Mining 15 May 2026 - 20 May 2026

Atlas Critical Minerals Stock Faces a New Test as Defense-Metals Money Rushes Into Nasdaq
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Atlas Critical Minerals Stock Faces a New Test as Defense-Metals Money Rushes Into Nasdaq

Atlas Critical Minerals Corp’s U.S.-listed shares head into Friday’s regular Nasdaq session near their 52-week low, even as investors keep chasing small mining names tied to the defense supply-chain trade. ATCX closed Thursday at $4.41, up 0.9%, with a 52-week range of $4.28 to $47.16, market data showed. The timing matters. Nasdaq’s regular session had not opened yet, with trading scheduled for 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET; May 29 is not on Nasdaq’s 2026 holiday closure list, after the Memorial Day market break on May 25.
May 29, 2026
Evolution Mining Edges into Focus After Gold Drops Again
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Evolution Mining Edges into Focus After Gold Drops Again

Evolution Mining heads into the ASX open Wednesday with just a narrow bounce after gold stocks took a hit. The shares closed Tuesday at A$11.95, up just 0.17%—this after sliding 4.56% in the previous session. Tuesday’s range was A$11.78 to A$12.23. Volume came in at 5.85 million shares. Gold slid more than 1% Tuesday, with the metal pressured by a firmer U.S. dollar and steady Treasury yields. Bullion, which offers no yield, tends to lose some appeal when Treasury yields are high. Spot gold dropped 1.4% to $4,503.98 an ounce by early afternoon in New York, according to Reuters.
May 20, 2026
Fortescue Shares Lag in ASX Climb After Iron Ore Signal Weakens
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Fortescue Shares Lag in ASX Climb After Iron Ore Signal Weakens

Fortescue Ltd shares are set to open Wednesday’s ASX trading weaker. The stock did not take part in a rally for Australian equities, with iron ore futures softer and pressuring major miners. Fortescue ended Tuesday off 0.3% at A$21.88. The S&P/ASX 200 put on 99.4 points, or 1.17%, finishing at 8,604.7; BHP eased 0.1% and Rio Tinto dropped 0.2%. ASX cash trading hadn’t started at the dateline. Wednesday is a regular session, with hours from 9:59 a.m. through 4 p.m. in Sydney. May 20 isn’t listed as a holiday on the exchange’s 2026 calendar.
May 19, 2026
Mineral Resources Stock Gains as Lithium Peers Fall Post Bald Hill Restart
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Mineral Resources Stock Gains as Lithium Peers Fall Post Bald Hill Restart

Mineral Resources Ltd shares jumped past the overall Australian market on news the company will restart the Bald Hill lithium mine in Western Australia, moving to bring the shuttered mine online as battery-material prices turn higher. Shares closed at A$65.74 Tuesday, up 2.56%. The stock had dropped to A$63.44 earlier in the session. Bald Hill went into care and maintenance in November 2024. That means the site was kept idle but maintained, with the idea it could restart if needed. Lithium prices were low at the time, so running the mine didn't make sense. Mineral Resources said the new decision came after what it called a “significant and sustained” bounce in prices.
May 19, 2026
Rio Tinto Drops Even as FTSE Pushes Higher
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Rio Tinto Drops Even as FTSE Pushes Higher

Rio Tinto dropped in early London dealings on Tuesday. The stock lagged while the FTSE 100 pushed higher, with investors cutting back on big miners following a recent strong rally. Rio Tinto shares traded at 7,561 pence, slipping from the prior close of 7,727 pence. In early deals, the stock moved between 7,554 and 7,652 pence, according to market data. The fall took Rio below last week’s 52-week high of 8,275 pence, though shares remain well above the past year’s low at 4,110 pence.
May 19, 2026
Mineral Resources Shares Watch Lithium Market Ahead of Bald Hill Restart
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Mineral Resources Shares Watch Lithium Market Ahead of Bald Hill Restart

Mineral Resources Limited will bring its Bald Hill lithium mine back online in Western Australia. The company plans to ramp up site work in late May. Mining and crushing are set to kick off in June, and production of spodumene concentrate could start in July. Mineral Resources said the move follows a sustained recovery in lithium prices. Timing is in focus. Spodumene concentrate, the lithium-rich ore sent to refiners for battery materials, is back at the center of market pressure after a sharp rout triggered supply cuts in Australia.
May 19, 2026
Northern Star Shares Slip While Gold Miners Face Pressure
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Northern Star Shares Slip While Gold Miners Face Pressure

Northern Star Resources Ltd shares slid 2.44% to A$20.00 on Monday, hitting an intraday low of A$19.53. The stock moved in line with other gold miners. Market cap was about A$28.6 billion and 5.31 million shares changed hands. Gold miners are under pressure as higher bond yields make gold look less appealing. The metal doesn’t pay interest, so when yields go up, gold gets compared less favorably. Spot gold nudged up 0.2% Monday, after touching its lowest since March 30. U.S. gold futures slipped 0.1% at settlement. Jim Wyckoff at American Gold Exchange said the weaker dollar was good for gold, but said rising yields could cap gains.
May 18, 2026
BHP Dips After Hitting Record, ASX Miners Retreat
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BHP Dips After Hitting Record, ASX Miners Retreat

BHP Group shares dropped 2.8% to A$58.77 on Monday in Australia, retracing some of the copper-fueled gains that recently pushed the miner to all-time highs. Rio Tinto and Fortescue shares also slipped. The move hit the sector, not just BHP. BHP hit A$60 for the first time and took back the top spot in Australia, riding on record copper prices and iron ore staying solid. Monday’s drop didn’t change that, but it did make the trade look a bit less certain.
May 18, 2026
Rio Tinto Slips After China Move Rattles Miners
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Rio Tinto Slips After China Move Rattles Miners

Rio Tinto PLC dropped Monday morning in London, underperforming the FTSE 100 after miners came under pressure on weak Chinese activity numbers and broader risk-off trading. Shares traded at 7,655 pence, off 111 pence, or 1.43%, from an open of 7,698 pence. The FTSE 100 slipped 0.12%, according to Hargreaves Lansdown. Rio's timing isn't great. The miner had been close to its recent highs, with its London-listed stock just under the 52-week high of 8,275 pence from last week, coming off gains driven by strong copper prices and steady iron ore demand. Iron ore is key for steelmaking. Copper goes into power grids, data centres and EVs.
May 18, 2026
South32 drops 5%, Alaska project lifts copper outlook but cost concerns remain
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South32 drops 5%, Alaska project lifts copper outlook but cost concerns remain

South32 Ltd closed out Friday at A$4.21, falling 5.18%. That’s still ahead of the previous week’s A$4.14 finish. As of early Monday, the stock was yet to begin normal trading on the Australian Securities Exchange, with the market set to open at 09:59:45 Sydney time. South32 is getting tugged two ways right now. The stock covers a mix of metals—alumina, aluminium, copper, manganese, zinc, silver, lead—so shifts in industrial metals, changes in project costs, or new permitting can all swing how the market values it.
May 17, 2026
Mineral Resources Shares Face a Monday Test After Chris Ellison’s $122 Million Stock Sale
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Mineral Resources Shares Face a Monday Test After Chris Ellison’s $122 Million Stock Sale

Mineral Resources heads into Monday’s ASX open with the founder’s share sale, not iron ore or lithium volumes, setting the early tone. The stock last closed at A$64.77 on Friday, down 7.68%, after hitting A$71.79 earlier in the week and trading as low as A$63.97 in the session. That matters now because the sale landed after a sharp recovery in MinRes shares and just before a new trading week. Investors have to decide whether Chris Ellison’s move is routine wealth planning, or a warning sign after the stock’s run.
May 17, 2026
Evolution Mining Drops 5%, Gold Eyed for Monday Move
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Evolution Mining Drops 5%, Gold Eyed for Monday Move

Evolution Mining Ltd. is set to open Monday on the ASX after falling 5.52% to A$12.50 on Friday. The stock traded in a range from A$12.41 to A$13.02 with volume at 9.99 million shares. Shares finished about 4.2% lower than the previous week’s close following a metals selloff that weighed on Australian mining names. Timing is important here. The Australian market doesn't open for regular cash trading until 10 a.m. in Sydney, so Evolution is open to changes in bullion, copper and the Australian dollar overnight before investors can adjust. CommSec says regular ASX trading hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on business days.
May 17, 2026
BHP’s streak gets Monday check as copper’s fall drags miners
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BHP’s streak gets Monday check as copper’s fall drags miners

BHP Group comes into the week after slipping 2.58% to A$60.46 on Friday, pulling back from a record run as investors cashed out gains. The stock led the ASX by trading value, with sector peers Rio Tinto down 3.24% and Fortescue off 1.70%. The selling wasn’t isolated to BHP, hitting miners across the board, according to Australian Securities Exchange data. BHP now trades as a proxy for both copper demand and for Australia’s resource-heavy market. The S&P/ASX 200 ended Friday down 0.12% at 8,630.8, as materials fell 2.85%. The index lost 1.3% for the week, according to Market Index.
May 17, 2026
South32 Gets Alaska Copper Permit Lift, Hermosa Still in Focus
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South32 Gets Alaska Copper Permit Lift, Hermosa Still in Focus

South32 Ltd’s U.S. copper-zinc joint venture has cleared a step, getting into a federal permitting program. The Australian miner now has a more defined route for this North American critical-minerals prospect, as it keeps looking at costs for the bigger Hermosa project. Arctic Project in Alaska, owned by Ambler Metals LLC, the 50/50 JV between South32 and Trilogy Metals, is now listed as a FAST-41 “Covered Project,” Trilogy said. FAST-41 creates deadlines for coordinated reviews of large mining and infrastructure projects in the U.S., but it does not actually approve them.
May 16, 2026
Lynas Rare Earths Moves as Beijing Delays, ASX Miner Back in Focus
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Lynas Rare Earths Moves as Beijing Delays, ASX Miner Back in Focus

Lynas Rare Earths Limited traded flat at A$17.95 on Friday after sliding 9.8% in the previous session. The company drew attention again as U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said China is “dragging its feet” on some rare earth export licences, despite a reported uptick in shipments from China. Market data showed no change in the stock, Reuters reported. Why it matters: Rare earths—17 metals crucial to magnets, EVs, electronics, and defense—are still at the center of the U.S.-China trade fight. Reuters reported this week that China's heavy rare earth exports, like yttrium, dysprosium, and terbium, are stuck at about 50% of what they were before restrictions. That’s even as total rare earth shipments have bounced back.
May 15, 2026
Liontown Shares Fall 6% as Lithium Rally Faces a Hard Test
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Liontown Shares Fall 6% as Lithium Rally Faces a Hard Test

Shares of Liontown Limited dropped 6% to A$2.35, as the West Australian lithium player was swept up in a wider pullback across mining stocks. Investors are now gauging just how much of the recent run-up in battery-metals can hold. At that price, Liontown’s market cap stood at A$7.47 billion, according to the company’s website. This shift stands out given Liontown’s shares have already staged a big comeback. Over the past year, the stock surged 188.34%, according to Trading Economics, despite giving back 13.53% in just the last month.
May 15, 2026
Mineral Resources Stock Sinks After Chris Ellison’s $122 Million Sale—What Comes Next for ASX:MIN
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Mineral Resources Stock Sinks After Chris Ellison’s $122 Million Sale—What Comes Next for ASX:MIN

Shares of Mineral Resources Limited plunged Friday after founder and managing director Chris Ellison unloaded A$122.5 million worth of stock in the lithium, iron ore and mining services outfit. The move once again threw the high-profile Australian miner into the governance spotlight. According to Reuters, cited by Mining Weekly, the stock dropped as much as 7.1% in early trading following the announcement. That’s the issue here. While MinRes has been working to steer attention toward debt paydown, firmer lithium prices, and the Onslow Iron ramp, its biggest shareholder’s hefty sell-off throws that narrative off course.
May 15, 2026
Why Northern Star Resources Shares Fell Again as Gold Sell-Off Tests Its $500 Million Buyback
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Why Northern Star Resources Shares Fell Again as Gold Sell-Off Tests Its $500 Million Buyback

Northern Star Resources Ltd shares slipped close to 3% Friday, hit by a sweeping retreat in Australian mining names after gold’s steep slide rattled nerves around the Perth-based gold miner. The stock ended at A$20.50, down A$0.63 for the session, and is now off 15.64% in the last four weeks. Timing is crucial here. While gold miners have ridden strong macro tailwinds this year, Northern Star continues to be measured on its mine execution rather than bullion’s rally. Its March-quarter update has again turned the spotlight to KCGM, with mill throughput now a key swing factor for hitting the revised production target.
May 15, 2026
Evolution Mining Shares Slide 5.5% as Gold Pullback Tests ASX:EVN Cash-Flow Rally
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Evolution Mining Shares Slide 5.5% as Gold Pullback Tests ASX:EVN Cash-Flow Rally

May 16, 2026, Sydney—clock just past 5 a.m. local time, 05:09 AEST. Shares of Evolution Mining Limited slid 5.5% to A$12.50 on Friday, mirroring a broader slump in Australian mining names after both gold and copper futures lost ground. According to Market Index, Evolution was among the weaker performers on the ASX 300 for the session. COMEX copper futures were off 3.2% during Asian hours, while gold futures dropped 1.6%.
May 15, 2026
PLS Group Stock Slides: Why the Lithium Miner’s Rally Is Suddenly Under Pressure
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PLS Group Stock Slides: Why the Lithium Miner’s Rally Is Suddenly Under Pressure

PLS Group Limited dropped 5.8% to A$6.01 on Friday, backing off from this week’s 52-week high of A$6.50 as sellers hit battery-materials and mining names. Still, the lithium producer ended the session with a market cap near A$19.36 billion, its stock holding at more than five times what it was at its June 2025 low. This is notable: PLS—previously known as Pilbara Minerals—stands out as one of the ASX’s major plays on lithium demand. The group operates globally as a lithium materials producer, holding assets and forging partnerships throughout battery supply chains, and it’s counted among the bigger players in Australia’s basic materials sector.
May 15, 2026
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