The ASX200 continued to hold ground in positive territory in the afternoon session, as the benchmark index notched a 14-month high at the close.
The broader high was complemented by financials’ record levels, as CBA hit its six-month high and NAB reached an eighteen-month high during Wednesday’s trading session. Biotechnology CSL
(ASX:CSL) led the advance of healthcare stocks.
The mining sector extended yesterday’s upbeat performance to claw back losses by the tech sector. Losses in US tech stocks overnight set the foundation for declines in major Australian tech players such as Afterpay
(ASX:APT) & Wisetech Global
(ASX:WTC).
At the closing bell, the S&P/ASX 200 was 0.39 per cent or 27.90 points higher at 7095.80.
FuturesThe Dow Jones futures are pointing to a rise of 83.00 points.
The S&P 500 futures are pointing to a rise of 10.25 points.
The Nasdaq futures are pointing to a rise of 28.00 points.
The SPI futures are pointing to a rise of 33 points when the market next opens.
Best and worst performersThe best-performing sector was Health Care, up 0.97 per cent. The worst-performing sector was Information Technology, down 1.11 per cent.
The best-performing stock in the S&P/ASX 200 was Nearmap
(ASX:NEA), closing 14.56 per cent higher at $2.36. It was followed by shares in Brickworks
(ASX:BKW) and Janus Henderson Group
(ASX:JHG).
The worst-performing stock in the S&P/ASX 200 was Flight Centre Travel Group
(ASX:FLT), closing 5.39 per cent lower at $15.27. It was followed by shares in PolyNovo
(ASX:PNV) and Ramsay Health Care
(ASX:RHC).
Asian marketsJapan's Nikkei is closed due to Children's Day.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng has lost 0.36%.
China's Shanghai Composite is closed due to Labor Day.
Commodities and the dollarGold is trading at US$1778.32 an ounce.
Light crude is trading $0.39 higher at US$63.65 a barrel.
One Australian dollar is buying 77.18 US cents.
