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The ASX finished modestly higher but well off its intraday highs after an early relief rally faded as the geopolitical backdrop in the Middle East remained fluid. The index surged more than +130pts at the open, briefly pushing 8500, before momentum cooled as US futures slipped gradually through the day.
Initial optimism followed comments from US President Donald Trump suggesting a five-day delay to strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure, though sentiment cooled quickly as reports emerged that US allies in the region may move closer to direct involvement in the conflict. The result was another session of volatile intraday swings, with the market ultimately finishing only modestly higher.
- ASX 200: 8,379.40 / +13.48pts / +0.16%
- AUD/USD: 0.6962 / flat / −0.70%
- Best sectors: Materials +2.87%, Utilities +1.22%, REITs +0.69%
- Worst sectors: IT −1.56%, Financials −1.30%, Healthcare −0.80%
- Materials helped stabilise the index after a weak start as base metals rallied. BHP +2.99% and Rio Tinto (RIO) +2.18% both climbed strongly after copper posted its biggest gain in two months.
- Gold miners also found support despite bullion easing through the session with Newmont (NEM) +3.91%, Evolution Mining (EVN) +3.39% and Northern Star (NST) +2.09% all strong.
- Energy stocks were mixed as oil prices rebounded — Woodside Energy (WDS) −0.17% recovered from earlier sharp losses but still finished lower.
- Santos (STO) −2.61% declined amid news of an outage at its Barossa LNG project, which temporarily halted exports from the Darwin LNG facility.
- The major banks traded in mixed fashion following broker moves with ANZ +0.50% rising after JPMorgan upgraded the stock to Overweight.
- Commonwealth Bank (CBA) −1.80%, Westpac (WBC) −1.56% and National Australia Bank (NAB) −4.45% fell after rating downgrades.
- Defence-linked stocks eased as the prospect of Middle East de-escalation briefly gained traction which saw DroneShield (DRO) −6.79% and Electro Optic Systems (EOS) -6.71% whacked.
- Myer (MYR) reversed early gains to finish flat despite reporting 32.8% growth in first-half profit and improving margins.
- Infrastructure services group Downer EDI (DOW) +2.25% climbed after securing a $500 million integrated facilities management contract with Stockland, locking in a five-year agreement with an option to extend.
- Orica (ORI) −0.85% slipped as it works through supply disruptions following an outage at an ammonia plant in Western Australia.
- Aussie Broadband (ABB) +1.26% despite co-founder Phil Britt stepped down from the board to pursue other regional opportunities.
- Retail group KMD Brands (KMD) +3.23% rallied after rejecting a takeover proposal from US surfwear group Stokehouse, saying the offer undervalued the business and would dilute shareholders.
- Oil: Rose 3.8% in our session to $103.60/bboe
- Gold: $US4,368/oz – down $US70/oz during our session
- Iron ore: ~$US108/mt, up slightly
- Futures: FTSE −0.69%, S&P 500 E-Mini −0.66%, Dow E-Mini −0.61%
