The ASX200 closed flat on Thursday, up less than a twentieth of 1%. Over the previous five days it has gained over 1%, holding above 7000 points, but no longer testing its pre-Covid highs. Outside of traditional reporting season and without any significant economic news to drive the market, investors are staying on the sidelines, with volumes flat throughout the week.

The recent Covid outbreak in Melbourne has led to a snap 7-day lockdown, announced during trading hours on Thursday. Previous lockdowns have sparked significant sell offs in travel stocks, but Thursday’s news caused barely a ripple, with Qantas (QAN) actually closing up (albeit by less than half a percent). Flight Centre (FLT), hit hard last week when Qantas announced it would cut commission on its international flights by 80%, closed up 2.8% on Thursday, while Webjet (WEB) closed up 1.4%. Flight Centre was a modest sell among nabtrade investors, while Qantas and Webjet failed to make the top 20 most traded stocks on Thursday. After a year of heady trading, most investors have come to take the impact of lockdowns on travel stocks in their stride.

Volatility in the iron ore price and talk of a commodities super cycle continue to generate opportunities for investors. Fortescue Metals (FMG) remains nabtrade investors’ most favoured stock, generating more than double the turnover of the next most popular trade last week. Trading is mixed, with a slight buy bias, although Thursday’s bounce of nearly 5% saw profit taking. BHP (BHP) was also trimmed, while Rio Tinto (RIO) did not crack the top 20 and was mixed throughout the week. Both were up a bit less than 1% on Thursday. Popular rare earths manufacturer Lynas Corp (LYC) was sold on a 2.4% jump, while lithium play Pilbara Minerals (PLS) was also trimmed on a 6.2% price spike. At $1.20, PLS is up nearly 400% over twelve months, but remains off its twelve-month highs of $1.46.

Investors and traders continue to look to stocks hit by bad news for opportunities. Kogan’s (KGN) recent warning of rising inventory and a challenging environment has led to enthusiastic buying from nabtrade investors, happy to pick up the stock under $10. Any bounce has led to widespread profit-taking, suggesting investors do not see Kogan as a long-term hold. Despite four downgrades in twelve months due to the falling daigou trade and limited prospects for its return as borders remain closed, some investors hold out hope for A2 Milk (A2M) and continue to buy the stock on weakness. Xero (XRO) and EML Payments (EML) are off their lows but are still seeing some buying.

Traders and those seeking a speculative opportunity in the medical biotechnology space are currently pursuing Imugene (IMU), which has jumped into the top 10 most traded stocks. The immuno-oncology firm is up over 1000% over twelve months on news of a new patent licensing deal, but fell 9.5% on Thursday. At the other end of the biotechnology spectrum, blood products leader CSL (CSL) has surged from its lows of $250 on news of increasing collections in the US, and has seen profit taking from investors who bought when the stock was recently under pressure.

On international markets, AMC Entertainment (AMC.US) is the latest stock to experience a GameStop-style (GME.US) small shareholder revolt, up nearly 20% overnight. Astute small-time traders on nabtrade took profits, with an average trade size of less than $2,000. GameStop also had a price surge and was a strong buy from a small number of wealthier investors. Outside the usual tech giants, investors also bought up the pharma giants that had succeeded in delivering effective vaccines for Covid19, including Moderna (MRNA.US) and Pfizer (PFE.US).