Pan-Asia Catalysts/Events, Quiddity Advisors

David Blennerhassett

Pan-Asia Catalysts/Events

Quiddity Advisors

Event-Driven

<ul>
<li>On the 20th July 2026, an US executive order was issued requiring major arms manufacturers to trace their  supply chains and actively phase out Chinese rare earths.</li>
<li>A week later, the FT carried an article on hedge funds increasing their bets against US critical minerals companies.</li>
<li>Given the US-Australia bilateral framework targeting critical minerals projects in Australia and the U.S., it is worthwhile analysing the bets, if any, against Aussie critical minerals companies. </li>
</ul>


On the 20th July 2026, an US executive order was issued requiring major arms manufacturers to trace their  supply chains and actively phase out Chinese rare earths.
A week later, the FT carried an article on hedge funds increasing their bets against US critical minerals companies.
Given the US-Australia bilateral framework targeting critical minerals projects in Australia and the U.S., it is worthwhile analysing the bets, if any, against Aussie critical minerals companies. 


<ul>
<li>Australia's ASIC releases the aggregated short position data four business days after the reporting day. Data in this insight is up to 13th July, published on the 17th July.</li>
<li>The largest industry net increase in the past week was A$0.8bn into "Banks"; the largest industry net decrease was A$0.5bn out of "Diversified Metals". Net shorts declined A$0.2bn week-on-week.</li>
<li>Companies mentioned in this regular weekly report include: <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/pls-group-limited" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:7460:1" rel="noopener">PLS Group (PLS AU)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/lynas-corp-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:20374:1" rel="noopener">Lynas (LYC AU)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/westpac-banking-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:444:1" rel="noopener">Westpac Banking (WBC AU)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/iluka-resources-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:10105:1" rel="noopener">Iluka Resources (ILU AU)</a>, and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/commonwealth-bank-of-australia" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:14:1" rel="noopener">Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA AU)</a>.</li>
</ul>


Australia's ASIC releases the aggregated short position data four business days after the reporting day. Data in this insight is up to 13th July, published on the 17th July.
The largest industry net increase in the past week was A$0.8bn into "Banks"; the largest industry net decrease was A$0.5bn out of "Diversified Metals". Net shorts declined A$0.2bn week-on-week.
Companies mentioned in this regular weekly report include: PLS Group (PLS AU), Lynas (LYC AU), Westpac Banking (WBC AU), Iluka Resources (ILU AU), and Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA AU).


Aussie Shorts [13 July 2026]: PLS, Lynas, Westpac, Iluka Resources, Commonwealth Bank

Asia L/S Equity PM/Macro/Thematic Idea Generation

Rikki Malik

Commodities

<ul>
<li>Critical Minerals Outside of China Will Command A Strategic Premium</li>
<li>As risk appetite in the mining sector increases, the biggest gains will be in the junior miners and exploration companies</li>
<li>We highlight eight companies as a basket of such miners which should benefit from these trends</li>
</ul>


Critical Minerals Outside of China Will Command A Strategic Premium
As risk appetite in the mining sector increases, the biggest gains will be in the junior miners and exploration companies
We highlight eight companies as a basket of such miners which should benefit from these trends


A Basket of High-Risk, High-Reward, Critical Metal Miners with Strategic Value - Pt 1

Director, Head of Research, Smartkarma

Pranav Rao

Director, Head of Research

Smartkarma

Smartkarma unites the fragmented investment industry, connecting institutional investors, independent research providers, and corporates within a single network.

Research Reinvented

<ul>
<li>Welcome to Curator’s Cut, a fortnightly roundup of standout themes from the 1,000+ Insights published over the past two weeks on Smartkarma</li>
<li>In this cut, we review the global focus on critical minerals, how ASEAN's digital economy can grow amidst political uncertainty, and how IT services have fared with AI</li>
<li>Want to dig deeper? Comment or message with the themes you’d like to see highlighted next</li>
</ul>


Welcome to Curator’s Cut, a fortnightly roundup of standout themes from the 1,000+ Insights published over the past two weeks on Smartkarma
In this cut, we review the global focus on critical minerals, how ASEAN's digital economy can grow amidst political uncertainty, and how IT services have fared with AI
Want to dig deeper? Comment or message with the themes you’d like to see highlighted next


Curator's Cut: Critical Minerals' Rise, SEA's Digital Promise & IT Services in Flux

<ul>
<li>Australia's ASIC releases the aggregated short position data four business days after the reporting day.</li>
<li>The largest industry net increase in the past week was A$1.3bn into "Banks"; the largest industry net decrease was A$630mn out of "Gold".</li>
<li>Companies mentioned in this regular weekly report include: <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/lynas-corp-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:20374:1" rel="noopener">Lynas (LYC AU)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/bluescope-steel-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:207:1" rel="noopener">Bluescope Steel (BSL AU)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/treasury-wine-estates-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:710:1" rel="noopener">Treasury Wine Estates (TWE AU)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/evolution-mining-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:18363:1" rel="noopener">Evolution Mining (EVN AU)</a>, and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/pinnacle-investment-management" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:20624:1" rel="noopener">Pinnacle Investment Management (PNI AU)</a>. </li>
</ul>


Australia's ASIC releases the aggregated short position data four business days after the reporting day.
The largest industry net increase in the past week was A$1.3bn into "Banks"; the largest industry net decrease was A$630mn out of "Gold".
Companies mentioned in this regular weekly report include: Lynas (LYC AU), Bluescope Steel (BSL AU), Treasury Wine Estates (TWE AU), Evolution Mining (EVN AU), and Pinnacle Investment Management (PNI AU). 


Aussie Shorts (30th Jan 2026): Lynas, Aussie Banks, Bluescope Steel, Pinnacle Investment M'ment

Australia

Lynas Corporation Limited explores and mines for rare earth minerals such as cerium and neodymium.

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Lynas Corp Ltd (LYC AU)

Betting Against Aussie Critical Minerals

PLS, which specialises in lithium exploration and production, does appear toppish. I still like Lynas, the only significant commercial producer of...

David Blennerhassett

Aussie Shorts [13 July 2026]: PLS, Lynas, Westpac, Iluka Resources, Commonwealth Bank

The largest industry net increase in the past week was A$0.8bn into "Banks"; the largest industry net decrease was A$0.5bn out of "Diversified...

David Blennerhassett

A Basket of High-Risk, High-Reward, Critical Metal Miners with Strategic Value - Pt 1

US/Oz have signed The Critical Minerals Framework -commits the countries to invest more than $3 B over 6 months jointly and supports a pipeline of...

Rikki Malik

Curator's Cut: Critical Minerals' Rise, SEA's Digital Promise & IT Services in Flux

In this cut, we review the global focus on critical minerals, how ASEAN's digital economy can grow amidst political uncertainty, and how IT...

Pranav Rao

Aussie Shorts (30th Jan 2026): Lynas, Aussie Banks, Bluescope Steel, Pinnacle Investment M'ment

Companies mentioned in this weekly short interest report include Lynas, Aussie Banks, Bluescope Steel, Treasury Wine Estates, Evolution Mining, and...

David Blennerhassett

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