☕ Inflated inflation

Good morning. The latest US inflation numbers came in overnight. Seems like we might need to cut back on those avo toasts, with inflation coming in above expectation at 6.4% vs 6.2% year over year.

Good morning. We're in the thick of earnings season, with another 40 ASX companies reporting earnings today. (Full earnings calendar here)

Watch for Newcrest and Origin's earnings report, where they should both give an update on their M&A situations.

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MARKET MOVERS

*Stock data as of the market close. Commodities and crypto data in USD.

Market news: A Hotcopper favourite, Brainchip Holdings, hit a 52-week low on no news, according to its response to an ASX price query.

Even after the 14% drop, the speccy stock still trades with a $900m market cap, despite just $3m of sales last year. Stock punters are betting on a juicy explosion in sales of its AI chip.

TRADING FLOOR

M&A:

  • Qube Holdings is seeking to buy Newcastle Stevedores in full. (AFR)

  • MacCap hunts for a minority partner and offtaker for Rex Minerals' Hillside project. (AFR)

  • Chalice Mining has called in Standard Chartered to run Gonneville’s minority partner search. (AFR)

  • Bolton Clarke to purchase the McKenzie Aged Care business. (The Australian)

  • Rumours EIG is close to walking away from a joint bid to buy Origin. (The Australian)

  • Seven Group’s sale process for their stake in Crux gas field is ongoing. (The Australian)

Capital Markets:

  • Ryman Healthcare is out with a $NZ902m recapitalisation, the biggest equity raising in the region this year (AFR | The Australian)

  • SRG Global is expected to announce a $40m equity raising to fund an acquisition. (AFR)

  • Vast Solar is heading for a listing on the NYSE after its deal with Nabors Energy Transition Corp. (AFR)

  • Columbus Capital doubles its RMBS deal from $500m to $1bn. (AFR)

VC:

  • Shift, a small business credit fintech, raised $27m led by Sequoia Capital Southeast Asia. (StartupDaily)

  • Quantum Brilliance, a quantum computing startup, raised $26m backed by Breakthrough Victoria among others. (StartupDaily)

  • SwarmFarm Robotics, a farming automation management startup, raised $12m in a Series A led by Emmertech. (StartupDaily)

  • NetworksX, an investment and market research services provider, raised $610K in Seed capital led by Pitch Venture Capital. (StartupDaily)

Others:

  • John Sevior and Matt Williams are understood to be contemplating their futures at Airlie Funds Management. (AFR)

  • Ex-Deloitte lead partner Amberjit Endow ran a suspected multimillion-dollar fraud while working at the firm. (SMH)

  • UBS upgrades Magellan to a buy. (AFR)

THE QUICK SYNC

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THE WATERCOOLER

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THE TRADE

  • Investment Associate, Ventures — IAG (Learn More)

  • Corporate Development Manager — Suncorp (Learn More)

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