Australian Shares Edge Higher After Early Gains Fade, Led by Mining and Energy

The Australian stock market is trimming early gains in mid‑day trading on Tuesday, reversing the previous session’s losses after mixed cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 remains just below the 7,900 level, with most sectors higher and mining and energy stocks leading the rally amid rising commodity prices.

The S&P/ASX 200 is up 38.40 points, or 0.49%, at 7,881.80, after earlier touching 7,919.70. The broader All Ordinaries Index is gaining 32.30 points, or 0.40%, at 8,185.50. Australian equities closed sharply lower on Monday.

Among the major miners, BHP Group is up nearly 2%, Rio Tinto is ahead more than 1%, and Fortescue Metals is gaining over 2%, while Mineral Resources is down 0.2%.

Oil stocks are mostly higher. Origin Energy is adding around 2%, and Beach Energy, Woodside Energy and Santos are each up about 1%.

In the technology sector, WiseTech Global is up 0.3%, Zip is gaining more than 1%, Xero is down 0.1%, Appen is losing almost 4%, and Afterpay owner Block is flat.

Gold miners are mostly higher. Evolution Mining is up more than 2%, Northern Star Resources is up 0.1%, Newmont is gaining over 1%, Gold Road Resources is up 0.5%, while Resolute Mining is down more than 2%.

Among the big four banks, National Australia Bank is up 0.2% and ANZ Banking is up almost 1%, while Westpac is down almost 1% and Commonwealth Bank is unchanged.

Shares in AVJennings surged more than 8% after the homebuilder announced that US real estate giant Proprium Capital and its local development arm, Avid Property, would acquire 100% of its shares.

In economic news, the Reserve Bank of Australia will conclude its monetary policy meeting and announce its interest‑rate decision. The RBA is widely expected to keep its benchmark lending rate steady at 4.10%.

Australia’s manufacturing sector continued to expand in March, and at a faster pace, according to the latest S&P Global survey. The manufacturing PMI rose to 52.1, up from 50.4 in February, moving further above the boom‑or‑bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that retail sales rose a seasonally adjusted 0.2% month‑on‑month in February, reaching A$37.129 billion. This missed expectations for a 0.3% increase and was unchanged from the January reading. On a yearly basis, retail sales were up 3.6%.

In currency markets, the Australian dollar is trading at $0.625 on Tuesday.

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