The main focus of the market was on the RBA call at 2.30pm this afternoon as the Central bank decided it had had enough of hiking rates for now in line with the market’s view, the first hold after 10 consecutive hikes by Governor Lowe. Energy was the place to be again today, though it was more the coal names carrying that sector higher while yesterday it was the oil and gas stocks. Tech was also strong, defying the weakness in the Nasdaq overnight. Materials were the main drag on the index, mostly as a result of weakness in iron ore.
The ASX saw the best of it early on today, buoyed by overseas strength on Friday while a ~7% rally in the oil price this morning following OPEC+ production cuts had the Energy sector flying, however, higher Oil prices are inflationary which is a net negative for the trajectory of interest rates, once that sunk in, equities pulled back from early highs.
A solid day to end the week, month & quarter with the ASX putting in strong back-to-back sessions, the market up +3.2% this week alone led by a strong bounce back in Material stocks. For the quarter, the market was up +4.01% inclusive of dividends with the Consumer Discretionary sector up an impressive 12% - this goes to show that market performance doesn’t correlate with mainstream media headlines, so much for the doom & gloom in retail!
Equities caught a bid today as investors showed a more rational mindset with fears on the back of SVB eased. The local market followed the lead of the US to add ~1% today and around 75% of the ASX200 index closed higher on the session. Banks bounced back from yesterday’s selling helping the index finish more than 1% higher. Tech was the biggest gainer today while Real Estate was the only sector to finish lower.
The market opened on the back foot today down ~20pts at the worst before CPI (inflation) data was released at 11.30am, coming in 6.8% versus 7.2% expected and down from 7.4% last month. Clearly, inflation is cooling and while it is still way too high, it’s heading in the right direction, while today’s result should cement the RBA’s decision to pause in April, the market is actually pricing in no more rate hikes from here.
The local market had its best day in two months thanks to buying support across both banks and resources. Financials got a boost following news First Bank would buy SVB, creating a bit of stability in the space. A fuse was also lit under resources thanks to strength in oil overnight while a bid for a junior lithium miner created frenzied buying in the beaten-up space. It wasn’t all good news though as Healthcare & Tech underperformed on the back of weakness from sector heavyweights.
A bit of a nothing session today for the ASX, the best of it was seen early with the index up ~30pts at its highs before a lacklustre afternoon session saw the gains evaporate, Energy the biggest drag overall while the banks came off as the day wore on.
An eventful week in markets came to a close with the ASX down a touch, although we did see a spirited fight back from an early sell-off with the ASX 200 rallying +32pts from the day’s low. Banks on the nose still but more companies finished in the green than the red – some corporate activity implying that it’s not all doom & gloom out there!
The choppy market action continued today as the ASX200 bounced along the bottom of its current trading range – for now at least – with a lot of indecision playing out in both equity and bond markets. Significant disparity between market pricing and central bank rhetoric is one element at play overlayed by lingering concerns around the financial sector, the huge volatility in bond markets is not helping!
Another positive session pushing the ASX 200 back up through 7000 as a strong bounce back in Energy and steady buying in Materials & Financials underpinned strength at the index level, 70% of the market finished the day on the right side of the ledger as nerves start to calm – for now at least, ahead of the US interest rate decision tonight.
The ASX saw the best of it early on today, buoyed by overseas strength on Friday while a ~7% rally in the oil price this morning following OPEC+ production cuts had the Energy sector flying, however, higher Oil prices are inflationary which is a net negative for the trajectory of interest rates, once that sunk in, equities pulled back from early highs.
A solid day to end the week, month & quarter with the ASX putting in strong back-to-back sessions, the market up +3.2% this week alone led by a strong bounce back in Material stocks. For the quarter, the market was up +4.01% inclusive of dividends with the Consumer Discretionary sector up an impressive 12% - this goes to show that market performance doesn’t correlate with mainstream media headlines, so much for the doom & gloom in retail!
Equities caught a bid today as investors showed a more rational mindset with fears on the back of SVB eased. The local market followed the lead of the US to add ~1% today and around 75% of the ASX200 index closed higher on the session. Banks bounced back from yesterday’s selling helping the index finish more than 1% higher. Tech was the biggest gainer today while Real Estate was the only sector to finish lower.
The market opened on the back foot today down ~20pts at the worst before CPI (inflation) data was released at 11.30am, coming in 6.8% versus 7.2% expected and down from 7.4% last month. Clearly, inflation is cooling and while it is still way too high, it’s heading in the right direction, while today’s result should cement the RBA’s decision to pause in April, the market is actually pricing in no more rate hikes from here.
The local market had its best day in two months thanks to buying support across both banks and resources. Financials got a boost following news First Bank would buy SVB, creating a bit of stability in the space. A fuse was also lit under resources thanks to strength in oil overnight while a bid for a junior lithium miner created frenzied buying in the beaten-up space. It wasn’t all good news though as Healthcare & Tech underperformed on the back of weakness from sector heavyweights.
A bit of a nothing session today for the ASX, the best of it was seen early with the index up ~30pts at its highs before a lacklustre afternoon session saw the gains evaporate, Energy the biggest drag overall while the banks came off as the day wore on.
An eventful week in markets came to a close with the ASX down a touch, although we did see a spirited fight back from an early sell-off with the ASX 200 rallying +32pts from the day’s low. Banks on the nose still but more companies finished in the green than the red – some corporate activity implying that it’s not all doom & gloom out there!
The choppy market action continued today as the ASX200 bounced along the bottom of its current trading range – for now at least – with a lot of indecision playing out in both equity and bond markets. Significant disparity between market pricing and central bank rhetoric is one element at play overlayed by lingering concerns around the financial sector, the huge volatility in bond markets is not helping!
Another positive session pushing the ASX 200 back up through 7000 as a strong bounce back in Energy and steady buying in Materials & Financials underpinned strength at the index level, 70% of the market finished the day on the right side of the ledger as nerves start to calm – for now at least, ahead of the US interest rate decision tonight.
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