S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries (ASX: XSO) has eased 32.10 points, or 0.85%, to 3,751.80 in the first half hour of trade, but has remained up 107.10 points (2.94%) over the past five trading days.
Against that backdrop, several small-cap names delivered company-specific updates spanning exploration, processing testwork and commercial orders. You can read about the following and more throughout the day.
Janus Electric Holdings Ltd (ASX:JNS) has received further orders in California for its heavy-vehicle electrification system via Electric Vehicle Choice (EVC), its authorised dealer in the state, as the company continues to build out its US commercial footprint.
The order comprises two Janus Conversion Modules (JCMs), three pairs of batteries and a Janus Charge and Change Station, with a total value of about A$1.6 million.
Rio Tinto Ltd returned to the broker spotlight after UBS resumed coverage with a 'Neutral' rating and lifted its 12-month price target to 6,900p from 5,800p, even as the shares traded at 7,051p.
The bank’s restart comes after Rio confirmed it does not intend to make an offer for Glencore PLC, cooling a market debate that had briefly reopened the “GlenTinto” merger narrative.
A cluster of attention-grabbing announcements from ASX-listed biotech juniors this morning touched on several key pressure points for the sector — clinical timelines, regulatory clearance, scientific credibility and US trial execution.
Updates from Racura Oncology, Memphasys, Noxopharm and Amplia Therapeutics cover noteworthy advancements including trial protocol amendments designed to pull forward key data, Australian regulatory clearance for a key product, high-impact scientific publication and the expansion of US trial sites in pancreatic cancer.
Novo Resources Corp (TSX:NVO, OTCQX:NSRPF, ASX:NVO, FRA:1NOR) has delivered a substantial upgrade to the Exploration Target at its Belltopper Gold Project in Victoria, lifting potential tonnage, grades and contained ounces following a detailed reassessment of historical data, geology and drilling.
The updated 2026 Exploration Target estimates between 460,000 ounces and 880,000 ounces of contained gold, up from the 2024 range of 320,000 ounces to 570,000 ounces. On a percentage basis, this represents a 44% increase at the low end and 54% at the high end.
Mithril Silver and Gold Ltd (ASX:MTH) says maiden drilling at Target 5 has confirmed a large, silver-rich target in the south-west of its district-scale Copalquin Silver-Gold Project in Durango State, Mexico.
The company reported high-grade silver and gold mineralisation within a series of northwest-trending banded quartz veins hosted in granodiorite, across an area extending 3.2 kilometres from El Gallo to Guamuchilito and 3.0 kilometres from El Jarillal to the Zaragoza workings (9.6 km²).
EcoGraf Ltd (ASX:EGR, OTCQX:ECGFF) has signed a cooperation agreement with the European Investment Bank (EIB) covering technical assistance to help progress the company’s vertically integrated HFfree graphite business in the critical raw materials (CRM) sector.
Under the agreement, the EIB will provide technical assistance across a defined package of workstreams, including support for:
Lindian Resources Ltd (ASX:LIN, OTC:LINIF) has begun a Stage 2 resource definition drilling and mine geotechnical program at its Kangankunde Rare Earths Project in Malawi, aiming to lift resource confidence and support potential expansion planning.
The program is designed to convert approximately 20–40 million tonnes of existing Inferred Mineral Resource material to Indicated classification within the current resource footprint, subject to drilling outcomes and Competent Person review. Work is focused beneath and around the edges of the current Indicated Resource, targeting areas expected to fall within a potential Stage 2 mine design.
Critical Resources Ltd (ASX:CRR, FRA:9S70) has started a structured, solid-state lithium-ion battery evaluation program in the United States, taking it a step beyond early-stage optioning and into laboratory-based validation of next-generation battery materials.
The six-month program is being conducted with the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology (SDM) under the National Science Foundation-supported Centre for Solid-State Electric Power Storage (CEPS), giving the company access to advanced research infrastructure typically unavailable to early-stage industry participants.