S&P/ASX 200 pulls back from a strong start; on track for double-digit growth for the month

S&P/ASX 200 (INDEXASX:XJO) was off to a good start on the final session of the month but has slipped 0.76% to 6,551 by about 2.12 pm with most sectors in the red. Although this is the third straight session of losses for the index, it is still up by more than 10% for the month as promising vaccine developments boosted confidence of a smooth economic reopening across the world. In the US, the Dow Jones Index has risen 12.9% so far this month, on pace for its best monthly performance since January 1987. Coal producers and winemakers suffer Coal producers in Australia are struggling after China increased its coal import quotas for 2020 by about 20 million tonnes but is very likely to exclude Australia. Whitehaven (ASX:WHC) dipped 8.4% while New Hope (ASX:NHC) is down 5.4%. Treasury Wine Estates (ASX:TWE) shares crashed 8% today after the company said it would divert hundreds of thousands of cases of China-bound wine to other countries to avoid hefty tariffs. This follows a move by Beijing to impose a 169.3% mark-up on Treasury Wine’s products as part of an industry-wide anti-dumping investigation. China’s move took the world’s largest listed winemaker by surprise as a 5-year-old free trade agreement between the countries — which had eliminated wine tariffs — gave way to strained diplomatic relations. Top gainers Today’s top gainers on the ASX include Creso Pharma Ltd (ASX:CPH) (+17.14%), Core Lithium Ltd (ASX:CXO) (+19.05%), Vrx Silica Ltd (ASX:VRX) (+12.50%), Fenix Resources Ltd (ASX:FEX) (+12.90%), Lake Resources N.L. (ASX:LKE) (+15.07%), Brookside Energy Ltd (ASX:BRK) (+14.29%) and Southern Gold Limited (ASX:SAU) (+17.35%). Proactive news headlines: Horizon Minerals enters development joint venture with Orminex for Penny’s Find Gold Project Horizon Minerals Ltd (ASX:HRZ) has executed a binding agreement for the acquisition of a 50% interest in the high-grade Penny’s Find Gold Project in the Western Australian goldfields for $1.5 million cash from Orminex Ltd (ASX:ONX). Aeris Resources set to boost Tritton copper bounty after intersecting sulphides in first Anomaly K hole Aeris Resources Ltd’s (ASX:AIS) first drill hole at Anomaly K target of the Tritton copper operations in New South Wales has intersected an 18.8-metre interval containing disseminated and banded sulphides, including a 6.8-metre interval of massive pyrite bands with visible chalcopyrite. Meteoric Resources hits multiple broad, high-grade gold intersections in Southern Extension at Palm Springs Meteoric Resources NL (ASX:MEI) has received a second batch of assays from a maiden drilling program at Palm Springs Gold Project in WA, which returned wide high-grade gold intercepts at the Southern Extension, including 69 metres at 4.4 g/t. FYI Resources fields strong support in placement raising $6 million to progress HPA project FYI Resources Ltd (ASX:FYI) has received firm commitments to raise up to $6 million through a strongly supported placement to sophisticated and professional investors to advance its strategy of producing high-purity alumina from an innovative and fully integrated HPA project in Western Australia. Southern Gold sale price tag for Gubong and Kochang JV with Bluebird Merchant Ventures set at US$9.945 million Southern Gold Ltd’s (ASX:SAU) (FRA:UH4) price tag for the sale of its 50% stake in the Gubong and Kochang joint venture in Korea with Bluebird Merchant Ventures PLC (LON:BMV) has been set at US$9.945 million. PNX Metals raising up to $6.67 million to progress NT gold and zinc-gold-silver projects PNX Metals Ltd (ASX:PNX) (FRA:4P1) is undertaking a capital raising exercise comprising a placement and rights issue to raise up to $6.67 million to advance its exploration and development strategy focused on gold and zinc-gold-silver projects in the Northern Territory. Creso Pharma set to capitalise on Court of Justice of the European Union ruling on sales of CBD products in EU Creso Pharma Limited (ASX:CPH( (FRA:1X8) is ready to capitalise on the Court of Justice of the European Union’s (CJEU) ruling that cannabidiol (CBD) products can be sold freely in the European Union (EU) and that member states must not prohibit the marketing of lawfully produced CBD. Lake Resources gains flexibility after extending standby capital facility by A$5.5 million Lake Resources N.L. (ASX:LKE) (OTCMKTS:LLKKF) (FRA:LK1) has agreed to extend the existing Controlled Placement Agreement (CPA) with Acuity Capital by an additional A$5.5 million with the expiry date extended to January 31, 2023. Castillo Copper confirms Big One potential with shallow copper assays of up to 4.14% Castillo Copper Ltd (ASX:CCZ) has confirmed the strong potential of its Big One Deposit within Mt Oxide Project in northwest Queensland’s Mt Isa Copper Belt amidst a strong copper market with assays returning shallow copper mineralisation of up to 4.14%. Platina Resources to ramp-up gold exploration after completing A$13.7 million sale of Skaergaard project in Greenland Platina Resources Limited (ASX:PGM) (FRA:P4R) has completed the A$13.7 million sale of its Skaergaard gold and palladium project in Greenland to Canadian-listed Major Precious Metals Corp (CSE:SIZE) (OTCMKTS:SIZYF) (FRA:3EZ). VIP Gloves nitrile gloves sales orders full to end of 2021 as it pushes ahead with new production lines VIP Gloves Ltd’s (ASX:VIP) sales order book for nitrile gloves has increased and is currently full for delivery up to the end of 2021.