Energy stocks advanced 1% at midday Friday.
Woodside Energy Group (ASX:WDS) gained more than 2% in recent trade despite failing to convince Western Australia's Supreme Court to force environmental activists to furnish documents related to the planning of a stench gas protest at the company's Perth office in 2023.
Meanwhile, the information technology sector struggled, shedding more than 2%.
Xero (ASX:XRO) shares fell past 2% in recent trade.
OCR Group (KLSE:OCR) signed a conditional sale agreement with Howard Chew Si Hoo to acquire a 49% stake in Chester Properties for 19.6 million ringgit, according to a Wednesday Malaysia Bourse filing.The consideration will be satisfied entirely through the issuance of 478 million shares at 0.041 ringgit per share.Chester Properties has 11 branches across Malaysia and has been engaged in the marketing of more than 32 property development projects.
Taiwan's Fair Trade Commission on Wednesday extended its review of Grab's proposed acquisition of Delivery Hero SE's Foodpanda business in Taiwan by 60 days to Oct. 27, according to an official notification.The regulator said market structure remains a "dual-ownership" situation after the merger of Grab and FPx, with Uber holding 13% of Grab's shares and 3.7% of its voting rights.Therefore, given the "shareholding linkage" between the two companies, it was necessary to further analyze the impact of the merger on market competition in Taiwan, as it may affect the incentive and ability of UberEats and Grab to compete, it said.It may result in a "unilateral or synergistic effect similar to a horizontal merger," the commission added.
Laramide Resources (ASX:LAM) said an updated preliminary economic assessment for its Westmoreland uranium project in Queensland indicates "strong" project economics with a post-tax net present value of $741.1 million and an internal rate of return of 33%, according to a Thursday filing with the Australian bourse.The assessment also shows average annual production of about 4.9 million pounds of triuranium octoxide and total production of about 47.9 million pounds over an initial mine life of 11 years, per the filing.The company said the assessment pegged the initial capital cost at about $456 million, plus a contingency of $84 million, with an estimated payback period of roughly 2.5 years.The updated study incorporates a decade of technical advancement and replaces a previous assessment from 2016."Significantly, this study positions Westmoreland for the next stage of development," said Rhys Davies, Laramide Resources' vice president of exploration. "The company is prepared to lodge a mining lease application as soon as permitted by the Queensland government."