Closing Bell: ASX closes higher, but Trump’s hit on Canada and Mexico sparks market jitters

ASX reverses after Trump’s tariff threat sends jitters
Bitcoin drops as Trump’s policies remain unclear
Hub24 shines, Santos slumps after project delay

After an upbeat start to the day, the S&P/ASX 200 Index, which had surged as much as 1% in the morning, closed just 0.66% higher. Not terrible, mind.

In the last couple of hours, Trump sent shockwaves through the markets when he floated the idea of imposing 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada as soon as February 1.

He didn’t mention China in the announcement, but the uncertainty surrounding his stance was enough to spook investors.

“I think we’ll do it February 1,” Trump said, signalling tariffs on the US neighbours for issues ranging from migration to trade imbalances.

Bitcoin, which had been riding high and even hit a record of more than US$109,000 before his inauguration, started to slip. As of this time of writing, it was trading around US$102,000.

Gold, however, edged higher, with traders flocking to the safe-haven assets; while oil prices faced pressure after Trump vowed to ramp up US oil and gas production.

Back home, three out of the 11 ASX sectors finished in the red.

The utilities sector was dragged down by Origin Energy (ASX:ORG), and the mining giants weren’t spared either from the afternoon selloff.

BHP (ASX:BHP), which had initially been riding high on strong copper production reports, saw its gains pare back to just 0.8%.

This is how things looked leading up to today’s close:

In other large caps news, Hub24 (ASX:HUB), a wealth platform, had a great day, skyrocketing 12% after reporting record quarterly inflows of $5.5 billion.

Santos (ASX:STO) didn’t fare so well, with shares dipping 2% after it announced a delay to a major oil and gas project in WA. This news saw its partner, Carnarvon Energy (ASX:CVN) get absolutely hammered, down 25%.

ASX SMALL CAP LEADERS

Today’s best performing small cap stocks:

Security	Description	Last	%	Volume	MktCap
88E	88 Energy Ltd	0.002	100%	12,037,985	$28,933,812
SFG	Seafarms Group Ltd	0.002	100%	287,959	$4,836,599
EPM	Eclipse Metals	0.008	33%	1,156,517	$13,727,133
OB1	Orbminco Limited	0.002	33%	264,773	$3,249,885
TTI	Traffic Technologies	0.004	33%	19,103,521	$3,461,200
NVQ	Noviqtech Limited	0.105	28%	12,454,868	$18,881,917
RLF	Rlfagtechltd	0.044	26%	607,880	$9,401,445
ECT	Env Clean Tech Ltd.	0.003	25%	206,141	$6,343,621
RLT	Renergen Limited	0.390	24%	8,756	$9,552,682
1CG	One Click Group Ltd	0.011	22%	4,621,686	$10,600,919
AOK	Australian Oil.	0.003	20%	2,004,456	$2,504,457
ASP	Aspermont Limited	0.006	20%	203,272	$12,350,058
ASR	Asra Minerals Ltd	0.003	20%	11,636	$5,781,575
CUL	Cullen Resources	0.006	20%	84,970	$3,467,009
DUN	Dundasminerals	0.039	18%	1,264,763	$3,538,205
3DP	Pointerra Limited	0.087	18%	36,183,127	$59,575,683
KM1	Kalimetalslimited	0.135	17%	440,372	$8,835,177
AJL	AJ Lucas Group	0.007	17%	993,391	$8,254,378
AVE	Avecho Biotech Ltd	0.004	17%	31,529	$9,507,891
MMR	Mec Resources	0.004	17%	4,709,081	$5,495,421

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Dundas Minerals (ASX:DUN) has hit some impressive gold grades at its Rockland site, with multiple high-grade intercepts confirming a 1km gold-rich trend. Highlights include up to 14.9g/t gold in spots, and an estimated 1km stretch of mineralisation. This new gold zone sits between the historic Milford and Windanya North prospects.

Kali Metals (ASX:KM1) has ramped up gold digging at its Marble Bar project, expanding the gold-in-soil anomaly by 80% to a solid 9.5km stretch. So far, it’s only mapped a small part of it, but already it has found gold-bearing quartz veins at the Tiger and Sherman prospects, with surface grades up to 4.0g/t.

Traffic Technologies (ASX:TTI) has bagged a $3 million contract to supply smart, IoT-ready LED streetlights to the City of Sydney. The deal runs for five years, with an option to extend for up to nine, potentially bringing in $5 million. The lights will replace old ones and cover everything from roads to parks and laneways across Sydney’s CBD and surrounding suburbs.

ASX SMALL CAP LAGGARDS

Today’s worst performing small cap stocks:

Code	Name	Price	% Change	Volume	Market Cap
X2M	X2M Connect Limited	0.020	-29%	295,974	10,554,339
1TT	Thrive Tribe Tech	0.003	-25%	209,425,715	8,126,892
CRB	Carbine Resources	0.003	-25%	200,000	2,206,951
CTN	Catalina Resources	0.003	-25%	100,000	4,975,048
CVN	Carnarvon Energy Ltd	0.118	-24%	21,169,195	277,308,467
FCT	Firstwave Cloud Tech	0.020	-20%	565,280	42,837,967
ENV	Enova Mining Limited	0.004	-20%	8,988,003	4,924,647
HPC	Thehydration	0.016	-20%	245,624	6,098,261
LCL	LCL Resources Ltd	0.008	-20%	2,983,624	11,948,127
MEL	Metgasco Ltd	0.004	-20%	500,000	7,287,934
BCK	Brockman Mining Ltd	0.013	-19%	321,308	148,483,714
SBW	Shekel Brainweigh	0.018	-18%	24,170	5,017,347
SVY	Stavely Minerals Ltd	0.018	-18%	2,463,468	11,968,926
TAR	Taruga Minerals	0.009	-18%	1,000,000	7,766,295
AM7	Arcadia Minerals	0.020	-17%	90,158	2,817,202
AUK	Aumake Limited	0.005	-17%	29,346	18,064,153
ERA	Energy Resources	0.003	-17%	213,894	1,216,188,722
IS3	I Synergy Group Ltd	0.005	-17%	14,164	2,137,307
LNR	Lanthanein Resources	0.003	-17%	647,088	7,330,908
TEM	Tempest Minerals	0.005	-17%	2,059,000	3,807,179
ADN	Andromeda Metals Ltd	0.006	-14%	1,397,512	24,001,094
HGO	Hillgrove Res Ltd	0.048	-14%	20,984,821	117,351,112

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Novonix’s (ASX:NVX) CEO Chris Burns announced he will step down this week after four years at the helm. The company, which focuses on battery materials, is entering a key growth phase and will now be searching for a new leader to steer it through the next stage.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Nevada-based explorer Sun Silver (ASX:SS1) shared with the market today a series of impressive drill hits from its Maverick Springs project in the US – including a standout intercept of 132m at 887.2g/t AgEq.

The company says the drilling, taking place in the project’s north-west, is continuing to exceed average widths of Maverick Springs’ current mineral resource (195.7Mt at 40.25g/t silver and 0.32g/t gold for 253.3Moz of silver and 2Moz of gold).

Recce Pharmaceuticals (ASX:RCE) announced to the market today that all 30 patients taking part in its phase II clinical trial for its Recce 327 topical gel product have been dosed.

Recce is currently developing a new class of synthetic anti-infectives to fight antibiotic-resistant superbugs and viral pathogens. The Recce 327 topical gel is designed to treat acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections. Full analysis of the phase II results is expected this quarter.

At Stockhead, we tell it like it is. While Recce Pharmaceuticals and Sun Silver are Stockhead advertisers, they did not sponsor this article.

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.