The S&P/ASX 200 index sharply increased by 1.54% to 8,627.3 points, with gold producers Western Gold Resources (ASX:WGR) and Lion Rock Minerals (ASX:LRM) among the top-performing stocks.
Western Gold shares rose by 12.5% to $0.135, while Lion Rock jumped 7.69% to $0.028 per unit in the first hour of trading on the Australian Securities Exchange.
Other notable gains include EMC Gold Corporation (ASX:EM3), up 9.76% to $0.01 per share, and Terra Metals (ASX:TM1) rose 9.26% to $0.295 per share.
“This index is virtually unchanged over the last five days and year-to-date,” the ASX website says.
As Mining.com.au previously reported, the index reported a third year of “positive returns” in 2025 despite “concerns about the state of the world”.
“Big option trades using longer-dated contracts we found in January appear to be looking for continuation of this upward trend in 2026,” the ASX says.
Analysts note that major mineral producers and companies in other sectors have seen international investors withdraw funds as a safety precaution due to uncertainty across the ASX index.
“Gold came under pressure, silver came under pressure, bitcoin came under pressure, [and] shares came under pressure,” Moomoo market strategist Michael McCarthy tells the Australian Associated Press.
“In other words, it was a ‘sell everything’ night [on 20 May 2026], and that tells us that this is not about risk appetites — this is about concern about a deteriorating economic outlook.”
Write to Richard Szabo at Mining.com.au
Images: Marcus Reubenstein via Unsplash
