ASX 28 April 2026: 8,710.7 close on sixth straight slide; EUR.AU +46% on $835M takeover, energy lone positive sector
ASX 200 close: 8,710.7 (-0.64%) Breadth: decliners ahead of advancers; energy the only positive sector Sentiment: bearish
Session highlights
The S&P/ASX 200 closed at 8,710.7 on 28 April 2026, down 55.7 points or 0.64%, for a sixth consecutive losing session and a fresh three-week low.
- 8,693.4 intraday low printed at the open — down 0.83% — before a partial reclaim into the 16:00 close.
- EUR.AU +45.61% to A$0.415 on a non-binding scheme bid from Critical Metals Corp (CRML.US) at A$0.58/share — a 137% premium and an implied US$835m equity value.
- PNR.AU -11.29% to A$3.380 on a Q3 print of 17,757oz produced — Cyclone Mitchell disruption to Norseman flagged; A$88.4m quarterly EBITDA, A$250.3m cash, debt-free.
- DMP.AU -10.70% to A$15.85 — Japan-restructuring overhang resurfaced into FY guidance; 172 Japan store closures already on the books for Q4.
- XGD.INDX -2.1% as spot bullion fell 1.85% to US$4,596 — lowest since late March, oil-led inflation drained the safe-haven flow.
Sector scorecard
Energy was the sole positive sector on 28 April as Brent rose 2.71% to US$111, while utilities, materials and gold-skewed mining names led the decline.
- Best: Energy — STO.AU +1.24% to A$7.75, WHC.AU +3.90%, YAL.AU +3.56%, VEA.AU +3.46%.
- Worst: Utilities (second straight session at the bottom); Materials -1.2% on iron-ore weakness.
- Lithium decoupled from the materials drag: ELV.AU +6.29%, PMT.AU +6.03%, LTR.AU +3.95%, MIN.AU +4.00%, PLS.AU +3.04%, IGO.AU +2.32% — six lithium-linked names in the top-25 gainers.
- Gold complex dominated the losers: PNR.AU -11.29%, WAF.AU -6.88%, BC8.AU -6.50%, RSG.AU -5.81%, OBM.AU -4.22%, CYL.AU -3.97%.
Top movers
| Ticker | Move | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| EUR.AU | +45.61% | CRML.US reverse-takeover bid at A$0.58/share, 137% premium, A$835m implied |
| ARU.AU | +7.25% | Arafura Rare Earths — sympathy move alongside the rare-earth/lithium complex |
| ELV.AU | +6.29% | Elevra Lithium — spot lithium up ~50% YTD on Chinese demand recovery |
| PMT.AU | +6.03% | Patriot Battery Metals — Quebec spodumene developer; sympathy with EUR.AU |
| ELS.AU | +4.33% | Elsight — Unannounced; likely flow-driven |
| EIQ.AU | -13.97% | Echo IQ — Unannounced; no public release intraday |
| PNR.AU | -11.29% | Pantoro Q3 production miss; Cyclone Mitchell flooding flagged at Norseman |
| DMP.AU | -10.70% | Domino's Pizza — Japan-restructuring overhang into FY guidance |
| DTR.AU | -7.84% | Dateline Resources — Unannounced; speculative drift |
| WAF.AU | -6.88% | West African Resources — gold-complex sell-off, XGD.INDX -2.1% |
Notable announcements
The headline release was European Lithium's non-binding scheme of arrangement with NASDAQ-listed Critical Metals on 28 April 2026, the largest single-day premium in the ASX-AU lithium space this year.
- EUR.AU + CRML.US: scheme implies A$0.58/share via a 0.035 CRML/EUR ratio; both parties exclusive to 7 May 2026 to execute a binding deed; EUR shareholders would own 45% of the combined entity; consolidates Wolfsberg (Austria) and Tanbreez rare earth (Greenland).
- PNR.AU Q3 (Mar quarter): 17,757oz produced, 20,016oz sold at A$6,916/oz average; AISC A$3,204/oz; FY guidance retained at 86,000-92,000oz despite weather disruption.
At the AU close (16:15 AEST)
| Asset | Level | Change | Context |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brent crude | US$111.16 | +2.71% | Stalled US-Iran talks; Hormuz blockade unresolved |
| WTI crude | US$97.43 | +0.78% | Approaching US$100/bbl mid-AU session |
| Gold (spot) | US$4,596.49 | -1.85% | Lowest since late March; oil-led inflation drained safe-haven flow |
| AUD/USD | 0.7180 | -0.10% | Range-traded ahead of Wed AU CPI |
| Nikkei 225 | 59,917.46 | -1.02% | BOJ held 0.75%; revised inflation estimates upward |
| KOSPI | 6,641.02 | +0.39% | Sole regional gainer; tech-led move |
| S&P 500 (27 Apr cash close) | 7,173.91 | +0.12% | Record close; Nasdaq lower as chips sold off, MSFT/OpenAI partnership ending |
Next 24h catalysts (AEST)
- Wed 11:30 — ABS Q1 / March CPI print — the headline domestic catalyst that today's caution priced in.
- Wed 09:00 — ASX open; SPI futures direction set by the overnight US session.
- Wed (US) — META.US, MSFT.US Q1 results post-close New York time.
- Wed 23:30 — US April ADP private payrolls.
- Thu 04:00 — FOMC decision plus Powell press conference.
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