibility Study (PFS) after completing dry comminution testwork. They are also preparing a project report, which will be used as the basis for defining a maiden reserve and delivering an updated PFS. Other notable movements included Catalina Resources (ASX:CTN), which jumped 50%, and Pivotal Metals (ASX:PVT), which advanced 33.3% following the identification of gold targets in its Québec project.
