Friday has proven to be a good day for mining and resources shares, with five ASX miners – three of which are in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) – recording all-time highs.
Interestingly, all the mining stocks breaking milestone records were lithium miners, and for good reason. Positive news of the commodity's value hit the ASX this morning.
At the close of trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Resources Index (ASX: XJR) was up 1.52%, while the ASX 200 fell 0.08%.
So, what's boosted these ASX 200 mining shares to never-before-seen heights on Friday? Let's take a look.
5 ASX mining shares reaching new heights on Friday
Allkem Ltd (ASX: AKE)
Let's start with the Allkem share price's movements today.
The company is both the only miner on this list to have released news on Friday and the likely source of many ASX lithium stocks' gains.
The Allkem share price launched 8.9% to a new record high of $12.45 in intraday trade, before closing up 8.49% at $12.40.
Its gains came after the company released its lithium carbonate and spodumene pricing forecast for the June quarter.
It expects lithium prices to continue rising this quarter after prices in March beat its previous forecast by 9% to reach roughly US$27,236 a tonne free on board.
According to Allkem, lithium prices could surge to approximately $US35,000 per tonne free on board this quarter.
It's predicting similar increases to spodumene prices, with prices expected to reach US$5,000 a tonne on sales of around 50,000 tonnes.
During the March quarter, such sales were going for approximately US$2,218 per tonne, including tonnes that were delayed from the December quarter.
Lake Resources N.L. (ASX: LKE)
Of course, Allkem's bullish lithium outlook likely boosted sentiment in other ASX lithium mining shares.
The Lake Resources share price shot 15.79% higher to trade at a new all-time high of $2.31 in afternoon trade.
AVZ Minerals Ltd (ASX: AVZ)
Similarly, the AVZ Minerals share price rocketed to a record high of $1.31 on Friday.
That represented a 5.6% increase on its previous closing price.
At its new highest point, the company's stock was trading for a whopping 589% more than it was this time last year. It closed at $1.30.
Core Lithium Ltd (ASX: CXO)
And, dear reader, you guessed it – the next ASX mining share on this list of record breakers is also a lithium stock.
The Core Lithium share price closed at a new all-time high of $1.535 on Friday, launching 11.64% to get there.
It marks the second day in a row the company's stock has recorded a strong gain.
It surged 8.7% yesterday on the back of news of its Finniss lithium project, under development near Darwin.
IGO Ltd (ASX: IGO)
The final ASX mining share making this list has plenty of interests in lithium. Though, it is also focused on other green metals.
The IGO share price surpassed its all-time high to trade at $14.49 in intraday trade on Friday. That represents a 3% gain on its previous close.
However, it later retreated to end the day up 2.49% at $14.41.
