Australian Equities Rise Modestly on Wall Street Momentum

The Australian stock market edged higher on Friday, building on Thursday’s gains, with the S&P/ASX 200 hovering just below 7,400 points. Overnight Wall Street optimism, driven by modest advances in financial stocks, bolstered the market, despite weakness in most other sectors amid inflation concerns.

Investors remain cautious as the nation gradually eases lockdown measures, especially in Victoria, where COVID-19 cases remain elevated. On Thursday, Victoria recorded 1,273 new local cases and eight fatalities, while New South Wales reported 216 new cases and three deaths.

The S&P/ASX 200 index rose 4.60 points, or 0.06%, to 7,383.80, briefly touching 7,404.90. The All Ordinaries index added 2.40 points, or 0.03%, to 7,715.60, extending the market’s modest Thursday gains.

Among major miners, Rio Tinto slipped about 1%, while OZ Minerals fell nearly 2%. Fortescue Metals edged up 0.2%, and Mineral Resources gained over 2%; BHP Group remained largely unchanged.

Energy stocks were mostly higher, with Oil Search and Santos each up 0.5%. Woodside Petroleum advanced nearly 1%, whereas Origin Energy slipped 0.2% and Beach Energy was flat.

In the tech sector, Xero dipped 0.3%, WiseTech Global fell over 3%, Afterpay slipped nearly 2%, and Appen declined more than 1%.

Among the big four banks, Westpac edged up 0.4%, Commonwealth Bank rose nearly 1%, while ANZ Bank and National Australia Bank were unchanged.

Gold miners showed mixed movement, with Resolute Mining and Northern Star each losing over 1%; Evolution Mining and Gold Road each fell nearly 1%; Newcrest Mining declined almost 2%.

Crown Resorts shares surged nearly 16% after a consortium led by Blackstone offered $12.50 per share to acquire the 90% stake it does not already own, marking the third attempt.

In currency trading, the Australian dollar was at $0.727 on Friday.

On Wall Street, equities swung through the session, closing mixed after a modestly lower previous day. Despite volatile trading, both the Nasdaq and S&P 500 hit new record highs.

The Nasdaq added 72.14 points, or 0.5%, to close at 15,993.71, while the S&P 500 rose 15.87 points, or 0.3%, to 4,704.54. The Dow Jones slipped 60.10 points, or 0.2%, to 35,870.95.

European markets slipped on the day, with the UK’s FTSE 100 down 0.5%, and Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC 40 each easing about 0.2%.

Crude oil futures rose on Thursday, recouping early losses, with December WTI gaining $0.65, or 0.8%, to $79.01 per barrel amid uncertainty about demand outlook.

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