ASX closed green; Carsales.com plunged 10.5% on capital raise; AnteoTech surged on manufacturing deal

The Australian market has started the week 0.13% higher at 7023.6 boosted by strong gains among the gold miners. The sector closed the session up 4.5%.

The tech sector gained momentum in afternoon trade as Xero continued to rebound from last week?s plunge to post a 6% gain. Nuix plummeted more than 9% following investigative reports today.

Bitcoin continues to nosedive this afternoon, plunging 9.24% to trade around US$44,649.26 at 4:40pm AEST.

Carsales.com took a 10% hit today following the successful completion of the institutional component of its $600m pro rata accelerated renounceable entitlement offer. The car listings site raised $428m at a 12.9% discount of $17/share and is seeking to raise a further $172m from retail investors all in a bid to acquire a 49% stake in US-based Trader Interactive.

Making headlines, AnteoTech surged 12% today after the biotech company announced the signing of an exclusive three-year manufacturing contract for its COVID-19 Antigen Rapid Test (ART) with Operon, a Spain-based contract manufacturer.

And Microsoft founder Bill Gates was reportedly investigated by a private law firm following reports of an ?intimate relationship? with a Microsoft employee extending back to 2000. The investigation took place in 2019, before the billionaire stepped down from the Microsoft board last year.