0202 GMT - A 10-year license extension for Lynas' Malaysia plant is a positive sign of the country's support for its operations, says Ord Minnett analyst Matthew Hope. Previous renewals were three years, he notes. The decadelong license provides investment certainty and signals Malaysia's desire to bolster its rare-earths industry, says Hope. "This presents a favorable backdrop for LYC as the sole downstream producer of separated rare earth oxides in Malaysia and the incumbent integrated ex-China producer (with MP Materials)," he says. Lynas is up 4.5% at A$19.84 a share. ([email protected]; @RhiannonHoyle)

0155 GMT - There are three things that could be responsible for the outperformance of metals and mining shares over the past six or so months, according to Jefferies analyst Christopher LaFemina. First is a shift by investors into "real" assets as a hedge against a weaker greenback, geopolitical risk and inflation risk, he says. "Second is that this price strength is a warning sign that the Fed will have to do a massive easing to bail out the economy," says LaFemina. Third is that the global industrial economy is recovering, he says. "We believe it is the first bucket but hope it's the third," LaFemina says. ([email protected]; @RhiannonHoyle)

2358 GMT - Geopolitical shocks tend to produce sharp moves in oil and safe havens that often fade quickly, but the Iran attacks may be different, says Josh Gilbert at eToro. Retaliation has been more aggressive and wide-ranging, and until there is clear de-escalation, investors should expect high volatility. Equity sentiment is fragile, and adding oil shock and inflation fears to worries around AI valuations creates a tough environment for risk assets. Dip-buying may be muted until the duration of the conflict becomes clearer. While the instinct in times like these is to act, for most long-term investors the best course of action is to do very little, says Gilbert. Traders must navigate every headline, but selling into panic is rarely the right call, and investors with a longer horizon should look through the noise.([email protected])

2349 GMT - Australian gold-mining stocks are rallying as the U.S. and Israel's attacks on Iran push gold prices higher. Spot gold is up by 1.9% at US$5,378.89/oz early in Asia. In Australia, one of the world's top gold-producing countries, Northern Star rises 4.4% to A$31.62/share. Evolution Mining is 5.6% higher at A$17.51/share. Newmont's Australian shares climb 6.0% to A$187.90/share. ([email protected]; @RhiannonHoyle)

2348 GMT - Ramsay Health Care's margin improvement in 1H is a dose of good news for investors. UBS thinks Ramsay has reached an inflection point in its Australian business after several years of post-pandemic stagnation. Operating conditions remain challenging. Still, UBS analyst David Low says "the 40bps improvement in underlying domestic margins is an important signal that the new management team's operational discipline is beginning to translate into earnings momentum." Market share gains have provided added support as Ramsay has benefited from rival Healthscope's difficulties. "The momentum in domestic results gives us confidence the margin trajectory can turn positive," UBS adds. It retains a neutral call on Ramsay, and lifts its price target by 19% to A$42.90/share. Ramsay is down 0.8% at A$42.72. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

2327 GMT - The jump in oil prices that followed the U.S. and Israel's attacks on Iran are fuelling a buying spree in Australian energy equities. In early trading today, front-month West Texas Intermediate futures rose 8.4% to $72.65 a barrel, ICE data showed. Front-month Brent crude oil futures lifted 8.5% to $79.08 barrel. The biggest winner on Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index is Karoon Energy, rising 15% to A$1.78. Karoon produces oil in Brazil so isn't directly affected by potential disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz, but benefits from the rise in oil prices. Woodside Energy rises 6% to A$30.02 and Santos is up 6.4% at A$7.19 early. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

2321 GMT - Sky Network TV's solid beat with its 1H result doesn't alter Morgan Stanley's bearish view of its stock. Sky Network TV reported a 29% rise in 1H Ebitda to NZ$78 million, exceeding consensus hopes by 10%. Guidance for FY 2026 revenue and Ebitda were also better than expected at the midpoint of the ranges. Analyst Andrew McLeod says Sky Network TV's management is doing a good job at controlling the levers it can. "But, we don't think it is enough to offset the structural and cyclical challenges the payTV business is facing," MS says. "Risk/return is not sufficiently attractive." MS retains an underweight call on Sky Network TV, and lifts its price target by 9.2% to NZ$2.50/share. Sky Network TV is down 0.9% at NZ$3.33 today. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

2315 GMT - Morgan Stanley is alert to first signs of a potential slowdown for Australian banks. It points out that household deposits grew by only 2% on an annualized basis in January. That compares to 7% growth at the same stage of each of the past two years. Business loan growth slowed to 5.5% in January, from a rise of more than 10% in the December quarter. Mortgage growth in January was again led by CBA (+5.4%) and WBC (+5.0%), then NAB (+3.7%). ANZ improved, but still lagged peers (+2.8%). "We think the February rate hike (and possibly another one in May) will likely lead to some softening in housing credit momentum," analyst Richard E. Wiles says. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

2310 GMT - Amplitude Energy's discovery of natural gas with the Isabella-1 well is positive, but Euroz Hartleys questions how it measures up against other results nearby. Amplitude said the well in southeastern Australia's Otway Basin intersected a gas-bearing section of the primary Waarre-C reservoir. Analyst Declan Bonnick says it's positive that Amplitude describes the reservoir as high quality. "However, the well result appears it could be thinner than expectations, given the closest Waarre-C reservoir production well, Casino-3, intersected 24.1 meters of net gas pay (versus 8.2 meters here)," Euroz Hartleys says. Amplitude rises 5.5% to A$2.69 early today. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

2052 GMT - Uncertainty can spark sharp market reactions but history suggests that equity market sell-offs driven by geopolitical events are typically short-lived, says Principal Asset Management. "Over the past six decades, most geopolitical crises have led to temporary market drawdowns, with a median peak-to-trough decline of around 7%," Principal says. Markets have typically needed around three weeks to bottom and another three weeks to recover. After three months, equities have historically been about 4% higher, Principal says. The major exception occurs when geopolitical events materially alter economic fundamentals, trigger a policy response from central banks, or coincide with periods of broader macro vulnerability. "In this context, oil prices are the most important transmission mechanism from geopolitics to the real economy," Principal says following the weekend attacks by the U.S. and Israel on Iran. ([email protected]; @dwinningWSJ)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires