ASX Round-Up: Mining Leads Stocks Up to 5,422.8 Points

The Australian Securities Exchange rose 12.9 points or 0.24 percent to 5,422.8 points on Friday, according to The Sydney Morning Herald. Stocks gained over all sessions this week on the back of stable interest rates and a surprisingly large trade surplus, while the ASX gained one percent on signs of improvement in the Australian and  U.S. economies. Metals and mining led the gains this week, with a rise of 2.8 percent overall.

Resources junior OZ Minerals (ASX:OZL) gained 2.7 percent or $0.10 to trade at $3.81 as investors believe it could soon find a joint venture partner for its Carrapateena copper–gold project in South Australia. Coal and iron ore exporter Aquila Resources (ASX:AQA) also enjoyed a successful trading session, gaining $0.02 or 0.78 percent to trade at $2.57, continuing a rise that began when Chinese state-owned steel mill Baosteel Group purchased 20 percent of shares to become the second-largest shareholder late last year, according to the Herald.

On the other side of Friday’s trading, Lynas Corporation (ASX:LYC) lost 2.5 percent or $0.005 to trade at $0.195. The company extracts and processes rare earth minerals in Australia and Malaysia, develops rare earth deposits and also produces and ships rare earth products.