Footise closed close to an all-time high on Friday. The blue-chip index almost surpassed its previous record of 8,047 points set in February last year, coming very close but pulling back in the afternoon.
It finished the day up by 0.91%, at 7,995.58 points. During the day, the index rose by 1.5%, boosted by major mining companies, including precious metals miner Fresnillo, which saw an increase of over 7%.
Gold surged past the US$2,400 mark on Friday, continuing its strong upward trend over several months and boosting mining stocks in the process. The precious metal reached a daily high of US$2,417 per ounce before settling at US$2,414.
@EuropeanGreenT (LON #EGT) CEO Aiden Lavelle and CFO Jack Kelly spoke with Proactive's Stephen Gunnion as their company commenced trading on the London Stock Exchange, having successfully raised more than £6.45 million, which exceeded their initial goal.
The funds are seen as a… https://t.co/pXyoSKcV36 pic.twitter.com/Zr9DuqOHpZ
— Share_Talk ™ (@Share_Talk) April 8, 2024
AIM welcomed HeLIX Exploration PLC (AIM: HEX) as it made an impressive debut on the junior market with a premium-priced initial public offering.
Helix successfully raised £7.5 million from an oversubscribed IPO, pricing its shares at 10p each. Following the IPO, shares briefly surged above 12p and have since stabilized at around 10.6p.
Brokerage firm SP Angel has pointed out the promising prospects of the helium sector, which is expected to bolster Helix’s market valuation in the future.
Analysts remarked, “Helium exploration is currently popular due to anticipated global shortages and strong demand projections from high-tech industries. These industries utilize inert helium gas for various purposes, including semiconductor chip manufacturing and purging the engines of space rockets.”
Harvest Minerals Ltd (AIM: HMI, OTC: HMIFF) saw its shares skyrocket earlier this week, climbing from 1.3p on Monday to over 3p by Wednesday—a surge of 130%.
This significant increase in share price was triggered by a highly positive sales update for its KP Fértil fertilizer product.
The company reported that orders through to the end of March 2024 reached 8,492 tonnes, representing 24% of the total volume sold in 2023, with expectations for even stronger sales in the latter half of the year.
Pantheon Resources PLC (AIM: PANR, OTCQX: PTHRF) announced a significant upgrade in the resource estimate for its Kodiak field located on Alaska’s North Slope, at the northernmost part of the Americas.
The revised estimate indicates that the Kodiak field holds 1.2 billion barrels of recoverable marketable liquids, reflecting an approximate 25% increase from prior assessments.
Pantheon’s technical director, Bob Rosenthal, stated, “With this updated resource estimate, we can shift our focus towards developing this and our expanding Ahpun resource, aiming to convert these resources into cash flow and value for our shareholders.”
Energy microcap Oracle Power PLC (AIM: ORCP) surged to the top of the AIM movers list after announcing a new acquisition in Western Australia. The international project developer has obtained an exclusive option to acquire a 100% interest in the Blue Rock Valley Copper and Silver Project, situated in the Ashburton Basin of the state. Following the news, the company’s stock price rallied by 60%.
This week, Bens Creek (AIM: BEN) emerged as one of the biggest decliners on AIM, with its stock dropping over 50%. The company’s board cited the low prices of metallurgical coal and production challenges as reasons for scaling back operations at its Bens Creek Operations WV subsidiary.
Similarly, the share price of Surface Transforms (AIM: SCE) fell by half after a first-quarter trading update. The company, which manufactures carbon fibre-reinforced ceramic disc brake materials, reported sales of £3 million, maintaining the previous quarter’s level, a result that evidently fell short of shareholder expectations.
Moreover, shares of R&Q Insurance decreased by a third following a pessimistic update from the AIM-listed non-life insurer about its future sales prospects. The company expects to report a significant pre-tax loss for the year, attributing it to unfavourable developments in its Legacy segment and increased corporate expenses related to the sale of Accredited, as stated in their announcement.
