After a series of consecutive weekly gains, the ASX 200 took a breather this week, shedding 0.8% across the trading week to end on 7,308 points. 

US markets hit record highs overnight, however, reviving interest in local tech and lithium couldn't overcome a sharp drop from health giant CSL, and a pull-back among the Big Four.

Which shares excelled?

Liontown Resources (ASX: LTR) was among the week best-performing shares as the WA-based mineral explorer advances the demerger and spin-off of its gold and copper assets. The company is looking to unlock value in these projects, with management arguing that its share price is not reflecting the value of its assets thanks to a focus on the explorer lithium assets. In the meantime, however, renewed interest in stocks leveraged to the battery metals thematic was a key driver for a number of names this week, not only Liontown Resources, but shares like Novonix (ASX: NVX), Pilbara Minerals (ASX: PLS), Piedmont Lithium (ASX: PLL), Galaxy Resources (ASX: GXY) and Orocobre (ASX: ORE).An unlikely name to feature in these columns, however, Milton Corporation (ASX: MLT) soared this week on merger and acquisition news. The Listed Investment Company (LIC) has been approached by investment firm Washington H Soul Pattinson (ASX: SOL) with regards to a $10.6 billion merger. In response, Milton's independent committee unanimously recommended shareholders vote in favour of the scheme in the absence of a superior proposal. A vote is anticipated for mid-September.Elsewhere, Afterpay (ASX: APT) was in the news after striking a deal with giant retailers in the US that sent its share price higher by around 12.5%. In a shift in strategy, the buy-now pay-later leader will allow select users in America to generate a one-time digital card to buy goods via Afterpay at stores like Nike, Sephora and Amazon. The payments firm will earn revenue through affiliate fees as opposed to margin on the value of the purchase, setting it up to acquire market share and also diversifying the company revenue stream in the process. The uplift in sentiment was also enough to buoy the share price of Sezzle (ASX: SZL), which followed in kind.There was also some strength among mid-tier miners in the metals space. This included Copper Mountain Mining (ASX: C6C), which bounced back after a tumultuous streak for copper prices last week when China unveiled plans to release its reserve of base metals. Meanwhile Bellevue Gold (ASX: BGL) and West African Resources (ASX: WAF) also joined the winners list, with the former releasing drilling results the company believes will underpin proposed upscaled mining operations to 1 million tonnes per annum.Rounding things out, Kogan (ASX: KGN) and Jumbo Interactive (ASX: JIN) both had a positive week despite releasing no price-sensitive news. Kogan shares have just started to turn from a rut that has played out over the last six months, while Jumbo hit a 52-week high earlier in the week before momentum waned.

Which shares dragged on the market?

Woolworths (ASX: WOW) shares led the declines on paper this week, however, in light of its demerger of Endeavour Group (ASX: EDV), shareholders probably won'tbe too concerned. The supermarket giant gained approval from shareholders last week to spin off the liquor and hotel business, with investors retaining a stake following the separation. Shares in Endeavour ended the week on $6.10New Hope Corporation (ASX: NHC) finished trading on the back foot after the coal business launched a convertible note offering consisting of senior unsecured convertible notes. The $200 million offer will give the company funds for general purpose activities, including potential M&A activity and growth initiatives. As part of the offer, the notes will have a fixed coupon rate of 2.75%, paid twice-yearly across a 5-year life until the start of July, 2026. The conversion price for the notes was set at a 25% premium to the reference price, at $2.10 each.Investigative forensic business Nuix (ASX: NXL) touched a new all-time low during the week as shareholders continue to dump the stock on every negative headline. While the corporate regulator announced it was launching a criminal investigation into an individual, news that Nuix office was raided by the Australian Federal Police concerned investors. A broker downgrade contributed to a large fall in the share price of blue-chip stalwart CSL (ASX: CSL), down more than 6%. Citi lowered its rating and forecast for the stock on the back of expectations the plasma collection market may normalise this year, with the company valuation being the main focus. Travel chaos brought about by the latest COVID outbreak in Sydney dampened enthusiasm for travel stocks, with a number of names sliding across recent days. Flight Centre (ASX: FLT) headlined the retreat, with the travel agency potentially staring at a period of some time before travel might resume into and out of the nation most-populous state.Last but not least, some other names experiencing a setback this week included communications technology manufacturer Codan (ASX: CDA), biotech favourite Mesoblast (ASX: MSB), OIl Search (ASX: OSH), and payment solutions provider Tyro Payments (ASX: TYR).

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