Lunchtime ASX small cap wrap: Who's prepared for a 'new normal (COVID-19 edition)' today?

For many Australians, adhering to the rapid enforcement of social distancing rules has been a difficult adjustment.

But such measures are likely to become the “new normal” until a vaccine for COVID-19 is found, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said this morning.

Investors would be familiar with the phrase, which was also coined by investment fund PIMCO in its assessment of the global economic outlook in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis.

Back then, the PIMCO team forecast a “new normal” for markets, punctuated by a low growth, low inflation environment.

This one is a little different, and although Bill Gates has pledged to spend billions on accelerating vaccine research for the virus, the new rules look like they’re here to stay for a while yet.

On markets, US stocks ripped higher into the close overnight on some optimism that the growth of new cases is starting to slow.

However, the 7 per cent gain on the S&P500 didn’t inspire local investors. The ASX200 opened around 2 per cent higher before falling back into red, down 0.50 per cent at 5,262.50 points by 12pm EST. The Small Ords index outperformed, with a gain of 0.80 per cent 2,186.10 points.

WINNERS

Here are the best performing ASX small cap stocks at 12pm Tuesday April 7:

Swipe or scroll to reveal the full table. Click headings to sort.

CODE	COMPANY	PRICE	% CHANGE	MARKET CAP
QFY	Quantify Tech	0.002	100.00%	$1.9M
FGO	Flamingo	0.002	100.00%	$1.1M
EM1	Emerge Gaming	0.01	66.67%	$3.9M
TMZ	Thomson Resources Ltd	0.015	50.00%	$1.2M
MSE	Metalsearch	0.009	50.00%	$9.8M
RMX	Red Mountain Mining	0.003	50.00%	$2.6M
AVE	Avecho Bio	0.003	50.00%	$3.2M
EUC	European Cobalt	0.019	35.71%	$14.5M
NWC	New World Cobalt	0.007	40.00%	$4.4M
TYM	Tymlez Group	0.014	40.00%	$1.5M
ESH	Esports Mogul Asia Pacific Ltd	0.007	40.00%	$10.2M
AHX	Admedus	8.9	38.85%	$37.9M
BSX	Blackstone Minerals	0.14	33.33%	$20.2M
BRK	Brookside Energy	0.004	33.33%	$3.0M
LRS	Latin Resources Ltd	0.004	33.33%	$1.1M
CPT	Cipherpoint	0.025	31.58%	$982K
PIQ	Proteomics Intl Labs	0.3	30.43%	$28.5M
KIN	Kin Mining NL	0.065	30.00%	$39.9M
CNB	Carnaby Resources	0.065	30.00%	$6.2M
MRC	Mineral Commodities Ltd	0.27	28.57%	$113.7M
STM	Sunstone Metals	0.009	28.57%	$12.5M

Proteomics International Laboratories (ASX:PIQ)

The medtech company, which makes the PromarkerD diagnostic test kit for diabetic kidney disease, got a boost after providing updates across its product pipeline.

Among the new developments, PIQ said it had initiated research “seeking to develop a rapid diagnostic test for the identification of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, and to isolate biomarkers that give insights into the progression of the COVID-19 disease”.

LOSERS

Here are the worst performing ASX small cap stocks at 12pm Tuesday April 7:

Swipe or scroll to reveal the full table. Click headings to sort.

CODE	COMPANY	PRICE	% CHANGE	MARKET CAP
88E	88 Energy	0.009	-55.00%	$64.0M
ENE	Enevis	0.1	-37.50%	$10.7M
KAS	Kasbah Resources	0.025	-34.21%	$3.4M
AYR	Alloy Resources Ltd	0.001	-33.33%	$2.3M
PMY	Pacifico Minerals Ltd	0.003	-25.00%	$8.7M
PPL	Pureprofile Ltd	0.003	-25.00%	$360K
SKN	Skin Elements	0.068	-20.93%	$21.9M
SE1	Sensera	0.004	-20.00%	$1.3M
ARE	Argonaut Resources N L	0.004	-20.00%	$6.3M
UNL	Unitednetworks	0.02	-20.00%	$7.9M
PEK	Peak Resources	0.021	-19.23%	$27.4M
NZS	New Zealand Coastal Seafoods	0.014	-17.65%	$7.4M
ESR	Estrella Resources Ltd	0.005	-16.67%	$2.7M
WWG	Wiseway	0.1	-16.67%	$14.0M
GNM	Great Northern Minerals	0.005	-16.67%	$2.2M
AEE	Aura Energy Ltd	0.003	-16.67%	$3.5M
SCU	Stemcell United Ltd	0.01	-16.67%	$6.4M
PNC	Pioneer Credit Ltd	0.555	-16.54%	$34.9M