In afternoon trade, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to end a difficult week on a very positive note. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is up 1.7% to 7,059.3 points.
Four ASX shares that are climbing more than most today are listed below. Here's why they are racing higher:
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5E Advanced Materials Inc (ASX: 5EA)
The 5E Advanced Materials share price is up 11% to $3.18. This follows the release of the boron focused advanced materials company's quarterly update. While the company posted a sizeable loss, it spoke positively about its outlook. It commented that the there is "strong demand and tight supply […] with average boric acid prices up more than 50% during CQ1 2022."
Block Inc (ASX: SQ2)
The Block share price is up 14% to $113.75. This follows a positive night for the payments company's US listed shares and a rebound in the tech sector. The latter has seen the S&P/ASX All Technology index charge a sizeable 5% on Friday.
Neometals Ltd (ASX: NMT)
The Neometals share price is up 11% to $1.37. This morning the battery materials company announced a cooperation agreement with Mercedes' recycling subsidiary. Neometals will be the technology partner for the design and construction of a 2,500tpa lithium-ion battery recycling plant. Management believes the technology partnership is a strong validation of its technology.
Xero Limited (ASX: XRO)
The Xero share price is up 7% to $82.59. This morning a number of brokers spoke positively about the cloud accounting platform provider. One of those was Goldman Sachs, which has retained its buy rating with a $118.00 price target. In addition, Ord Minnett upgraded the company's shares to a buy rating with a $97.00 price target and Citi retained its buy rating and $125.00 price target.
