The Australian share market soared at the open and eased back before lunchtime. At noon, the ASX is 0.2 per cent or 12.3 points higher at 7486.8. The SPI futures are pointing to a rise of 18 points.
Mining stocks charged ahead while the Bank sector flattened. Energy stocks are pushing higher. BNPL giant Afterpay
(ASX:APT) ended its winning run, down 0.2 per cent. CSL Health Care
(ASX:CSL) is down 1.2 per cent.
Mining giant BHP
(ASX:BHP) is up 1.8 per cent, Rio Tinto
(ASX:RIO) is up 1.5 per cent and Fortescue Metals
(ASX:FMG) is up 0.8 per cent.
Oil prices increased overnight. Woodside Petroleum
(ASX:WPL) is up 1.2 per cent, Santos
(ASX:STO) is up 0.2 per cent and Oil Search
(ASX:OSH) is up 0.3 per cent.
Onto banks, Westpac
(ASX:WBC) is down 0.8 per cent, ANZ
(ASX:ANZ) and NAB
(ASX:NAB) are down 0.6 per cent and the Commonwealh
(ASX:CBA) is 0.3 per cent higher.
The worst-performing stock is GUD Holdings
(ASX:GUD), down 4.1 per cent following the release of its FY21 results.
NSW recorded 233 new Covid-19 cases, Queensland recorded 16 new cases while Victoria records its first day of no new cases in almost a month.
Local economic newsThe Australian Bureau of Statistics released their ‘Retail Trade, Australia’ statement for June 2021. This includes Monthly and quarterly estimates of turnover and volumes for retail businesses, including store and online sales.
Retail sales volumes rose 0.8 per cent in the June quarter 2021, seasonally adjusted. This follows the 0.5 per cent fall in the March quarter 2021.
Company newsReal estate investment trust BWP Trust
(ASX:BWP), posted a total income of $152.2 million for the period ending 30 Jun 2021 (FY21), down 2.3 per cent from the prior year.
GUD
(ASX:GUD), a leader in the automotive aftermarket and water products sector, reached total revenue of $557 million for the period ending 30 Jun 2021 (FY21), reflecting a 27.2 per cent increase from the prior year.
Christine O’Reilly will join the ANZ Board on 1 Nov 2021 as a non-executive director, subject to meeting regulatory requirements.
Best and worst performersThe best-performing sector is Materials, up 1.1 per cent. The worst-performing sector is Health Care, down almost 1 per cent.
The best-performing stock in the S&P/ASX 200 is Pilbara Minerals
(ASX:PLS), trading 5.1 per cent higher at $2.07. It is followed by shares in Omni Bridgeway
(ASX:OBL) and Mineral Resources
(ASX:MIN).
The worst-performing stock in the S&P/ASX 200 is GUD Holdings
(ASX:GUD), trading 4.1 per cent lower at $11.60. It is followed by shares in Chalice Mining
(ASX:CHN) and EML Payments
(ASX:EML).
Commodities and the dollarGold is trading at US$1813.40 an ounce.
Iron ore is 0.1 per cent higher at US$184.67 a ton.
Iron ore futures are pointing to a fall of 1.1 per cent.
One Australian dollar is buying 74.06 US cents.
