Volt Resources (ASX:VRC) has announced its identification of an Alabama site for its natural graphite anode production facility.

The company confirmed it received a letter of support from the owner of the proposed site which could potentially deliver non-dilutive funding of about US$ 100 million for this project.

Volt Resources is a graphite exploration company based in Australia.

St George Mining (ASX:SGQ) has stated that the lithium potential at the Myuna Rocks Project has grown.

The company decline to offer additional details on the scale of the expansion at this time.

St George Mining is an Australian-based company focused on mining exploration.

Shares of Cooper Metals (ASX:CPM) witnessed a massive fall, plunging as much as 52.7% to A$0.130 and marking their greatest intraday percentage drop on record.

The company’s shares hit its lowest level since November 7, 2023.

This dramatic shift is ascribed to the disappointing outcomes from its mining assays at the Mt Isa East copper-gold project in Queensland.

The mineral explorer announced that the prospect drilling found a relatively narrow steeply dipping sulphide mineralised vein at the project, contrary to expectations of broad intercepts of copper mineralisation not being intersected so far.

Astonishingly, about 4.6 million shares changed hands, compared with the usual 30-day average volume of 239,069.

So far, based on the last close, the stock is down 19.1% year-to-date.

Cooper Metals is an Australian company engaged in the exploration and mining of copper and gold resources.

Mandrake Resources (ASX:MAN) has announced the definition of a substantial lithium exploration target at its project in Utah.

Future company coverage: MAN.

Mandrake Resources is a company dedicated to mining and exploration projects.

Raiden Resources (ASX:RDN) has announced that it has secured a heritage survey for its Andover North Lithium project.

This endeavor forms part of the company’s commitment to responsible and sustainable operations.

Raiden Resources (ASX:RDN) is a firm that is focused on the exploration, development, and production of mineral resources.

Shares of Osteopore (ASX:OSX) have plunged 42.3% to A$0.3.

The significant slide puts the company on track for its worst performing day if the decline holds.

The medical technology firm has announced an entitlement offer with a goal of raising A$3 million in order to reinforce its financial standing.

The offer price of A$0.029 per placement portrays a whopping 94.4% discount compared to the company’s closing figure on March 12.

The stock exchange witnessed an unusually high trading activity with about 97,000 shares trading hands, a stark contrast to the average volume of about 2,400 over the past 30 days.

Year-to-date, the stock has fallen by 21.2%, as per its last closure.

Osteopore is a medical tech company specializing in biodegradable polymer medical devices for bone regeneration.

Shares of Ionic Rare Earths (ASX:IXR), an Australian company, experienced a surge of up to 10.5%, taking the stock prices to A$0.021.

This marks the company’s most significant intraday percentage climb since March 6.

Ionic Rare Earths (ASX:IXR) has initiated the production of mixed rare-earths carbonate (MREC) at their principal Makuutu Heavy Rare Earths project, located in Uganda.

Approximately 4 million company shares changed owners, which comes in juxtaposition to the 30-day average volume of 5.4 million shares.

The company’s stock has observed a downward trend this year with a 26.9% fall until the prior closing.

Ionic Rare Earths (ASX:IXR) is an Australian non-gold precious miner that operates the leading Makuutu Heavy Rare Earths project in Uganda.

Treasure Wine Estates (ASX:TWE), the Australian wine conglomerate, has seen its shares rise 3.3% to A$12.690, reaching their highest level since May 24, 2023.

This significant increase comes in response to the anticipated removal of Chinese tariffs on Australian wine which analysts at Jefferies term as a ‘material positive’ for the company.

The company announces that China’s Ministry of Commerce has drafted an interim proposal to remove these tariffs.

Though not final, Jefferies believes it’s unlikely the final determination, expected in the ensuing weeks, will significantly differ.

The brokerage firm expects the tariff removal to accelerate growth as supply continues to build.

Additionally, it anticipates an enhancement of pricing power and improved earnings predictability for Treasury Wine Estates (ASX:TWE).

Current stock ratings show twelve of fifteen analysts rating the stock as a ‘buy’ or higher, two as ‘hold’, and only one as ‘sell’.

According to LSEG’s data, their median price target is A$13.10.

Treasury Wine Estates (ASX:TWE) shares have seen a 13.9% increase year to date, based on the last closing figures.

Treasury Wine Estates is Australia’s top wine maker.

Shares of Australia’s Brazilian Critical Minerals (ASX:BCM) experienced a significant upswing, rising as much as 17.4% to A$0.027, representing the highest level since January 15.

This resulted in the stock posting its most significant intraday percentage gain since the same period.

The surge was prompted by the mineral explorer’s reports that first pass leach results confirm the high recoveries of rare earth elements at their EMA Project in Apuí, Brazil.

The discovered elements include neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium, and terbium.

By 2350 GMT, almost 12 million shares had changed hands, a considerable increase from the 30-day average volume of 864,805 shares.

Despite the positive developments, the stock is down by 11.5% in the year-to-date measure, as of the last close.

Brazilian Critical Minerals is an Australia-based company that specializes in the exploration and extraction of rare earth elements.

In 2023, corporate dividends went through the roof hitting a record high of $1.66 trillion globally, with half of this growth contributed by banks' record payouts.

This information is according to a report unveiled on Wednesday.

As per the report, 86% of listed companies globally either upped their dividends or kept them as they were.

The Janus Henderson Global Dividend Index’s quarterly report also anticipates a fresh high for dividend payouts this year, forecasting a sum of $1.72 trillion.

The companies that crowned the list of the largest dividend payers worldwide in 2023 were Microsoft, Apple, and Exxon Mobil in that order.

Janus Henderson, a UK asset manager, reported that the total value of corporate dividends rose from $1.57 trillion witnessed in 2022 with underlying growth accounting for currency movements and special dividends among other factors at 5% from 2022.

According to LSEG data, the earnings growth of the S&P 500 in Q4 2023 was predicted to be at 9% YoY.

High interest rates bolstered bank margins resulting in banks paying out $220 billion, a record high, to shareholders in 2023, which represented an underlying surge of 15% from 2022 and marked a continuation of the rebound experienced after bank payouts were frozen amid the pandemic.

The almost exclusive offset of the positive impacts of the higher banking dividends was due to cuts from the mining sector as revealed by the report, which was as a result of lower mining profits brought on by low commodity prices.

Remarkably, five significant companies including miners BHP and Rio Tinto, Petrobras, Intel, and AT&T made drastic dividend cuts, which brought down the underlying 2023 global dividend growth rate by 2 percentage points.

The report pointed out the vital importance of having a diversified portfolio by emphasizing the growth witnessed in a range of industries including vehicles, utilities, software, food, and engineering apart from the banking and mining sectors, which had unusually big impacts.

The dividends of emerging markets on an underlying basis were flat, with Janus Henderson spotlighting steep cuts in Brazil and modest growth in China.

Further economic growth of 5% in corporate dividends amounting to $1.72 trillion is projected this year by Janus Henderson.

Even as the rapid rise in bank dividends likely slows down, speedy declines from the mining sector may also be less consequential, Lofthouse remarked.

He further added that the large defensive sectors such as healthcare, food, and basic consumer products are projected to maintain steady progress as energy prices remain steady, and thus oil dividends seem well supported.

By Lucy Raitano; Edited by Amanda Cooper and Susan Fenton.

BHP is a multinational mining, metals, and petroleum company with headquarters in Melbourne, Australia.