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First Up

UPDATED 01/08/2026 08:58

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The ASX 200 finished a volatile week up +2.3%, reaching a four-month high on Wednesday after softer-than-expected inflation data reduced fears of higher interest rates. The ASX shrugged off a sharp pullback earlier in the week by the “AI Trade” and a 1150-point drop by the Dow on Wednesday night after hawkish comments from Fed Chair Warsh – as we’ve been saying through July, the local market is slowly starting to get its “Mojo” back as we head into reporting season.

Last week’s winners and losers were in two distinct halves: the software and consumer-facing names led the gains while the coal and defence stocks endured a week to forget.

Winners: WiseTech Global (ASX: WTC) +21%, Lovisa (ASX: LOV) +15%, SEEK (ASX: SEK) +14%, Xero Ltd (ASX: XRO) +14%, Technology One (ASX: TNE) +13%, Flight Centre (ASX: FLT) +13%, Domino’s Pizza (ASX: DMP +12%, and Life360 (ASX: 360) +11%.

Losers: Liontown (ASX: LTR) -19%, DroneShield (ASX: DRO) -17%, Champion Iron (ASX: CIA) -13%, Whitehaven Coal (ASX: WHC) -10%, Yancoal (ASX: YAL) -8%, New Hope (ASX: NHC) -7%, Austal (ASX: ASB) -7%, and Challenger (ASX: CGF) -6%.

Weekly snapshot: Last week the ASX was whipsawed by mixed news around the Strait of Hormuz, but soft local CPI was enough to drive the index higher:

The ASX200 started the week off with triple-digit gains as the US-Iran conflict went into paused mode, at least for a few days.
We tested 6-week highs on Tuesday despite weak offshore leads as futures-led buying pushed the index towards 9000.
The market hit a 5-month high on Wednesday as soft inflation data (CPI) reduced fears of rate hikes into Christmas, although selling appeared into strength.
A sharp sell-off in the US, which saw the Dow fall ~1150 points, was enough to snap the 3-day winning streak, but the 0.8% fall was fairly muted considering the offshore leads.
The market crept higher into the weekend, cementing a +2.3% advance for the historically strong month of July.

Next week is headlined by the US July jobs report on Friday, which will be a pivotal test for the Fed after three officials dissented in favour of a rate hike at this week’s meeting. In Australia, the RBA is widely expected to leave the cash rate unchanged at 4.35%, with easing inflation and market pricing implying virtually no chance of a policy move. Focus will turn to SpaceX’s first earnings report since its record-breaking IPO and as we gear up for local reporting season.

Overseas markets ended the week in firm fashion to end a volatile July basically flat. In Europe, the EURO STOXX 50 closed up +0.2% while the UK FTSE slipped by 0.3%. In the US, the S&P 500 advanced +0.7%, supported by the NASDAQ, which finished not far behind, up +0.6%.