The Australia and New Zealand Banking GrpLtd (ASX: ANZ) share price has been a very positive performer in 2021.

Since the start of the year, the banking giant’s shares have risen a sizeable 19.3%.

This is more than double the return of the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) over the same period.

Where next for the ANZ share price?

Unfortunately, one leading broker believes the ANZ share price may now have peaked.

According to a note out of Citi this week, its analysts have retained their sell rating and $28.00 price target on the bank’s shares.

While this still implies potential upside of almost 2% from the current ANZ share price of $27.49, it pales in comparison to the returns on offer elsewhere.

For example, Citi currently has a buy rating and $30.00 price target on the Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) share price. That price target implies potential upside of 19% over the next 12 months for the shares of Australia’s oldest bank.

What did the broker say about ANZ?

According to its latest note, Citi has warned investors not to get excited by the prospect of rising rates in New Zealand.

Although the broker acknowledges that ANZ has the largest exposure to the New Zealand market, it doesn’t expect it to benefit as greatly from rising interest rates as the market may think.

In addition to this, the broker has recently voiced its concerns over APRA data which showed a sharp contraction in ANZ’s mortgage book. This was particularly disappointing given strong market conditions.

Citi suspects that a number of internal issues, such as manual systems, could be weighing on its performance.

As a result of these factors, the broker believes ANZ could fall short of core profit expectations in the second half. In light of this, it doesn’t appear to be in a rush to change its rating on the ANZ share price.

The post Why this top broker thinks the ANZ (ASX:ANZ) share price is overcooked appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Westpac (ASX:WBC) and this ASX dividend share could be buys in October
• ANZ (ASX:ANZ) share price slips as bank faces multimillion-dollar lawsuit
• Confirmed: APRA is planning action on home loans, ASX 200 banks drop
• Why these experts say the Westpac (ASX:WBC) share price could be on the way up
• Why these experts think the NAB (ASX:NAB) share price is on the way up

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro owns shares of Westpac Banking Corporation. 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 Bruce Jackson.

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Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) might be a good idea to look at for potential investment ideas in October 2021.

ETFs have the potential to offer a good level of diversification within a single investment, if investors choose an appropriate one.

Some ETFs give exposure to an index, such as iShares S&P 500 ETF (ASX: IVV). Whereas there are others that might focus on a particular theme or industry like cybersecurity or e-gaming.

Here are two to consider:

VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF (ASX: MOAT)

This is an ETF that can provide quality international diversification for Aussies. The portfolio is focused on US shares.

The portfolio is based on an investment process used by Morningstar analysts that look for businesses with a wide economic moat. That simply means that the businesses have a very strong competitive position compared to the rest of the market.

In-particular, the analysts are looking for companies that are likely to have a wide economic moat for many years into the future.

After finding those businesses, the analysts will only put a business into the portfolio if it’s trading at an attractive price compared to the Morningstar estimate of fair value.

At the moment, some of the ETF’s largest positions include: Wells Fargo, Salesforce.com, Cheniere Energy, Alphabet, Microsoft, Compass Minerals, Guidewire Software, Tyler Technologies, Berkshire Hathaway, Boeing and Facebook.

In terms of sector diversification, there are five industries with weightings of more than 10% and only one that’s just over 20%: healthcare (20.3%), IT (16.6%), industrials (15.4%), financials (13.3%) and consumer staples (11.1%).

Past performance is not a guarantee of future results, as VanEck says, but it has performed well over the last three years with a return of an average of 19.6% per annum. That was better than the S&P 500’s average return of 17% per annum over the same time period. The ETF’s return is after the annual management fee of 0.49%.

Betashares Nasdaq 100 ETF (ASX: NDQ)

This is an ETF that gives investors exposure to the biggest non-financial companies on the NASDAQ, which is a stock exchange in the US.

We are talking about the biggest names in the world like Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Tesla, Alphabet and Facebook.

There is quite a heavy technology focus with this ETF, with around half the portfolio invested in IT. There is another 19.9% invested in communication services and 16.8% invested in the consumer discretionary sector. Those two sectors are also quite technology-based with Amazon and Tesla counting as consumer discretionary, whilst Alphabet (Google) and Facebook are counted as communication services businesses.

However, whilst the biggest global tech names get the largest allocations. This ETF gives diversification and exposure to a number of different business models, products and services.

Plenty of other companies in the portfolio are market leaders in the US, or even the world, at what they do. Some of the other decently-sized positions in the portfolio include PayPal, Adobe, Netflix, Costco, Honeywell, Intuit, Moderna, Advanced Micro Devices, Intuitive Surgical, MercadoLibre, Autodesk, ASML and so on.

The Betashares Nasdaq 100 ETF comes with an annual management fee of 0.48%. Including the fees, it has produced an average return per annum of 23.7% since the ETF’s inception in May 2015. However, past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance.

The post 2 top ETFs that might be buys in October 2021 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• 2 top tech ETFs for ASX investors in October
• 2 excellent international ETFs for ASX investors
• What were the biggest movers on the Nasdaq 100 (ASX:NDQ) overnight?
• 2 very high quality ASX shares to own
• 2 excellent ETFs generating strong returns for ASX investors

Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended BETANASDAQ ETF UNITS. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended BETANASDAQ ETF UNITS. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended VanEck Vectors Morningstar Wide Moat ETF and iShares Trust – iShares Core S&P 500 ETF. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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On Wednesday the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) was well and truly out of form and sank notably lower. The benchmark index fell 1.1% to 7,196.7 points.

Will the market be able to bounce back from this on Thursday? Here are five things to watch:

ASX 200 expected to rise

The Australian share market looks set to rise on Thursday. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 14 points or 0.2% higher this morning. This follows a mixed night of trade on Wall Street, which saw the Dow Jones rise 0.25%, the S&P 500 climb 0.15%, and the Nasdaq fall 0.25%.

Oil prices fall

It could be a softer day for energy producers such as Oil Search Ltd (ASX: OSH) and Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) after oil prices pulled back. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price is down 0.85% to US$74.64 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price has fallen 0.9% to US$78.37 a barrel. Traders appear to have been taking profit after some strong gains in recent sessions.

Dividends being paid

Today is payday for shareholders of a number of ASX 200 shares. Among the companies paying their latest dividends are Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Ltd (ASX: BEN), CSL Limited (ASX: CSL), Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG), Newcrest Mining Ltd (ASX: NCM), and Ramsay Health Care Limited (ASX: RHC).

Gold price falls

Gold miners Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) and Regis Resources Limited (ASX: RRL) could have a difficult day after the gold price dropped again. According to CNBC, the spot gold price is down 0.7% to US$1,725.20 an ounce. The precious metal continues to struggle on growing confidence that the U.S. Federal Reserve will soon wind down its economic support measures.

Iron ore price rises

BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) and Fortescue shares could have a better day today after the benchmark iron ore price continued to recover. According to Metal Bulletin, the spot 62% fines iron ore price rose 1.8% to US$114.13 a tonne during overnight trade.

The post 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Thursday appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Here are the top 10 ASX shares today
• Here are the 3 most traded ASX 200 shares so far today
• Sydney Airport (ASX: SYD) share price slips amid ACCC’s latest findings
• Fortescue (ASX:FMG) share price eyes fresh 14-month lows as iron ore prices tumble
• Which ASX 300 shares are leading the way mid-week?

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. owns shares of and has recommended CSL Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Ramsay Health Care Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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If you’re an income investor on the lookout for new additions to your portfolio, then you may want to check out the shares listed below.

These dividend shares have recently been rated as buys and are tipped to provide above average yields in the coming years.

Here’s what you need to know about these dividend shares:

Aventus Group (ASX: AVN)

The first ASX dividend share to look at is Aventus. It is a fully integrated owner, manager, and developer of large format retail centres with a portfolio of 20 centres valued at $2.3 billion. At the end of FY 2021, the company had 593 tenancies and a sky high occupancy rate of 98.8%.

This went down well with analysts at Goldman Sachs. They currently have a buy rating and $3.40 price target on its shares. This compares to the current Aventus share price of $3.21.

Goldman is also forecasting dividends of 17.8 cents per share in FY 2022 and then 19.4 cents per share in FY 2023. Based on the its current share price, this will mean generous yields of 5.5% and 6%, respectively, over the next two years.

Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC)

Another ASX dividend share to look at is this banking giant. It could be a good option for income investors that don’t already have meaningful exposure to the sector. This is due to its improving performance, cost cutting plans, and strong balance sheet.

The team at Citi are very positive on the bank. The broker currently has a buy rating and $30.00 price target on Westpac’s shares. This compares very favourably to the latest Westpac share price of $25.17.

In addition, Citi is forecasting fully franked dividends of $1.16 per share in FY 2021 and then $1.30 per share in FY 2022. This represents yields of 4.6% and 5.1%, respectively.

The post Westpac (ASX:WBC) and this ASX dividend share could be buys in October appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Confirmed: APRA is planning action on home loans, ASX 200 banks drop
• Why these experts say the Westpac (ASX:WBC) share price could be on the way up
• Why these experts think the NAB (ASX:NAB) share price is on the way up
• Why we favour 2 of 4 big bank ASX shares: fund manager
• The Westpac (ASX:WBC) share price is down 3% so far in September. What’s next?

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro owns shares of Westpac Banking Corporation. 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 AVENTUS RE UNIT. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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Today, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) suffered another fall following in the footsteps of US markets overnight. The benchmark index tumbled 1.08% to 7,196.7 points.

Some of the hardest hit shares on the Aussie market were from the energy, healthcare, and tech sectors.

However, the question is: which shares delivered the biggest returns to investors on the ASX today? Here are the ten stocks that rose to the occasion:

Top 10 ASX shares countdown today

Looking at the top 200 listed companies, Regis Resources Ltd (ASX: RRL) was the biggest gainer today. Shares in gold miner jumped 6.32% as gold prices held steady. Find out more about Regis Resources here.

The next biggest gaining ASX share today was Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN). Yet another gold mining company that performed strongly on Wednesday. Shares in Evolution rallied 4.19% to $3.48, once again supported by the steady gold price. Uncover the latest Evolution Mining details here.

Today’s top 10 biggest gains were made in these ASX shares:

ASX-listed company	Share price	Price change
Regis Resources Ltd (ASX: RRL)	$2.02	6.32%
Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN)	$3.48	4.19%
AGL Energy Ltd (ASX: AGL)	$5.87	3.35%
Perseus Mining Ltd (ASX: PRU)	$1.395	3.33%
Orica Ltd (ASX: ORI)	$12.04	2.99%
Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST)	$8.50	2.91%
IDP Education Ltd (ASX: IDP)	$34.06	2.28%
Yancoal Australia Ltd (ASX: YAL)	$2.72	2.26%
Newcrest Mining Ltd (ASX: NCM)	$22.63	1.89%
Latitude Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: LFS)	$2.20	1.85%

Our top 10 ASX shares countdown is a recurring end-of-day summary to ensure you know which companies were making big moves on the day. Check-in at Fool.com.au after the market has closed during weekdays to see which stocks make the countdown.

The post Here are the top 10 ASX shares today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Here are the 3 most traded ASX 200 shares so far today
• Sydney Airport (ASX: SYD) share price slips amid ACCC’s latest findings
• Which ASX 300 shares are leading the way mid-week?
• Qantas (ASX:QAN) share price falls amid ACCC report into COVID-19 impacts
• ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) midday update: Big four banks fall, Afterpay tumbles

Motley Fool contributor Mitchell Lawler has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and has recommended Idp Education Pty Ltd. 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 Bruce Jackson.

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If you’re interested in gaining exposure to the small side of the market, then you might want to look at the small cap ASX shares listed below.

Here’s why these small cap ASX shares are ones to watch:

Ai-Media Technologies Ltd (ASX: AIM)

The first small cap to watch is Ai-Media Technologies. It is a global media access provider with operations across the ANZ, North American, EMEA and Asia markets

The company’s cloud-based technology platform provides live and recorded captioning, transcription, subtitles, translation and speech analytics.

Bell Potter is positive on the company. It currently has a buy rating and $1.50 price target Ai-Media Technologies’ shares. The broker was pleased with its performance in FY 2021 and remains positive on the future.

It commented: “We maintain our Buy recommendation and positive outlook on AIM. We remain attracted to AIM’s long-term growth strategy driven by its ability to apply proprietary technology in providing high accuracy, near real-time voice transcription services.”

Mydeal.Com Au Ltd (ASX: MYD)

Another small cap to watch is MyDeal. It is an online retail marketplace focused on home and lifestyle goods. As per the company’s most recent update, MyDeal had more than 1,800 sellers on its platform with over 6 million product SKUs listed across over 2,000 categories.

This strong offering and the shift online helped drive a 111% increase in gross sales to $218.1 million and a 119% jump in gross profit to $33.3 million in FY 2021.

The team at Morgans is positive on the company’s long term outlook. As a result, it currently has an add rating and 90 cents price target on its shares.

The broker said: “We don’t expect MYD to turn a profit in the current year (we never did), as all this investment in growth comes at a cost. But, to us, this story is not about short-term profitability and dividends. It’s about creating a market leading ecommerce platform that can be the foundation of substantial earnings growth. We appreciate this is not an investment that will appeal to everyone. But for those that want exposure to a high growth ecommerce opportunity with a strong balance sheet, we think MYD fits the bill.”

The post 2 buy-rated small cap ASX tech shares you need to know appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Brokers name 2 ASX healthcare shares to buy
• ANZ (ASX:ANZ) share price slips as bank faces multimillion-dollar lawsuit
• What’s happening with the Evergrande share price and what does it mean?
• ASX lithium shares slide as increasing supply pushes prices down in China
• Redbubble (ASX:RBL) share price has surged 16% in 9 days. Is it a buy?

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 Bruce Jackson.

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The healthcare sector is having a tough week and has fallen heavily. For example, the S&P/ASX 200 Health Care index is down 7.5% since this time last week.

While this is disappointing, it may have created a buying opportunity for investors.

Two healthcare shares that have been rated as buys this week are listed below. Here’s what you need to know about them:

Australian Clinical Labs Ltd (ASX: ACL)

Australian Clinical Labs a leading Australian private provider of pathology services through 86 NATA accredited laboratories. From these sites, the company performs a diverse range of pathology tests each year for a range of clients. These include doctors, specialists, patients, hospitals and corporate clients.

According to a note out of Goldman Sachs this morning, the broker has reiterated its buy rating and lifted its price target to $5.70. This follows the release of a trading update, which revealed an upgrade to its guidance.

Goldman commented: “ACL has materially upgraded 1H22 guidance for the second time in a month, primarily driven by the continued strong demand for Covid-19 testing, but also by an under-appreciated resiliency/recovery in the base business.”

Healius Ltd (ASX: HLS)

Healius is a healthcare company with a network of medical centres and pathology centres across Australia. Like Australian Clinical Labs, it has been benefiting greatly from the strong demand for COVID-19 testing services.

And while vaccination rates are increasing, the team at Macquarie believe testing volumes will remain strong for some time to come. This is expected to underpin strong earnings and dividends in the near term.

Furthermore, Macquarie notes that it prefers Healius over Sonic Healthcare Limited (ASX: SHL) for valuation reasons and the prospect of margin expansion.

According to the note, the broker has retained its outperform rating and lifted its price target to $5.55.

The post Brokers name 2 ASX healthcare shares to buy appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Top brokers name 3 ASX dividend shares to buy today
• Australian Clinical Labs (ASX:ACL) share price on watch following profit upgrade
• Leading brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Monday
• Why analysts rate these ASX healthcare shares highly

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 owns shares of and has recommended Macquarie Group Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Australian Clinical Labs Limited and Sonic Healthcare Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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The Australia New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (ASX: ANZ) share price has slipped into the red during afternoon trade. ANZ shares are now trading at $27.39.

ANZ shares are on the down as the banking giant faces a multimillion-dollar class-action lawsuit in New Zealand.

Here’s what we know.

Why is ANZ in the naughty corner?

The lawsuit has been brought against the bank in the Auckland High Court on claims that it failed to refund fees and earned interest. The claim has been brought on behalf of 150,000 of its customers.

Litigators are seeking compensation from the bank. They claim ANZ has yet to make good on these owed payments, some of which came about due to disclosure breaches.

Australian litigation finance firm CASL and New Zealand litigation financier LPF Group are jointly funding the suit.

It’s not the first time ANZ has admitted a liability of this nature. It has previously acknowledged failures to provide accurate information to personal and home loan customers in New Zealand.

Last year the bank agreed to pay around NZ$30 million to some 100,000 of its customers. This was after admitting it misstated interest calculations on loans from May 2015 to May 2016.

According to ANZ, this was due to a coding error in its mortgage payment algorithms.

The present case is to be prosecuted under the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act (CCCFA) of New Zealand. Former NZ Commerce Commission lawyer Scott Russell will lead the bench.

Speaking to today’s NZ Herald, Russell said, “If a bank fails to comply with its disclosure obligations, it is not legally entitled to charge interest or fees on the affected loan” until issues are rectified.

Russell added that ANZ’s alleged failures “constitute serious breaches of the provisions of the CCCFA”. He asserted the bank should pay its customers back to set the record straight.

ANZ shares are down 0.85% on the day, in line with weakness in the broader Australian financials sector.

ANZ share price snapshot

The ANZ share price has climbed over 20% this year to date, extending its gains over the past year to 56%.

Yet, it is down 3% in the past month.

Nonetheless, ANZ shares have outpaced the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) benchmark return of 20% this past 12 months.

The post ANZ (ASX:ANZ) share price slips as bank faces multimillion-dollar lawsuit appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Confirmed: APRA is planning action on home loans, ASX 200 banks drop
• Leading brokers name 3 ASX shares to sell today
• Why we favour 2 of 4 big bank ASX shares: fund manager
• September hasn’t been a great month so far for the ANZ (ASX:ANZ) share price
• Why ANZ (ASX:ANZ) and this dividend share could be buys

The author Zach Bristow has no positions 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 Bruce Jackson.

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The China Evergrande Group (HKG: 3333) share price is the talk of the town today as the world’s most indebted company continues to make headlines.

But despite the (mostly) bad press, the company’s share price is gaining.

Right now, the Evergrande share price is around 52 cents. That’s 10.11% higher than its previous close and 23% higher than it was at the end of last week.

Evergrande’s business is in property development and its listed on the Hong Kong stock exchange. Evergrande reportedly has more than $400 billion of debt in its books.

So, what’s going on with Evergrande and its share price? Let’s take a look.

A quick refresher

Evergrande has been in focus for a number of weeks after it warned the world that it might not be able to make the payments on its debt, forcing it to default.

That in itself isn’t such a huge issue. It’s what might happen if the company did go belly-up that’s got global markets worried.

The company is, of course, a huge part of China’s economy. Additionally, as the Wall Street Journal reports, China’s market is hugely property-dominated and some market analysts predict Evergrande’s collapse could wobble the entire Chinese economy.

A major impact on an economy as big as China’s might have a ripple effect on other global economies. Further, according to reporting by Reuters, many global investment companies are exposed to Evergrande’s debt.

For that reason, the company’s challenges have rattled investor confidence. Especially, in Australian sectors typically dominated by China, such are iron ore.

What’s driving the Evergrande share price lately?

It’s unclear as to exactly why the Evergrande share price is taking off this week. However, there are theories.

As my Foolish US colleague recently reported, China’s Central Bank has promised to protect those exposed to the housing market from the potential collapse of Evergrande.

Some investors might be interpreting the news as a guarantee the Chinese Government will bail out Evergrande. However, that’s likely not the case.

That line of thinking is made more unlikely by reports the Chinese Government is hinting for firms and developers to buy assets from Evergrande. Doing so would likely reduce the impact of a collapse, according to Business Insider.

Other outlets, such as Reuters, have reported the recent gains might be to do with short sellers. Of course, some investors are likely attempting to cash in on the drama surrounding Evergrande.

Though, it hasn’t been a picnic for the Evergrade share price lately. It tanked last week as it looked to default on its debt ahead of an US$83.5 million bond interest payment, due last Thursday.

Luckily, the company managed to avoid defaulting on the back of the payment – which, according to the BBC, it missed.

Another payment, this time worth US$47.5 million, is reportedly due today.

The post What’s happening with the Evergrande share price and what does it mean? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• ASX lithium shares slide as increasing supply pushes prices down in China
• Redbubble (ASX:RBL) share price has surged 16% in 9 days. Is it a buy?
• Why Afterpay, Mineral Resources, Pilbara Minerals, & Pro Medicus shares are falling
• Here are the 3 most traded ASX 200 shares so far today
• Elixir Energy (ASX:EXR) share price lifts on hydrogen update

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 Bruce Jackson.

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ASX lithium shares are falling on Wednesday amid a broad-based selloff taking place across the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO).

Large cap ASX lithium shares lead the declines

The Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) share price is currently down 3.16% at $2.00, threatening a 2-month low. The Orocobre Limited (ASX: ORE) share price is also in the red, down 2.62% to $8.54.

Explorers are showing mixed results so far today, with Piedmont Lithium Inc (ASX: PLL) flat at 70 cents, and Core Lithium Ltd (ASX: CXO) and Lake Resources NL (ASX: LKE) edging slightly lower, down 1.27% and 0.85% respectively.

Meanwhile, the likes of Liontown Resources Limited (ASX: LTR) and AVZ Minerals Ltd (ASX: AVZ) have managed to stay afloat, up 2.64% and 0.58% respectively.

Lithium prices ease from record highs

S&P Global yesterday reported an increase in traders selling industrial-grade lithium carbonate, keeping surging prices at bay in China.

Spot offers headed south towards yuan 175,000 to 180,000/mt on 28 September compared to yuan 185,000/mt on 24 September.

ASX lithium shares have been running hot this year thanks to a strong rebound in lithium prices.

In the case of Pilbara Minerals, its digital lithium auction received bids as high as US$2,240/dry metric tonne for its 5.5% spodumene concentrate.

Just two months ago, the highest bid at its inaugural digital auction came in at US$1,250/dmt.

But lithium prices might have hit a near-term top, after S&P Global reported a Chinese trader as saying:

Spot liquidity has been thinning with ongoing term contract negotiations for October delivery cargoes and some sellers think that the peak for near term spot prices is near, leading to the higher number of spot offers in the market.

It is understood that the selling pressure on industrial-grade lithium carbonate may not necessarily have an impact on prices for battery-grade lithium carbonate.

S&P pointed out that China’s demand was expected to slow down during its Golden Week National holiday between 1-7 October. However, its sources said that spot demand for battery-grade lithium carbonate would likely resume once term contract negotiations for October were settled.

The post ASX lithium shares slide as increasing supply pushes prices down in China appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Why Afterpay, Mineral Resources, Pilbara Minerals, & Pro Medicus shares are falling
• Here are the 3 most traded ASX 200 shares so far today
• 2 ASX 200 mining shares to buy in October
• These 3 ASX 200 shares are topping the volume charts today
• These 3 ASX 200 shares are topping trading volumes today

Motley Fool contributor Kerry Sun 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 Bruce Jackson.

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