Futures indicate the ASX will open lower today ahead of the Federal Budget and after a mixed night of trade on Wall Street.
The budget will be released at 7:30pm AEST.
Nonetheless, here are some ASX-listed companies to watch today:
Everest Metals (EMC) has kicked off reverse circulation (RC) drilling at its Mt Edon project in Western Australia.
The company announced it would drill around 40 RC holes for roughly 1000 metres – testing recently identified pegmatite targets.
Drilling would also follow up on previous geological mapping of lithium, caesium and tantalum (LCT) pegmatite structures.
Shares in EMC last traded at 7 cents.
In healthcare, PharmAust (PAA) has welcomed research from a newly released report highlighting its cancer-treatment oral compound, Monepantel (MPL), may be able to stop the growth of many types of cancer cells.
The studies performed at the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Institute in Victoria have been focussed on the anti-cancer mechanism of the drug which is PharmAust’s lead drug candidate.
The research suggested MPL has anti-cancer effects across melanoma, lung, breast, brain, colorectal, prostate and ovarian cancers.
Shares in PAA last traded at 8 cents.
Altech Batteries (ATC) announced two prototypes of the 60KWh (ABS60) battery pack are being produced and fabricated at the Fraunhofer IKTS facility in Germany.
Once built, the battery packs will undergo cycling testing under extreme conditions to evaluate the temperature profiles.
“The advancements made on the final designs of the 60KWh Battery Pack in such a short time frame are outstanding. I am very pleased with the progress,” ATC Managing Director Iggy Tan said.
Shares in ATC last traded at 9 cents.
Meanwhile, Great Western Exploration (GTE) has started drilling at its Firebird gold project in Western Australia.
The drilling aims to test the large ultrafine+ soil anomaly, which spans 3.7 kilometres by 450 metres.
The anomaly is hosted in Archean Greenstone which has not been previously drilled,
with the company viewing it as a “compelling” discovery opportunity.
Shares in GTE last traded at 5 cents.
And, newly-listed Dynamic Metals (DYM) has completed the first drill campaign at its Lake Percy project in the Goldfields region of Western Australia.
The company drilled 102 air core and reverse circulation holes.
Samples have been sent for analysis. Dynamic Metals has announced it’s fully funded for exploration across its critical minerals portfolio.
Shares in DYM last traded at 18 cents.