Lunchtime ASX small cap wrap: Who’s struggling to get fries on the table today?

While significant swathes of Australia’s eastern seaboard have been up in flames lately, the US has been experiencing a cold snap.

Technically the northern winter only started on Sunday, but areas such as Minnesota, North Dakota and parts of Canada saw unseasonably chilly conditions between September and November.

As it happens, those same regions also have significant potato farming operations. And the frigid conditions have hurt crop yields, which are now expected to fall by around 6 per cent.

At the same time, US demand for the humble “french fry” hasn’t wavered. And the supply-demand gap now poses a threat to fry-consumption levels in certain regions, as the availability of potatoes dries up.

It’s also ice-cold on the local market today, as the ASX200 slumped by almost 2 per cent in morning trade to 6,739.20 points.

It followed a weak lead out of the US, after manufacturing PMIs declined for the fourth straight month and the Trump administration announced a fresh round of tariffs against Brazil, France and Argentina.

The selloff is extending throughout Asia, and the ASX Small Ords was 1.5 per cent lower at 2,878 points, on track for its worst intra-day fall since mid-August.

GOING UP

Among the broader selloff, one early winner was Red Emperor Resources (ASX:RMP), which held its intra-day gains of more than 50 per cent into midday trade after signing a binding letter of intent to secure a large offshore block in shallow waters of WA’s North Perth Basin.

The deal gives Red Emperor the right to acquire a 70 per cent interest with the right to operate the project, with work now commencing “to quantify the recoverable oil resource potential of the block”.

And gold and base metals explorer Carawine Resources (ASX:CWX) also jumped sharply, after announcing “exceptional geophysical results” from a survey at its fully-owned Jamieson project in northeast Victoria. The company will now conduct 3D modelling on the magnetic anomalies to determine “their accurate location, size and depth”.

Here are the best performing ASX small cap stocks at 12pm Tuesday December 3:

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GOING DOWN

Among the losers, property group Boyuan Holdings (ASX: BHL) fell more than 10 per cent, after announcing it had negotiated an extension for the completion of its development in Bringelly, NSW, to November 2022 (with the option of a further six months).

Here are the worst performing ASX small cap stocks at 12pm Tuesday December 3:

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