The Bulls N’ Bears ASX Runner of the Week is…biopharmaceutical minnow Zelira Therapeutics, which landed a transformational US$33 million funding deal to fast-track its HOPE 1 autism drug towards FDA approval. Gold and copper newcomer Linq Minerals impressed with a cracking 142m hit grading 1.01gt gold equivalent from 121m at its Gilmore project in NSW, while Dalaroo Metals surged on the discovery of a 2.7km Greenland rare earths system and medtech play Osteopore Ltd unlocked the Chinese dental market with a $2.56M distribution deal.
If market screens had a “glitch of the week” alert, it would’ve been flashing non-stop lately, with geopolitical and domestic political curveballs landing almost daily.
Yet again, the last seven days seem to have delivered in spades.
Fresh from his Venezuelan victory march, The Don was straight back to business, with renewed efforts to convince Greenlanders that they are always going to be more comfy cosying up to Uncle Sam than relying on the softly, softy touch of the Europeans and in particular the Viking Danes – who, by the way, are still regarded as some of the most fearsome warriors in history.
In efforts to quell Trump’s newfound taste for conquest, the Danish and Greenland governments met with the White House, offering valuable critical mineral rights and the promise of a beefed-up European military presence in the autonomous territory.
Whether the gifts are enough to put the matter to bed and keep the US president at bay is debatable, since Russia has now weighed in with an alternate tongue-in-cheek proposal, suggesting that perhaps the locals might prefer the Big Bear to be their guardian.
However, before the media had a chance to catch its breath, tragic news of appalling atrocities taking place to quell unrest in Iran took centre stage. Riots in the country are not uncommon, but this time around, it feels different.
Iran has been hit hard by sanctions, high inflation, unemployment, currency collapse, fuel price hikes and shortages of basic goods. For many people, the protests appear to have started as anger over the cost of living and have now quickly morphed into political dissent.
Again, Trump has thrown his two cents' worth into the ring, warning of an immediate attack to protect Iran’s citizens. Unsurprisingly, the commodity sector's long-time laggard, oil, suddenly jumped to life, rallying almost 15 per cent to $62 before falling just as quickly after the President then backed down on his threats.
Moving on to the markets, the top performers this week have all come from the broader commodity sector, particularly precious metals. From gold to silver to palladium and platinum, the valuable minerals have all enjoyed blistering runs. Gold reached an all-time high of US$4642 (A$6906) per ounce, while platinum and palladium, both up almost 40 per cent since the week before Christmas, held their ground.
However, the real star was the poor man’s gold – silver – which continued its relentless rise, up another 17 per cent for the week and hitting another all-time high of US$92.2 (A$138) per ounce. Since the beginning of December, the metal of kings has risen an astonishing 87 per cent and shows no sign of abating.
Intriguingly, the often cited gold to silver ratio – the number of silver ounces required to buy an ounce of gold - has collapsed from its long-term average of 80 to less than 50, a level not seen since the financial crisis, when gold was heavily sold off to cover margin calls.
Not to be left out of the party, the broader base metal market has also had a day in the sun. Copper continued to top the charts with another new all-time high of US$6.15 (A$9.26) per pound, while nickel posted a very impressive 25 per cent weekly gain to hit US$18,384 per tonne, but still a long way from its 2007 highs of US$53,000.
Our Runners this week represent a clean split between commodities and healthcare, with the latter sector perhaps showing signs of life after a pretty woeful 2025, topped by the Saluda Medica IPO, one of the worst debuts in decades, with shares halving on their first day after listing in early December.
Fresh funding of Zelira Therapeutics’ cannabinoid medicines for autism may fast-track FDA approval. Credit: File
ZELIRA THERAPEUTICS LTD (ASX: ZLD)
Up 184% (35.5c - $1.01)
The Bulls N’ Bears Runner of the Week is biopharmaceutical company, Zelira Therapeutics, which charged straight into the top spot today after locking in a transformative US$33 (A$50) million funding deal that squarely puts its HOPE 1 autism program on the fast lane to US Food and Drug Administration approval (FDA).
HOPE 1 is a prescription cannabinoid-based medicine designed to target behavioural and neurological symptoms associated with autism. The company’s initial focus is on Phelan-McDermid Syndrome, a rare, genetically defined form of autism that often comes with profound developmental and behavioural challenges and currently has no approved drug treatments.
The cash has been raised directly into Zelira’s US-based special purpose vehicle (SPV), instantly validating both the science and the strategy. It also hands the company a heavyweight institutional partner in ThirdGate Capital. On completion, the deal values the SPV at about US$66 million post-money, with Zelira retaining a chunky near-40 per cent interest in what is shaping up as a potentially game-changing asset.
On first flush, this funding appears to be a monster win for an ASX tiddler that only yesterday had a market cap of $4 million.
Drilling at Linq Minerals’ Gilmore gold-copper project in New South Wales. Credit: File
LINQ MINERALS LTD (ASX:LNQ)
Up 103% (27c-55c)
Next cab off the rank in Bulls N’ Bears weekly ‘show and tell” column is gold and copper hopeful Linq Minerals.
The freshly ASX-listed explorer has wasted no time putting its name on the board, firing out chunky maiden drill hits from its flagship Gilmore copper-gold project in NSW’s prolific Macquarie Arc. The project sits in some seriously blue-chip real estate, tucked into the same world-class geological neighbourhood as Newmont Corporation’s Cadia, the Chinese-owned Northparkes operation and Evolution Mining’s Lake Cowal gold mine.
With that sort of pedigree, Gilmore has always looked like a big-stage opportunity – and the drill bit is now starting to back it up.
Maiden drilling at the Dam deposit has delivered two back-to-back eye-catchers, with 142 metres grading 1.01 grams per tonne (g/t) gold equivalent from 121m, following hot on the heels of last week’s 144-metre strike at 1.0g/t gold equivalent from 84m.
Four holes drilled so far, four clean intersections of porphyry-style quartz-sulphide stockwork veining and all punching through the Dam Footwall Fault. Two more holes are still in the lab, keeping the news flow nicely primed.
Notably, this round of drilling is building on an existing platform, with Gilmore already hosting a 76.9-million-tonne resource at 0.5 per cent copper equivalent for 700,000 ounces of gold and 180,000 tonnes of copper across six deposits.
Over at the company’s nearby Gidginbung gold project, recent hits of 21m running at 2.72g/t gold equivalent and 31m grading 2.46g/t underline the broader upside. With the systems at both Gilmore and Gidginbung still open along strike and at depth, Linq is gearing up for infill and step-out drilling aimed squarely at growing tonnes and lifting grades – exactly the sort of ambition the market likes to see from a new runner finding its feet.
Dalaroo Metals’ Blue Lagoon project area in Greenland contains a host of critical metals that have not been subject to any modern exploration. Credit: File
DALAROO METALS (ASX:DAL)
Up 76% (4.6c-8.1c)
Taking home Bulls N’ Bears bronze this week is critical minerals hunter Dalaroo Metals, which has planted a firm flag in one of the world’s hottest neighbourhoods for high-value, in-demand minerals, just as the global scramble for secure supply hits full stride.
Greenland has suddenly muscled its way to the front line of the global critical minerals race thanks to one Donald J. Trump and Dalaroo Metals has wasted no time jumping into the spotlight.
The company’s shares exploded higher after maiden stream and surface sediment sampling at its Blue Lagoon project revealed a broad, coherent rare earths, zirconium and hafnium system stretching an impressive 2.7 kilometres. Every one of the 113 samples returned anomalous results – a dream outcome for a first-pass program and a clear signal the company may be sitting on something with genuine district-scale potential.
Standout assays ran up to 8079ppm total rare earth oxides, with magnet rare earths making up close to a third of the mix, while heavy hitters like dysprosium and terbium showed unusually strong surface enrichment.
Add in chunky zirconium oxide grades above 4 per cent and consistent hafnium values along the entire strike, and the project starts to look strategically important, not just geologically interesting. Crucially, uranium and thorium came in well below Greenland’s regulatory limits, stripping away a major permitting headache that dogs many rare earth plays.
With no modern exploration since 1979, Dalaroo has potentially rebooted a forgotten anomaly using modern geochemistry and detection limits into a future contender on the Western world’s critical minerals map.
OSTEOPORE LTD (ASX: OSX)
Up 55% (11c-17c)
Claiming the Best and Fairest Runner gong is medtech company, Osteopore Ltd, which struck an exclusive distribution and commercialisation agreement worth more than RMB$12 million (A$2.56M) that opens the door to China’s massive dental and maxillofacial market.
The company’s key medical technology involves the design and manufacture of 3D-printed, bioresorbable implants that act as scaffolds to help the body regrow natural bone. Its implants gradually dissolve after surgery, leaving behind healthy regenerated bone rather than permanent hardware.
The multi-year deal will see Osteopore team up with Singapore-based sales and distribution group, Majeton and its heavyweight parent, Essex Bio-Technology. Essex is a Hong Kong-listed healthcare group with products sold through more than 13,500 hospitals across China.
The timing of the deal could scarcely be better. According to the company, China’s dental bone graft and membrane market is already worth more than US$200 million and is forecast to grow rapidly this decade.
By hitching its wagon to a proven local operator, Osteopore appears to have neatly sidestepped many of the usual regulatory and market-entry headaches, in a textbook example of smart partnering and a clear signal that the company may be shifting from a clever technology story to a serious commercial contender.
Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@businessnews.com.au
