• Why is the Karoon Energy (ASX:KAR) share price surging 7% today?

    asx share price rise represented by woman in hard hat on phone looking excited

    Karoon Energy Ltd (ASX: KAR) shares are jumping markedly today after the company reported achieving 1.14 billion barrels of oil production in its March 2021 quarterly report. At the time of writing, the Karoon share price has climbed 6.78% to $1.26.

    Karoon Energy is an Australian oil and gas exploration company engaged in the exploration and development of natural resource properties. It’s a relatively new major oil producer and has projects in Australia, Brazil, and Peru. 

    Let’s dive into the company’s quarterly report and find out why some investors are becoming excited.

    Quarterly performance highlights

    The Karoon share price is having a bumper day after the company reported positive figures across the board in its latest report. Karoon highlighted that oil production from its Baúna Field in the March 2021 quarter totalled 1.14 million barrels, produced at an average rate of 12,641 barrels of oil per day.

    As a result, the company’s total oil sales receipts for the quarter (which included proceeds from the December cargo) were $97.2 million. This figure isn’t comparable to previous quarters, as it represents the company’s inaugural cash flow from oil sales.

    The company reported no safety or environmental issues for the period. Karoon also noted that the COVID-19 pandemic did not impact its operations in Brazil. This was despite the nation suffering one of the worst global death tolls as well as widespread industry shutdowns.

    In further news boosting the Karoon share price, the company highlighted that its cash reserves and equivalents at 31 March 2021 were $173 million, up from $133 million at the end of December 2020, with no external loans.

    Management comments

    Karoon CEO Julian Fowles commented on the upbeat results, saying:

    Karoon produced more than one million barrels of oil in the three months to March 2021, our first full quarter of production. We also received inaugural gross cash inflows of A$97.2 million from the first three Baúna oil cargoes, marking the Company’s first quarter as a substantial and profitable oil producer.

    After sales expenses, the average oil price achieved for the two cargoeslifted during the period was a healthy US$55.38/bbl, reflecting the strong competition from a number of global refiners for our high quality Baúna crude.

    Karoon share price snapshot

    The Karoon share price has surged over the past twelve months, rising by around 135%. It’s also up by 6.8% over the last week, almost 18% in the past month and nearly 20% in 2021 so far. Furthermore, Karoon shares have beaten the energy sector over the past year by around 114%. 

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    Motley Fool contributor Lucas Radbourne-Pugh 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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  • Why the Maas Group (ASX:MGH) share price has gained 11% today

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    The Maas Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: MGH) share price is soaring today after the company shared news of 3 acquisitions

    After peaking at an intraday high of $4.30 this morning, the Maas share price is trading at $3.88 at the time of writing, up 11%.

    Let’s take a closer look at today’s news from the construction materials, equipment and service provider.

    New acquisitions

    Maas Group announced today it will purchase Amcor Excavations Pty Ltd, Amcor Quarries and Concrete Pty Ltd, and Willow Tree Gravels.

    The cash components of the purchases will be funded with Maas’ existing debt facilities and cash on hand.

    While each company comes with its own set of conditions, Maas expects all 3 acquisitions to be completed in May 2021.

    Amcor Excavations and Amcor Quarries

    Maas will spend around $12.7 million in cash to acquire both Amcor Excavations and Amcor Quarries, with a cash contingent consideration of up to $2 million payable on the occurrence of future milestones.

    Amcor Quarries operates a leasehold quarry as well as fixed and mobile concrete batching plants near Rockhampton, Queensland.

    Amcor Excavations is a plant hire business near Moura, Queensland. It mostly provides plant hire services to the gas fields of the Western Downs region.

    Maas plans to expand Amcor Excavations to take advantage of opportunities in the region.

    As well as cash, Amcor will gain approximately 1.4 million Maas shares, issued in 2 instalments – half on the acquisition’s completion and the other half 2 years later. The company states that, based on yesterday’s closing price, the share consideration is valued at approximately $4.9 million.

    Roughly 100 employees will transition to Maas on completion of the 2 Amcor acquisitions.

    Willow Tree Gravels

    Willow Tree Gravels is a quarry located in the New England region of New South Wales. It provides a range of materials and services to local councils, state authorities and commercial road and rail contractors.

    Maas advised it would pay $10 million in cash to purchase Willow Tree Gravel. It claims the acquisition is an asset purchase, as the business comes with land, plant and equipment assets.

    Willow Tree’s 12 employees are expected to transition to Maas on completion of the acquisition.

    Commentary from management

    Maas Group’s managing director and CEO Wes Maas welcomed the 3 private, family-owned businesses to the group as it executes its growth strategy. He said:

    The acquisition of the Amcor businesses represents a significant milestone for [Maas Group Holdings] as it allows us to expand our operating footprint into Regional Queensland at a time of growing infrastructure and project development expenditure in that market.

    The acquisition of Willow Tree is an important step in the expansion of our east coast footprint for our quarry operations and provides us with a premier operation with well established relationships in the New England region.

    Maas Group share price snapshot

    The news has provided another boost to the Maas Group share price, which has performed well in its first year on the ASX.

    Since its initial public offering (IPO) in December 2020, the Maas share price has risen by 45%.

    Currently, the Maas Group share price is up 48% year to date. 

    The company has a market capitalisation of around $924 million, with approximately 264 million shares outstanding.

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  • What are brokers saying about the Coles (ASX:COL) share price?

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    The Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL) share price was up almost 2% on Wednesday following its third-quarter sales results. Its share price momentum has carried over to today, up 3% to $16.36.

    Brokers have analysed Coles’ performance, with multiple updates coming out today. We take a closer look. 

    Brokers weigh in on the Coles share price 

    Citi sees a turnaround for Coles 

    Citi believes Coles has reached an inflection point for its market share and sales differentials, where the worst may be behind the supermarket giant. The broker notes that like-for-like sales growth could continue to be volatile due to COVID-19. However, a faster than expected fall in COVID-19 costs could act as a hedge to operating leverage. Citi lowered its Coles target price from $19 to $18 but upgraded its rating from neutral to buy

    Credit Suisse upgrades rating to outperform 

    Credit Suisse believes there are early signs of sales stabilising and normalisation in consumer shopping behaviour. This would translate to greater shopper frequency, increased Sunday shopping, and better performance at shopping centres. The broker thinks that the Coles share price valuation is undemanding, upgrading its rating from neutral to outperform with an $18.19 target price. 

    Sales below Macquarie’s expectations 

    Supermarket sales came in below Macquarie’s expectations for the March quarter. The broker believes May and June will be more challenging as the prior corresponding period (pcp) was when tailwinds such as lockdowns and abnormal at-home consumption trends commenced. Macquarie retained a neutral rating with a $17.30 target price. 

    Morgan Stanley is bullish on results 

    Morgan Stanley believes the third-quarter like-for-like sales declines should be viewed in the context of a 13% increase on the prior corresponding period. While the results are a downgrade against consensus views, the broker believes this has already been reflected in Coles’ recent share price performance. Morgan Stanley is overweight on Coles shares with a $20.25 target price. 

    Below Morgans’ expectations but rating maintained 

    The third-quarter results were weaker than what Morgans was expecting. However, it is positive on management commentary regarding a normalisation in consumer behaviour in the first few weeks of the fourth quarter. The broker observes that online sales remain strong with sales jumping 49% and a continued focus on its own brand as a point of differentiation. 

    Morgans maintained its add rating and decreased its target price from $19.45 to $18.50. 

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  • Why the Resolute Mining (ASX:RSG) share price is shooting 5% higher

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    The Resolute Mining Limited (ASX: RSG) share price has been a solid performer on Thursday.

    In afternoon trade, the gold miner’s shares are up 5% to 49 cents.

    However, despite this gain, the Resolute Mining share price is still trading a massive 67% lower than its 52-week high.

    Why is the Resolute Mining share price rising today?

    There have been a couple of catalysts for the rise in the Resolute Mining share price today.

    The first is improving investor sentiment in the gold sector following the US Federal Reserve’s decision to keep rates on hold overnight.

    It isn’t just Resolute Mining’s shares rising on the news, the rest of the gold miners are pushing higher as well today because of this.

    This has led to the S&P/ASX All Ords Gold index rising 2.3% this afternoon.

    What else is happening?

    Also giving the Resolute Mining share price a boost was the release of its first quarter update, which wasn’t as bad as many had feared.

    For the three months ended 31 March, Resolute Mining reported quarterly production of 85,668 ounces of gold. This was down 5% quarter on quarter due to the expected lower production from Mako, which was offset by the highest Syama sulphide gold production since 2016.

    In addition to this, the company revealed that it achieved a realised gold price for the quarter of US$1,729 per ounce. This was up materially from the prior corresponding period and slightly quarter on quarter.

    And while its All-In Sustaining Cost (AISC) rose 24% quarter on quarter to US$1,239 per ounce, this was in line with its FY 2021 guidance.

    In light of this, management has reaffirmed its full year guidance for gold poured between 350,000 ounces to 375,000 ounces at an AISC of between US$1,200 and US$1,275 per ounce.

    Is the Resolute share price good value?

    One broker that sees a lot of value in the Resolute Mining share price is Goldman Sachs.

    Although it has yet to respond to this update, the broker recently retained its buy rating and $1.00 price target on the company’s shares.

    And with Resolute Mining performing in line with expectations so far in the first quarter, it seems unlikely that this recommendation will be changing in the coming days.

    Based on its current share price, this price target implies potential upside of ~100% over the next 12 months.

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  • Universal Biosensors (ASX:UBI) share price falls despite positive update

    falling asx share price represented by woman making sad face

    The Universal Biosensors Inc (ASX: UBI) share price has spent the day in negative territory today despite the company announcing a new distribution deal.

    During the early afternoon trade, the medical diagnostics company’s shares are swapping hands for 69 cents, down 1.4%. In comparison, the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) is sitting at 7,350 points, up 0.4%.

    What did Universal Biosensors announce?

    In today’s statement, Universal Biosensors advised it has entered into an exclusive distribution agreement with Grapeworks NZ Limited.

    The arrangement will see Universal Biosensors supply its wine testing platform device, Sentia for the New Zealand market. The deal will last for 5 years, provided initial and minimum annual purchase volumes are met. Furthermore, the contract will be subject to the usual customary conditions with attached renewal options available to both parties.

    The latest agreement follows the company’s progress in delivering its Sentia products across global markets since March 2021.

    During the last couple of months, Universal Biosensors has secured distribution deals in Australia, the United States, New Zealand, Canada, Chile and South Africa. This has provided the company with access to over 14,000 wineries, reflecting strong demand for its product.

    What did management say?

    Universal Biosensors CEO John Sharman welcomed the outcome, saying:

    Grapeworks is UBI’s exclusive distribution partner for Sentia in Australia, so for them to extend our agreement to cover New Zealand’s 500+ wineries demonstrate a strong financial commitment and belief in the future success of Sentia.

    Grapeworks NZ managing director Malcolm Wilson went on to add:

    Sentia has been well received by our Australian customers. We have been doing our due diligence on an expansion into New Zealand and believe that Sentia is a great product to spearhead our launch.

    Universal Biosensors share price review

    The Universal Biosensors share price has performed considerably well, gaining close to 240% over the past year. The company’s shares recently reached a multi-year high of 84.5 cents earlier this month.

    Based on the current share price, Universal Biosensors commands a market capitalisation of $119 million, with 177 million shares outstanding.

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  • Brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy now

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    Many of Australia’s top brokers have been busy adjusting their financial models and recommendations again this week. This has led to the release of a number of broker notes.

    Three broker buy ratings that have caught my eye are summarised below. Here’s why brokers think these ASX shares are in the buy zone:

    Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL)

    According to a note out of Morgan Stanley, its analysts have retained their overweight rating and $20.25 price target on this supermarket giant’s shares following its third quarter update. Although the broker acknowledges that Coles fell a touch short of the market’s expectations, it believes this was already priced into its share price. In addition, the broker isn’t convinced that a price war in the industry is coming. As a result, it sees a lot of value in the company’s shares at the current level. The Coles share price is fetching $16.36 this afternoon.

    IDP Education Ltd (ASX: IEL)

    Analysts at UBS have retained their buy rating but trimmed the price target on this language testing and student placement company’s shares to $29.05. According to the note, the broker points out that the Indian market is IDP Education’s most important market, contributing over a third of its expected revenue in FY 2021. In light of this, it does see the COVID-19 crisis in the country as a risk to earnings. Nevertheless, long term it believes the company is well-placed and expects it to come out of the pandemic in a stronger market position. Particularly given its software business. The IDP Education share price is trading at $22.67 on Thursday.

    Life360 Inc (ASX: 360)

    A note out of Credit Suisse reveals that its analysts have retained their outperform rating and lifted their price target on this technology company’s shares to $8.30. According to the note, the broker was pleased with Life360’s first quarter update. It also notes that the company has just announced the acquisition of Jiobut, which opens up cross-selling opportunities. Overall, the broker is very positive on its outlook and sees strong growth ahead. The Life360 share price is trading at $5.92 this afternoon.

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    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 Idp Education Pty Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. recommends Life360, Inc. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of COLESGROUP DEF SET. 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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  • Here’s why the Volpara (ASX:VHT) share price is up 6% today

    Medical staff wear hero capes, indicting strong shar [price performace for healthcare shares

    Volpara Health Technologies Ltd (ASX: VHT) shares are gaining today after the company released its quarterly results. At the time of writing, the Volpara share price is up 6.25%, trading at $1.36 apiece.

    Volpara is a health technology software company, providing an integrated breast care platform to deliver personalised breast care. Let’s take a closer look at the New Zealand-based company’s latest results.

    Fourth-quarter results

    The company released its results for the fourth quarter of the 2021 financial year this morning, garnering a positive reaction from investors.

    Good news from the company included a record cash income from customer receipts, equalling NZ$5.4 million. That figure represents a 15% increase compared to the fourth quarter of 2020.

    The company’s subscription-based receipts were also up, raking in NS$18.3 million – a 39% year on year increase.

    Volpara also announced increases in its unaudited cash receipts for the full year ending 31 March 2021, up 20% year on year.

    Its net operating cash outflow was better than the company’s internal forecasting, and it ended the quarter with $32.2 million cash in the bank.

    Volpara’s earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) came in at a loss of NZ$3,432,000.

    Today is the second time Volpara’s share price has reacted positively to its results for this quarter. On 20 April, the Volpara released a business update on the fourth quarter, which also saw its share price rise.

    Unfortunately, its gains didn’t hold that day, and the Volpara share price ended the session trading 4.2% lower than the previous close.

    Commentary from management

    Volpara CEO Dr Ralph Highnam commented on the results, saying:

    Our achievements in [the 2021 financial year] are a powerful endorsement of what we stand for as a company and the strength and commitment of our industry to keep saving families from cancer, no matter what else is going on.

    We look forward to continuing to accelerate out of COVID-19 in [the 2022 financial year].

    Volpara share price snapshot

    Currently, the Volpara share price is down 3% year to date, although it’s up 8% over the last 12 months.

    The company has a market capitalisation of around $321 million, with approximately 251 million shares outstanding.

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  • Why the IntelliHR (ASX:IHR) share price is soaring 16% today

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    The IntelliHR Ltd (ASX: IHR) share price is on the move after the company announced a business update to the ASX. 

    At the time of writing, the data analytics company’s shares are trading for 33 cents, up 16%.

    What’s driving the IntelliHR share price?

    Investors are fighting to get a hold of IntelliHR shares after the company reported strong growth across key metrics.

    For the period ending 28 April (first 4 months of 2021), IntelliHR delivered an improved performance underpinned by its United Kingdom expansion.

    Annual recurring revenue (ARR) acquisition reached a record, up 304% year-on-year (YoY) from H1 FY20. Contracted ARR also rose to $3.55 million. A significant jump on the $1.79 million from the prior corresponding period (pcp).

    Contracted subscribers also surged to 35,080, reflecting an increase of 270% of YoY numbers (12,829 subscribers).

    Average lead generation in Q3 FY21 to date lifted 100% with global expansion opening in new markets.

    Additionally, IntelliHR highlighted its efforts to expand into the United Kingdom and European markets. In particular, the launch of its software platform. This has already rewarded the company with a significant new United Kingdom enterprise customer win.

    The company noted that the conversion of TRU West Alliance enables it to partner with the leading global engineering group, ARUP. The contract will run for a 36-month period and support up to 1,000 designers during the project’s initial phase. Revenue generation for IntelliHR is expected to come between $280,000 and $511,000 for service in the next 12 months.

    In addition, IntelliHR also revealed the other 2 enterprise conversions in H2 FY21. They were an innovative container processing business, Young Guns, and specialty baby goods retailer, Baby Bunting Group Ltd (ASX: BBN).

    Commentary from the managing director

    IntelliHR managing director, Rob Bromage touched on the company’s strategic direction, saying:

    Following our North American market successes, we chose to accelerate our expansion into the UK market. This decision has already been rewarded with ARUP and the TRU West alliance choosing to partner with intelliHR through competitive tender.

    Engineering Group ARUP represents a prestigious cornerstone UK/European customer that will be supported by a new instance of intelliHR’s platform in AWS’s EU region. With Enterprise Client successes in APAC, North America, and now the UK/Europe, intelliHR is clearly being recognised as an Enterprise HR and People Management platform capable of supporting global business needs.

    The IntelliHR share price has accelerated to over 500% in the past 12 months. However, year-to-date performance is down 34%.

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  • The Straker (ASX:STG) share price is rocketing 13% today

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    The Straker Translations Ltd (ASX: STG) share price is rocketing higher today after the company released its quarterly activities report.

    The Straker share price is up a hefty 13.55% at the time of writing, trading at $1.76 per share.

    Straker is a cloud-enabled translation services provider, involved in both business and personal translation. Let’s see what’s driving its share price so much higher today.

    Straker’s continued growth

    Straker reported $9 million in unaudited revenue for its March quarter results, up 19% sequentially on the previous December quarter. Its FY21 revenue was up 31% on the previous year to $31.3 million, while its acquisition of translation service Lingotek has brought in $1.9 million in two months.

    The company is attracting blue-chip clients, with Panasonic signing up to its subscription-as-a-service (SaaS) for Lingotek, and its strategic alliance with IBM is “driving a surge in translation and product development activity”, according to the report.

    The company says its revenue slowed down seasonally over the northern hemisphere winter, exacerbated by various COVID-19 lockdowns, however by March was already rebounding and continues to grow.

    Gross margins improved to 57.8%, operating cash inflow of $18,ooo was slightly down on the previous quarter, and Straker reported net outflow of cash of $313,000 for the quarter, with cash reserves of $7.175 million.

    What did management say?

    CEO Grant Straker said the company was progressing well and continued growth was expected.

    After the intense activity of the third quarter, a period when we negotiated the IBM alliance and the Lingotek acquisition, we have turned our focus onto executing on the enormous opportunities that have emerged from these transformational agreements.

    We are seeing a significant ramp up in content delivered to IBM since the alliance went live in January. March content volumes are 60% ahead of the content we delivered to IBM in February and we have seen no letup in this growth since the end of the quarter. We expect the positive revenue impact from the IBM alliance to become more apparent in the current and future quarters.

    Straker share price snapshot

    The Straker share price is up 4.7% this week, adding to monthly gains of 16%. It’s risen 95% higher over the past 12 months.

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  • Goldman Sachs has good news for ASX 200 copper shares

    A happy minner does the thumbs up in front of an open pit copper mine, indicating a surging share price in ASX mining shares

    ASX 200 resource shares have largely outperformed the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) itself since the global recovery took off mid-last year.

    That’s particularly true for some of the leading ASX copper shares.

    OZ Minerals Limited (ASX: OZL), for example, has seen its share price surge 178% over the past 12 months. And the Sandfire Resources Ltd (ASX: SFR) share price has gained 54%. The ASX 200, by comparison, is up 31% at that same time.

    The question many investors are asking now is whether the leading ASX copper shares can continue to outperform in the year – and years – ahead.

    And the answer, based on Goldman Sachs latest copper price forecasts, appears to be that they certainly might.

    Blue skies ahead for the red metal?

    Demand for copper, as you may know, has been growing strongly on several fronts.

    First, copper is used in many construction projects, from wiring to plumbing and more. And as global governments and corporations turn to infrastructure and real estate projects to lift their post-pandemic economies, they need more copper to do so.

    Second, copper is a key component in electric vehicles, including their wiring and batteries. As the number of EVs – along with home and municipal battery storage – take off, the industry will demand ever more copper. Which spells good news for the copper price, and the share prices of leading ASX 200 copper producers.

    According to Goldman Sachs (quoted by the Australian Financial Review) the increased demand for copper (and many other commodities, including oil), is “a change which supply cannot match“.

    Goldman’s Jeffrey Currie and colleagues wrote:

    The commodity supply is near inelastic in the short run – you cannot dig another mine or grow another crop in a matter of months…

    Precisely because commodities depend upon the level of demand, and only the level of demand exceeding the level of supply can create a physical scarcity premium in markets, can we be confident that sustained backwardation is showing us how commodity markets are becoming progressively tighter today.

    Backwardation, if you’re wondering, is when the current price of copper (or any asset) is higher than its futures price.

    As for its outlook for copper prices, Goldman forecasts the red metal will trade at US$11,000 per tonne inside of 12 months. That’s about 11% higher than the current US$9,884 per tonne.

    And from there, Goldman sees at least 2 more years of price gains ahead for copper, forecasting a price of US$11,875 in 2022 and US$12,000 in 2023.

    If Goldman is correct, that would put the 2023 copper price up more than 21% from today’s prices. Music to the ears of ASX 200 copper producers…and their shareholders.

    ASX 200 listed OZ Minerals and Sandfire Resources snapshot

    ASX 200 listed copper producer OZ Minerals has continued to outperform in 2021. Shares are up 1.3% in intraday trading today for a gain of 26.4% year-to-date. OZ Minerals has a market cap of $8.0 billion and pays an annual dividend yield of 1.0%, fully franked.

    Sandfire Resources has also continued on its upwards trajectory this year. Shares are up 4.4% in intraday trading today and up 26.2% year-to-date. Sandfire Resources has a market cap of $1.2 billion and pays an annual dividend yield of 3.5%, fully franked.

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    Motley Fool contributor Bernd Struben 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.

    The post Goldman Sachs has good news for ASX 200 copper shares appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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