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The ASX200 experienced a choppy Tuesday before ultimately closing up +0.2% courtesy of another stellar session by the resources, with the materials sector +2.3% and energy sector +1.4% dragging a begrudging market higher.
The ASX flipped between gains and losses through Tuesday and sat mildly higher near 8900 at the close. Risk appetite improved on signs Washington and Beijing will keep talking, a cooler Middle East backdrop and a flow on more positive updates from Aussie corporates, with several positive, growth orientated deals announced.
The ASX 200 opened lower as expected on Monday, but failed to capitalise on a steady advance in U.S. futures, with nearly half of the session’s losses occurring in the afternoon even as the S&P pushed higher.
The ASX tracked weakness in overseas markets, though we started the day better off, with US Futures recovering from the get-go, finding solace from DJT’s more conciliatory comments towards China.
The game of chicken is back on between the US and China, just in time to deliver some seasonal October volatility. Chinese President Xi Jinping has drawn a clear red line in a bid to stem new US export controls, threatening to reignite a tit-for-tat trade spiral with Donald Trump just weeks before a planned meeting between the leaders of the world’s biggest economies.
The ASX200 ended the week mildly softer, with tech and consumer discretionary stocks dragging the index down 0.3%. While the index treads water on the stock & sector level, the local market is getting more interesting with a strong performance by the miners almost offsetting broad-based weakness, with 5 of the main 11 sectors retreating between 1.4% and 2.4%.
By Friday’s close, the winners’ enclosures contained an eclectic mix, with the material sector dominant in the positive contributors while the tech names were noticeable on the other side of the ledger:
The ASX closed lower for the week, with today’s session capped by a risk-off tone as peace headlines out of Gaza knocked the shine off oil and gold, while iron ore heavyweights fell on renewed pricing tensions with China.
The ASX 200 rose +0.3% on Thursday, though the real action played out beneath the market’s surface, with the materials sector leading the charge, up +1.8% despite a rare pullback in gold stocks.
The ASX snapped a three-day losing streak today as heavyweight miners powered the market higher, pushing the index back within reach of record levels. A 14-month high in copper prices sparked strong gains across the materials sector, offsetting weakness in banks and tech.
The ASX200 slipped 0.1% on a quiet Wednesday, which saw some initial morning weakness before buyers returned, taking the index back towards unchanged. Outside of Wesfarmers (WES) -7.5 points and James Hardie (JHX) +5.7 points, none of the main board added or retracted more than 2 points from the index.
