With more than 600,000 average monthly users on the HotCopper forums, individual discussions there have the potential to move markets, which is why identifying trending topics early matters for traders. In this daily HotCopper Trends column, the top Australian stocks of each trading day are broken down. The HotCopper podcast offers in-depth discussion and insight on the biggest headlines of the week on Spotify, Apple and other platforms.

Core Lithium (ASX: CXO)

Core Lithium drew strong attention from HotCopper followers after the company reported that first spodumene concentrate had been produced from the recommissioned processing plant as part of the staged restart of the Finniss lithium operation. Finniss, located in the Northern Territory, had been placed into care and maintenance in early 2024 amid the sharp downturn in lithium prices, making this restart a closely watched test of producer confidence as the lithium market recovers.

Managing Director Paul Brown said the achievement represents a significant milestone in the staged restart of Finniss. It follows the recommencement of mining activities at the Grants Open Pit in May and the recommissioning of the crushing circuit in August to establish sufficient crushed ore stockpiles for processing.

"This achievement reflects the disciplined execution of our restart plan, from funding and mobilisation through to the recommencement of mining, plant commissioning and now the successful production of our first concentrate. All of this has been delivered on schedule and on budget, and within six months of the Final Investment Decision on Finniss," Mr Brown said.

"We have now successfully achieved first concentrate, and our focus is on continuing the commissioning and optimisation of the processing plant as we progressively build towards reliable and sustained production."

CXO shares closed up 6.82% at 35.3¢.

Trek Metals (ASX: TKM)

Trek Metals gained ground after identifying multiple high-grade intercepts in the second batch of assay results from its maiden reverse circulation (RC) drill program at the Kuro prospect within the Christmas Creek project in Western Australia. Manganese is a key input for steelmaking and is also used in certain battery chemistries, and Western Australia's Pilbara region is a globally significant manganese-producing province.

CEO Derek Marshall said the results have confirmed a significant shallow, high-grade manganese discovery.

"These outstanding results confirm that Kuro is a significant shallow, high-grade manganese discovery, confirming that the high grades we saw in the first batch of results are being repeated across the system.

"What is particularly encouraging is that we are still in at a very early stage in understanding the scale of this opportunity. Phase 2 of the Kuro exploration drill program is now underway to see if we can find additional pods of mineralisation beneath the sand. Phase 2 holes are targeting newly generated geophysical anomalies over a much larger area than the original Phase 1 drilling."

TKM rose 3.51% to 5.9¢.

Empire Resources (ASX: ERL)

Empire Resources' share price surged after the gas explorer announced it had signed a term sheet to hire the Valaris 107 jack-up drilling rig to drill the Judith-2 appraisal well off the Victorian coast.

The Judith gas field is rated as the largest undeveloped conventional gas field on the East Coast of Australia. New gas supply on the East Coast has been the subject of ongoing policy and energy-security debate in Australia, with projections of tightening supply in the southern states in the second half of this decade.

"Securing this drilling rig for April 2027 is a major step forward for Emperor Energy as the company pushes forward towards drilling the Judith-2 appraisal well," CEO Tim Handley said.

ERL finished up 57.1% at 1.1¢.

Market news

Looking more broadly, the S&P/ASX 200 was lower on the day, dropping 44.90 points, or 0.50%, to 8,966.00. The index's bottom-performing stocks were Bluescope Steel and Domino's Pizza Enterprises, down 5.44% and 3.36% respectively. The index has lost 1.11% over the last five days and sits 3.56% below its 52-week high.

Elsewhere, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) reported that the total value of Australia's residential dwellings fell $34.1 billion, or 0.3 per cent, to $12.7 trillion in the June quarter 2026.

Dr Mish Tan, ABS head of finance statistics, said the value of dwelling stock fell for the first time since the September quarter 2022.

"The quarterly fall was driven by lower property prices, with the mean dwelling price falling by 0.7 per cent to $1.1 million. This is consistent with recent softening in housing market conditions," Dr Tan said.

In the June quarter, the mean price of dwellings fell in New South Wales (-2.4 per cent, or -$32,700), Victoria (-2.1 per cent, or -$19,600) and the Australian Capital Territory (-1.3 per cent, or -$13,300), and rose in all other states and territories.

Despite the quarter's fall, the value of Australia's dwelling stock is 8.5 per cent higher than a year ago.

That wraps up Tuesday's HotCopper Market Trends from Colin Sandell-Hay — see you for close.

The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. Readers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult a certified financial advisor before making any investment decisions.