All the frenzy this week has surrounded lithium stocks, which are rocketing higher once again, even taking the shine off what was a major M&A play in the mining space by the ASX largest company.

Which shares excelled?

Lithium stocks are back in demand once again, with the resurgence of the segment picking up pace this week as growth investors start to take back the reins. 

From the likes of Lake Resources (ASX: LKE), to Sayona Mining (ASX: SYA), Vulcan Energy Resources (ASX: VUL), Liontown Resources (ASX: LTR), and Core Lithium (ASX: CXO), battery metals stocks are flying high despite no price-sensitive news from any of these companies. 

However, at an industry level, the tailwinds for lithium miners are starting to add up, with news from China this week confirming that electric vehicle sales spiked more than 60% following the lifting of lockdowns in June.

If that wasn't enough, the US Senate this week passed a US$700 billion economic package, with hundreds of billions of dollars specifically focused on fighting climate change. That piece of legislation offers tax credits to households that purchase an electric vehicle, among other benefits.

Meanwhile, it has been a bumper week for coal stocks, which have cast aside some of last week regulatory and political uncertainty to race higher. 

One of the catalysts for the move was commentary from Indian steel production company Tata Steel, which has cited the prospect that Indian steel manufacturers may need to look at alternative coal suppliers if Australia is unable to boost its coking coal exports. The sector was also helped by results from Coronado Global Resources (ASX: CRN), which posted a record year, buoying peers like Stanmore Resources (ASX: SMR) and Yancoal (ASX: YAL).

Copper miner OZ Minerals (ASX: OZL) has been one of the big movers this week after it found itself on the receiving end of a takeover bid from none other than iron ore giant BHP (ASX: BHP). 

Management was quick to knock back the bid, which valued the company shares at $25 a piece. The bid comes at a time where copper prices have largely fallen off a cliff, while BHP has accumulated something akin to a war chest in terms of capital following sky-high iron ore prices for much of FY22. It remains to be seen whether BHP returns with a higher bid, but OZ Minerals shareholders are sensing there could be further action ahead.

Elsewhere, Polynovo (ASX: PNV) has delivered yet another strong week for its shareholders, with the stock now trading at its highest level in 11 months. Positive news continues to flow through, with the company this week on the receiving end of a $500,000 grant, and then announcing the enrolment of its first patient into its Randomised Controlled Trial (RCT) for the clinical safety and efficacy of its NovoSorb treatment for diabetic foot ulcers.A few more of this week major movers include Seven West Media (ASX: SWM), Pointsbet Holdings (ASX: PBH), and Domain Holdings Australia (ASX: DHG).

Which shares dragged on the market?

The worst performer on the ASX 200 on Wednesday, and on the outer for much of the week, gold producer St Barbara (ASX: SBM) hit a hurdle when it postponed its full-year earnings for FY22 and issued a mixed outlook for the year ahead. While management expects higher gold production levels in FY23, it is also tipping a major increase in costs, by as much as $200-300 per ounce. These expenses are largely tied to inflationary factors, including energy, labour, and consumables. This was enough to also hurt a couple of its peers in the gold segment, with OceanaGold Corporation (ASX: OGC) and Ramelius Resources (ASX: RMS) among this week underperformers.

Shares in Australian Clinical Labs (ASX: ACL) were down sharply earlier in the week after the company became one of the first victims of earnings season when it missed consensus expectations for margins and profits. This subsequently prompted two broker downgrades on Thursday when RBC and Credit Suisse both revised their views surrounding one of Australia leading private providers of pathology services.Also coming unstuck at the start of reporting season was share registry firm Computershare (ASX: CPU).

As we're already starting to see in a few results thus far, inflationary pressure is the key watch-point moving forward, although management expects to get on top of this thanks to cost controls. Management revenue increased 12% over the year, but one negative was a drop-off in corporate activity and employee share plans amid the market rout, while recoveries are behind forecast.

Medical and personal protection equipment manufacturer Ansell (ASX: ANN) was caught up in legal woes this week. The company is being sued in a US court by a group of workers who have raised issues with the conditions and the way they were treated while working for one of Ansell single-use glove suppliers, Brightway Holdings. They allege that Ansell knowingly profited from the conduct, and are looking to represent thousands of workers in a class action.

And concluding this week laggards, we have Credit Corp (ASX: CCP), Hansen Technologies (ASX: HSN), and Vulcan Steel (ASX: VSL) trailing the market this week.

We'll be back next week with another Weekly ASX Trading Wrap Up - until then, have a great week!