The Australian sharemarket maintained momentum in the afternoon session and lifted higher for the second day this week. Energy and mining stocks continued to rally. At the closing bell, the ASX/200 was 0.3 per cent or 23 points higher at 7297.
Sectors were mixed, with seven out of 11 finishing in the black. Energy added the most points, up 2.3 per cent, materials were next, up 2.1 per cent, then Real Estate, up 1.1 per cent. Meanwhile, financials were the worst performer, down 0.6 per cent.
Energy stocks surged following a rise in oil prices overnight. Woodside Petroleum
(ASX:WPL) closed 2.7 per cent higher, Worley
(ASX:WOR) closed 5.8 per cent higher, Beach Energy
(ASX:BPT) closed 5.1 per cent higher and Viva Energy
(ASX:VEA) closed 3.1 per cent higher.
Iron ore miners have rebounded strongly from their recent losses. Champion Iron
(ASX:CIA) made the most gains, closing 5.8 per cent higher. Fortescue Metals
(ASX:FMG) closed 4.5 per cent higher and BHP
(ASX:BHP) closed 2.6 per cent higher.
In headlines today, Zip Co
(ASX:Z1P) closed 4.3 per cent higher following news that it will enter the Indian market through a stake in buy now, pay later company ZestMoney. Medical wholesaler EBOS
(ASX:EBO) closed 3.1 per cent higher following its appointment of Julie Dillion as CEO for animal care. Major banks dragged with Westpac
(ASX:WBC) closing 1 per cent lower following the confirmed termination of its Pacific sale to Kina Bank.
The best-performing stock was the recycling company Sims
(ASX:SGM), closing 6.1 per cent higher, while Premier Investments
(ASX:PMV) was the biggest drag, closing 4.5 per cent lower.
Company newsPlease join us for Stocks of the Hour
here. Medical wholesaler EBOS
(ASX:EBO) welcomes Julie Dillion from Colgate-Palmolive as its new CEO for animal care.
Westpac
(ASX:WBC) has officially terminated its agreement with Kina Securities for the sale of its Pacific businesses.
Zip Co
(ASX:Z1P) is set to invest $69 million (US$50 million) in the Indian buy-now-pay later operator ZestMoney.
FuturesThe Dow Jones futures are pointing to a rise of 121 points.
The S&P 500 futures are pointing to a rise of 15 points.
The Nasdaq futures are pointing to a rise of 37 points.
The SPI futures are pointing to a rise of 26 points when the market next opens.
Best and worst performersThe best-performing sector was Energy, up 2.3 per cent. The worst-performing sector was Financials, down 0.6 per cent.
The best-performing stock in the S&P/ASX 200 was Sims
(ASX:SGM), closing 6.1 per cent higher at $13.66. It was followed by shares in Worley
(ASX:WOR) and Champion Iron
(ASX:CIA).
The worst-performing stock in the S&P/ASX 200 was Premier Investments
(ASX:PMV), closing 4.5 per cent lower at $26.81. It was followed by shares in Link Administration Holdings
(ASX:LNK) and Insurance Australia Group
(ASX:IAG).
Asian marketsJapan's Nikkei has lost 0.5 per cent.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng is closed due to National Day.
China's Shanghai Composite has gained 0.3 per cent.
Commodities and the dollarGold is trading at US$1778.82 an ounce.
Iron ore is 0.1 per cent higher at US$93.03 a ton.
Iron ore futures are pointing to a rise of 2.9 per cent.
Light crude is trading $1.10 higher at US$71.59 a barrel.
One Australian dollar is buying 72.53 US cents.
