The S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) has not been able to build on yesterday's solid gain and is down 0.2% to 6,175.9 points in afternoon trade.
Four shares that have defied the market and pushed higher today are listed below. Here's why they are on the rise:
The Galaxy Resources Limited (ASX: GXY) share price has zoomed almost 6% higher to $2.58. Most of Australia's leading lithium miners are posting notably strong gains today despite there being no news out of them. Concerns over the oversupply of lithium has led to sharp falls in the share prices of these miners this year. While I do think that Galaxy's shares look cheap, I wouldn't recommend buying them unless you have an extremely high tolerance for risk.
The Mesoblast limited (ASX: MSB) share price has surged 3% higher to $1.74 after the allogeneic cellular medicine developer provided an update on its phase 3 trial for acute Graft Versus Host Disease (aGVHD). According to the release, the company has seen continued strong survival outcomes through Day 180 in children with steroid refractory aGVHD treated with its product candidate remestemcel-L.
The Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) share price has pushed 3% higher to $77.61 after the mining giant announced a US$3.2 billion ($4.4 billion) capital return. According to the release, Rio Tinto will undertake an off-market buy-back tender targeting up to 41.2 million of its ASX shares and further on-market purchases of its UK-listed shares. All shares that are bought back will be cancelled. I think Rio Tinto is worth a look if you want exposure to the resources sector.
The Western Areas Ltd (ASX: WSA) share price has climbed a further 3.5% to $2.68. The nickel producer's shares have been among the best performers on the market this week following a rebound in commodity prices. Overnight the nickel price rose 0.8% to US$12,565 a tonne on the London Metal Exchange.
