Market Wrap / lithium leap

The S&P/ASX 200 tested new highs during Monday's session, before closing higher by 0.4% to settle at 8844.80 points by the close of trade. Materials stocks led the gains. Lithium stocks benefited from production disruption at a large mine in China. Liontown Resources jumped 18.3%. Meanwhile, BHP and Rio Tinto were also in the green, tracking higher iron-ore prices.Elsewhere,JB Hi-Fi dropped 8.4% as it announced the departure of its CEO. But Nick Scali bucked the trend to hit a record high as Jefferies increased its target price. Iress lost 7.2% as recent results came in under expectations, coupled with some profit-taking following a takeover announcement last week. And the REITs had a fairly flat session. However, the Charter Hall Social Infrastructure REIT hit an over-two-year high on upbeat FY results, while the Dexus Convenience Retail REIT r,also ose on strong FY25 results. Tomorrow, the RBA is expected to cut the cash rate by a quarter of a percent. On the reporting calendar, Life360, SGH and Seven West Media hand down results.