In afternoon trade the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) is climbing notably higher and is up 0.4% to 5,884 points.
Four shares that have climbed more than most today are listed below. Here's why they have pushed higher:
The Alumina Limited (ASX: AWC) share price has stormed higher by almost 8% to $2.89. This morning the alumina and aluminium company provided an update on its AWAC joint venture with Alcoa which revealed net cash receipts of US$213.4 million for Alumina during the quarter. In addition to this, the alumina price raced to an all-time high of over US$700 a tonne overnight.
The Queensland Bauxite Ltd (ASX: QBL) share price has raced 21% higher to 5.2%. This morning the cannabis company advised that Red Tractor are now supplying Coles supermarkets with various products and oil blends that have hemp ingredients exclusively supplied by its subsidiary Medical Cannabis Limited. The mining company has a 55% shareholding in Medical Cannabis Limited.
The South32 Ltd (ASX: S32) share price is up 5% to $3.90 after the mining giant released its quarterly update. According to the release, favourable commodity prices and a partial unwind of working capital helped to deliver a massive US$477 million increase in net cash to US$1.9 billion even after allocating a further US$85 million to its on-market share buy-back in the quarter. While it isn't my first pick in the industry, I do think it is a good option for investors wanting to gain exposure to the industry.
The Western Areas Ltd (ASX: WSA) share price has surged 5.5% higher to $3.78. Investors have responded positively to strong gains in commodity prices overnight. The nickel price was one of the strongest performers, rising over 10% to a high of US$15,875 per tonne according to the Financial Times. This is the highest level nickel has traded at since 2014.
