Australia Market ends higher; commodity stocks leads

Australian share market finished session modestly higher on Thursday, 14 July 2022, extending the winning streak for a third day, after official data showed employment rose more than expected in June, although worries over hot U.S. inflation data and an impending rate hike capped gains.

At closing bell, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 advanced 29.06 points, or 0.44%, to 6,650.62. The broader All Ordinaries index added 40.80 points, or 0.6%, to 6,848.65.

Shares of mining and gold companies led the market rally after a sharp rebound in commodity prices. Iron ore prices strengthened on the back of an optimistic China export reading for June. Mining trio Rio Tinto, BHP Group, and Fortescue Metals added between 1% and 2%. Northern Star Resources and Newcrest Mining jumped as much as 2.6% and 1.4%, respectively.

Energy stocks climbed, with sector majors Woodside Energy and Santos adding 0.3% and 0.9%, respectively. Coal miners New Hope and Whitehaven Coal surged 5.7% and 6.5%, respectively on reports that China may be preparing to reverse its unofficial ban on Australian coal imports.

Bucking the trend, financials were lower, with Commonwealth Bank of Australia, National Australia Bank, Westpac Banking Corp, and Australia and New Zealand Banking Group declining between 0.5% and 1.5%.

CURRENCY NEWS: The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, briefly slipped below 108, but was last at 108.476.The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.6757.

Powered by Capital Market - Live News