Almonty's Nasdaq-First Strategy Takes Shape as Tungsten Prices Cool and US Policy Shifts

Almonty exits ASX, leaving Nasdaq as sole listing, amid 24.6% tungsten price drop and US export ban on scrap.

The tungsten producer's retreat from Sydney completes a deliberate consolidation of its listing footprint, but the move comes at a moment when the underlying commodity market is sending mixed signals.

Almonty Industries formally delisted from the Australian Securities Exchange on Friday, with trading in the CHESS Depositary Interests having already ceased on August 28. The exit follows the company's earlier departure from the Toronto Stock Exchange at the end of July, leaving the Nasdaq as the sole venue for its equity story.

The rationale is straightforward: persistently thin and declining volumes in Australia relative to the US exchange made the dual listing more of an administrative burden than a capital-raising advantage. For holders of the CDI structure, the change is structural rather than fundamental — the underlying shares remain fully tradeable on the Nasdaq.

A Cooling Tungsten Market

The listing consolidation lands during a notable pullback in tungsten prices. China's reference price for ammonium paratungstate fell to roughly $79,732 per tonne in early August, down from approximately $105,775 in July — a month-on-month decline of about 24.6 percent. The correction traces back to May, when wolframite concentrate gave up more than half its value from a March peak amid weak downstream demand.

The share price has tracked that softening. On the final trading day before the delisting, the stock slipped 2.0 percent to €15.26, extending the seven-session decline to 5.7 percent. A separate reading of the same period shows a 1.6 percent drop to €15.31 on Monday, with the weekly loss at 5.3 percent — modest giveback after the sharp rally that followed the start of production at the Sangdong mine in South Korea.

The year-to-date picture remains striking nonetheless: the shares are still up roughly 92 percent since January.

Washington's Export Curbs Enter the Equation

Against that softer pricing backdrop, a geopolitical factor is pulling in the opposite direction. The United States imposed a one-year export ban on tungsten scrap at the end of August, part of a broader push to keep critical minerals deemed security-relevant within domestic borders.

Almonty has been quick to frame itself as a beneficiary. In a Sunday CEO newsletter titled "Why America just banned tungsten exports," the company offered its reading of the supply-chain realignment, positioning itself as one of the few tungsten producers operating outside China. The commentary contained no new financial figures or contract announcements, but the strategic signal was clear: Western buyers increasingly need non-Chinese sources, and Almonty intends to be the answer.

The export restrictions could prove a long-term advantage for the company's US market position, even if global spot prices are currently moving in the opposite direction.

Contractual Foundations Hold Firm

The near-term price volatility, however, masks what the company has quietly built on the offtake side. In July, Almonty expanded its long-term supply agreement with Global Tungsten & Powders — extending the term by six years, increasing contracted volumes by 40 percent, and improving pricing terms by roughly 6.3 percent.

That kind of contractual visibility provides a buffer against precisely the kind of spot-market swings now underway. It also suggests the recent share-price softening is more a function of consolidation after a powerful run than a reflection of deteriorating fundamentals.

What Investors Are Watching

The August quarterly figures and the ongoing share buyback program remain the key reference points for valuation, according to the company's own framing. The delisting of the Australian CDIs and the earlier TSX exit are housekeeping items — they streamline the corporate structure without altering the operating picture.

What bears watching in the weeks ahead is how the US export policy evolves and whether Almonty can convert its geopolitical positioning into tangible commercial wins. The company's public engagement with the tungsten export ban signals it intends to press that advantage aggressively, even as the commodity cycle cools in the near term.