Market highlights and 5 ASX small caps to watch on Monday

Wall Street mixed after a volatile week

Wall Street finished on a mixed note, ending a volatile week in the US stock markets.

On Friday, the Dow Jones was 0.36% higher, S&P fell 0.08%, while tech-heavy NASDAQ was down by 0.48%.

Minutes from the Federal Bank meeting last week had fanned investors’ concerns about inflation and the interest rate outlook.

Elsewhere, iron ore fell by 5% to $US200.72 a tonne, and Brent crude rose by 2.5% to $US66.71 a barrel.

Bitcoin slumps again

Bitcoin plunged again, and ended up at US$34,500 at 8am AEDT, a far cry from its US$60k level reached earlier this month.

The cryptocurrency market has slumped over the past week, after Chinese authorities announced a crackdown on the mining and trading of cryptos.

Closer to home

The ASX 200 gained 0.15 per cent on Friday, with the Small Ordinaries index also rising by 0.32 per cent and breaking its four-week losing streak.

Three members of the Australian Olympic skateboarding team were reported to have contracted COVID-19 even after taking vaccines.

5 ASX small caps to watch today

Resonance Health (ASX:RHT)
The medical imaging specialist announced it has lodged an international application under the Patent Co-Operation Treaty for the use of Antisense Oligonucleotides. The patent seeks protection for a new method for treating viral, inflammatory, and malignant diseases. If granted, it will have a term of 20 years.

K2Fly (ASX:K2F)
The tech consulting company announced the first ever contract of its full Mining Technical Assurance software suite to Roy Hill, a world-class iron ore operation and the largest single ore mine in Australia. The technology will provide a critical mine geology processes through automation, resulting in improved short-term scheduling and excavation of the ore body.

EnviroSuite (ASX:EVS)
The environmental tech company announced equity raising to raise approximately $14 million to accelerate its investment into growing underlying sales in the EVS Omnis and EVS Water product suites. It will also use the funds to invest into the North American region and strengthen its balance sheet.

Pantoro (ASX:PNR)
The exploration company reported that very high grade mineralisation has been identified at the Lord Percy Deposit, which is part of the Maybell Mining Centre at the Norseman Gold Project, which is owned 50 per cent by Pantoro. The Maybell Mining Centre lies approximately 22km south of the Norseman Gold processing plant site, and forms part of the ore feed contemplated in the Phase One Definitive Feasibility Study.

Infinity Lithium (ASX:INF)
The Spain-based lithium miner said its management team met with European Commission vice president, and presented at the European Battery Alliance Day in Madrid. During the meeting, the President of Spain recognised the critical importance of lithium for the EU, and the existence in Spain of Infinity’s San Jose, one of the EU’s largest lithium deposits.