S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) lithium shares will be watching how a surprising new move by Chinese authorities plays out.

The ASX 200 lithium stocks have been buoyed by soaring demand for lithium, a critical element in most EV batteries.

Although lithium prices have tumbled some 30% since hitting record highs last year, as short-term supply catches up to demand, the big miners are still handily outperforming the benchmark.

Here’s how their share prices have moved over the last 12 months:

• Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) shares are up 54%
• Core Lithium Ltd (ASX: CXO) shares are up 20%
• Allkem Ltd (ASX: AKE) shares are up 25%
• IGO Ltd (ASX: IGO) shares are up 19%
• Mineral Resources Ltd (ASX: MIN) shares are up 82%

So, why are these ASX 200 lithium shares watching China?

ASX 200 lithium shares eyeing 10% cut in global lithium supply

China is not only the world’s top producer of EVs, but it also produces some 75% of the world’s lithium-ion batteries. And according to the International Energy Agency, the Middle Kingdom accounts for around 60% of global lithium supplies.

And it’s this supply-side factor that will be drawing the interest of ASX 200 lithium shares.

This comes as news breaks that environmental officials are investigating lithium miners in Yichun, Jiangxi province for breaching regulations.

Yichun produces approximately 10% of the annual global lithium supply.

As Bloomberg reports, ore-processing operations in Yichun have been brought to a halt as the investigation takes place. It’s not yet known how long the closure orders will remain in place.

The refineries are still running.

What are the experts saying?

Commenting on the environmental crackdown that’s being followed by ASX 200 lithium shares and miners around the world, Susan Zou, an analyst at Rystad Energy said, “This supervision may mean that the inspection and control over lepidolite mining in China will be more stringent in the future.”

Lepidolite is a lithium-bearing mineral. And analysts had expected Jiangxi province would provide significant new supplies.

The big question now, and one which could well impact the price of lithium and hence ASX 200 lithium shares, is how long the shutdowns will last.

China’s annual parliamentary meetings take place in March.

“At present, the market speculation is that the probe may stop after the two sessions in China next month,” Zou said.

Chris Berry, president of industry consultancy House Mountain Partners, added (quoted by Bloomberg):

Any mine would typically have a stockpile of ore in place, so as long as the refineries are operating, you aren’t likely to see any whipsaw in lithium pricing. Should these mines be halted for months, then this becomes a different story.

Certainly, a story worth following.

The post Why ASX 200 lithium shares are eyeing this surprising new Chinese move appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

(function() {
function setButtonColorDefaults(param, property, defaultValue) {
if( !param || !param.includes(‘#’)) {
var button = document.getElementsByClassName(“pitch-snippet”)[0].getElementsByClassName(“pitch-button”)[0];
button.style[property] = defaultValue;
}
}

setButtonColorDefaults(“#43B02A”, ‘background’, ‘#5FA85D’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#43B02A”, ‘border-color’, ‘#43A24A’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#fff”, ‘color’, ‘#fff’);
})()

More reading

• Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Tuesday
• Looking to cash in on the inaugural Pilbara Minerals dividend? You better hurry!
• Someone just sold $250 million of Pilbara Minerals shares. Here’s what we know
• The Core Lithium share price has crashed 20% in February. What now?
• Are ASX nickel shares worth investing in?

Motley Fool contributor Bernd Struben has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/BnryOLe

Insurance Australia Group Ltd (ASX: IAG) shares have been a favourite of income investors over the long term.

That’s because the insurance giant has a tendency to return a decent portion of its earnings to shareholders through dividends each year.

One legendary investor that has been pocketing IAG dividends for a number of years is Warren Buffett. The Oracle of Omaha’s Berkshire Hathaway business acquired a stake in the company in 2015 and then topped up its position in a capital raising in 2021.

Generating a second income from IAG shares

What if you wanted to follow in Buffett’s footsteps and generate a $10,000 second income from IAG shares? Well, it certainly is possible.

According to Citi, its analysts are expecting a 17 cents per share partially franked dividend in FY 2023.

This means that if you wanted a $10,000 passive income from its shares, you would need just under 59,000 IAG shares.

Based on the current IAG share price of $4.65, that would mean a sizeable investment of $275,000. However, if you’re willing to be patient, you could potentially make a much smaller investment.

That’s because Citi is expecting a big jump in the company’s profitability in FY 2024 to underpin the almost doubling of its dividend to 30 cents per share.

Based on that dividend, you would only need to buy 33,333 IAG shares to generate a $10,000 second income. That equates to an investment of $155,000.

The good news is that with Citi then forecasting another dividend increase to 34 cents per share in FY 2025, those 33,333 IAG shares would provide investors with another $11,300 of income the following year if its analysts are on the money with their estimates.

Incidentally, Citi also sees plenty of upside potential for the company’s shares with its buy rating and $5.70 price target. This represents approximately 22% upside and would value those 33,333 shares at $190,000. That’s a gain of $35,000 on your original investment before factoring in the dividends. Not bad!

The post How I’d generate a $10,000 second income from IAG shares appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

(function() {
function setButtonColorDefaults(param, property, defaultValue) {
if( !param || !param.includes(‘#’)) {
var button = document.getElementsByClassName(“pitch-snippet”)[0].getElementsByClassName(“pitch-button”)[0];
button.style[property] = defaultValue;
}
}

setButtonColorDefaults(“#43B02A”, ‘background’, ‘#5FA85D’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#43B02A”, ‘border-color’, ‘#43A24A’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#fff”, ‘color’, ‘#fff’);
})()

More reading

• Why is the IAG share price sliding lower on Thursday?
• 3 ASX 200 shares trading ex-dividend before the end of this week
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• Why Audinate, Endeavour, IAG, and Vitura Health shares are charging higher
• IAG share price marching higher on 25% profit boost

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/saLZnrY

Well, this Tuesday has seen a reversal of fortunes for the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO). After yesterday’s painful session, the ASX 200 has bounced back so far today. At the time of writing, the Index has gained a rosy 0.48%, which puts it back to just under 7,260 points.

So let’s now dive a little deeper into these market moves by taking a look at the ASX 200 shares that are presently topping the share market’s trading volume charts, according to investing.com.

The 3 most traded ASX 200 shares by volume this Tuesday

Telstra Group Ltd (ASX: TLS)

ASX 200 telco Telstra is our first share worth a look at this Tuesday. So far today, a notable 15 million Telstra shares have been called in for trading. There’s been no news or major announcements out of Telstra today that might explain this volume.

So it’s therefore likely to be the movements of the Telstra share price itself that is to thank for this volume. Telstra shares have indeed had a bouncy day of trading.

The telco is currently up by 0.12% at $4.16 a share but swung to a temporary loss this morning at $4.12 before going as high as $4.18 a share soon afterwards. It’s probably this volatility that has resulted in so many Telstra shares changing hands.

Sayona Mining Ltd (ASX: SYA)

Next up this Tuesday we have the ASX 200 lithium stock Sayona Mining. This session has had a decent 24.21 million Sayona shares swap owners thus far. This is probably the result of Sayona’s pleasing share price gain that we’ve seen today.

At present, Sayona shares are up a robust 3.11% at 23 cents apiece. As we went through this afternoon, it’s been a rough and volatile month for this ASX 200 lithium share. But investors seem to be in a forgiving mood today, with this gain the likeliest explanation for the high volumes on display.

Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS)

Our third and most-traded ASX 200 share today is none other than another lithium stock in Pilbara Minerals. A hefty 30.72 million Pilbara shares have been bought and sold so far this session. Again, there’s no fresh news out of Pilbara itself. So it could be a few things that are putting this company at the top of the trading tables this Tuesday.

For one, Pilbara shares have bucked the market, and are currently down by 1.07% at $4.16 each. But there are also rumours flying around today that a very large parcel of Pilbara shares has changed hands.

Put that on top of Pilbara’s ex-dividend date for its first-ever dividend payment fast approaching, and we have a potent mix of factors that could all be driving the elevated volumes we are seeing.

The post Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Tuesday appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

(function() {
function setButtonColorDefaults(param, property, defaultValue) {
if( !param || !param.includes(‘#’)) {
var button = document.getElementsByClassName(“pitch-snippet”)[0].getElementsByClassName(“pitch-button”)[0];
button.style[property] = defaultValue;
}
}

setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘background’, ‘#5FA85D’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘border-color’, ‘#43A24A’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#fff”, ‘color’, ‘#fff’);
})()

More reading

• Looking to cash in on the inaugural Pilbara Minerals dividend? You better hurry!
• Someone just sold $250 million of Pilbara Minerals shares. Here’s what we know
• Why did the CSL share price outperform the ASX 200 in February?
• Why did ASX 200 lithium share Sayona dive 13% in February?
• Keen to pocket the boosted Telstra dividend? You’d better hurry

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has positions in Telstra Group. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Telstra Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/dEmWNks

The Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT) share price is on track to end the month on a positive note.

At the time of writing, the travel agent’s shares are up 0.5% to $18.75.

If the Flight Centre share price finishes here, it will mean a monthly gain of 9.5%.

This compares very favourably to the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), which is currently down 2.9% month to date.

Why is the Flight Centre share price outperforming?

On the very first day of the month, the Flight Centre share price surged higher after it released its unaudited numbers to support its capital raising.

Flight Centre revealed the more than tripling of its revenue to $1 billion thanks to a significant rebound in the travel market and a particularly strong performance from its corporate business.

And while the company’s revenue margins remain under a spot of pressure, this couldn’t stop Flight Centre from recording underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) of $95 million for the half. This was up from a $184 million loss a year earlier and 19% ahead of the midpoint of its original half-year guidance.

New acquisition

Also getting investors excited was news that the company has bolstered its offering with the acquisition of the Scott Dunn business for $211 million.

The company notes that Scott Dunn is a high-margin leisure business in the luxury travel segment with large average booking values and strong repeat bookings. It pulled in $199 million of total transaction value (TTV) and $51 million of revenue last year.

Commenting on the acquisition, Flight Centre’s managing director, Graham Turner, said:

Scott Dunn provides us with the opportunity to grow our leisure presence in the large UK and US luxury markets in an attractive and growing segment, while also fast-tracking our objective of developing a global luxury collection of travel brands. High-net-worth, time poor customers highly value the services of Scott Dunn as shown by their customers’ loyalty.

All in all, many in the market appear to believe the worst is now behind the company and the Flight Centre share price. Though, it is worth noting that Flight Centre shares remain one of the most shorted shares on the Australian share market.

The post How did the Flight Centre share price manage to leap almost 10% in February? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

(function() {
function setButtonColorDefaults(param, property, defaultValue) {
if( !param || !param.includes(‘#’)) {
var button = document.getElementsByClassName(“pitch-snippet”)[0].getElementsByClassName(“pitch-button”)[0];
button.style[property] = defaultValue;
}
}

setButtonColorDefaults(“#43B02A”, ‘background’, ‘#5FA85D’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#43B02A”, ‘border-color’, ‘#43A24A’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#fff”, ‘color’, ‘#fff’);
})()

More reading

• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• Here are the 10 most shorted ASX shares this week
• Are Flight Centre shares a buy following the ASX 200 company’s latest results?
• Flight Centre share price tumbles despite losses narrowing
• Flight Centre share price on watch as revenue triples, reaching $1b

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Flight Centre Travel Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/6Ms2iPY