-- The Dallas Federal Reserve's monthly general business services index rose to a reading of minus 9.9 in April from minus 13.3 in March, still indicating contraction.
There were increases in the readings for revenue, input prices and selling prices, but decreases in the readings for employment and wages.
This is the final regional services reading for the month, with mixed readings in the other measures.
Chalice Mining (ASX:CHN) started a feasibility study for its Gonneville palladium-nickel-copper project in Western Australia, with activities progressing across all key work streams, including geology, mining, processing, and infrastructure, according to a Thursday Australian bourse filing.The company said an eight-week continuous pilot of the full flowsheet is planned in the second half of the year, representing the final de-risking step for the process flowsheet ahead of the feasibility study and project financing.The company said it has received strong interest from royalty and streaming companies, offtakers, credit agencies, and commercial lenders, with its funding strategy currently focused on byproduct streams, offtake-linked finance, sovereign credit agencies, and strategic investment.The company's shares fell nearly 4% in recent Thursday trade.
XJ International (HKG:1765) said its indirectly wholly-owned subsidiary agreed to subscribe for 600,000 Class B shares in Nasdaq-listed Intelligent Group at $12.50 each, for a total consideration of $7.50 million, according to a Thursday Hong Kong bourse filing.Upon completion, Intelligent Group will become an indirect subsidiary of the company, with XJ holding about 85.2% of the target's voting power.The company said the transaction constitutes a connected transaction as Intelligent Group is controlled by its controlling shareholder, Wang Huiwu.The subscription is intended to create synergies in the education sector and support the group's international expansion, the filing said.XJ's shares jumped nearly 9% in recent trade.
Information technology stocks advanced nearly 2% to lead gainers in midday trading Thursday, after a number of US-listed peers overnight reported strong quarterly results that beat analyst expectations.WiseTech Global (ASX:WTC) rose almost 5%, and Xero (ASX:XRO) gained 2%.On the flip side, consumer staples stocks shed 4%, weighed down by a decline in Woolworths Group (ASX:WOW), the largest company in the sector by market capitalization.Shares of Woolworths slid more than 6% after the supermarket chain operator said fiscal 2026 Australian food earnings before interest and taxes growth is no longer expected to be at the upper end of its guidance range, as higher fuel costs and secondary effects from the Middle East conflict are likely to have an increasing inflationary impact through the remainder of the year.