The ASX 200 produced a strong recovery on Monday afternoon to close up +0.2%, more than 0.7% off its late morning low. Westpac (WBC) drove the banks and ASX higher as investors took an increasingly bullish view of its FY25 result, the longer the day progressed - more on the banks later. In typical 2025 fashion, moves on the stock and sector level were very polarised on the first trading day of November, with the financials adding more than +38 points to the main board while materials and healthcare names detracted over -28 points.
Wall Street ended October on a strong note, with AI enthusiasm, solid corporate earnings, and looser financial conditions propelling equities to a sixth straight month of gains, while credit markets marked their third consecutive advance.
The ASX 200 slipped 0.5% on the penultimate day of October, as strength across lithium, copper, and uranium names failed to offset another weak session for rate-sensitive sectors. Consumer discretionary (-4.2%) and real estate (-2.7%) led the declines, with notable heavyweights Wesfarmers (WES) -7.1% and JB Hi-Fi (JBH) -4.5% dragging the index lower.
The ASX200 finished 1% lower on Wednesday after a hot CPI print dashed hopes of an interest rate cut into Christmas - by the end of the day, futures markets were pricing in a 20% chance of some Christmas joy for mortgage holders and arguably more telling, only one cut at most by next Christmas! Michele Bullock has been warning markets to be conservative with their dovish forecasts, and it's her crystal ball that’s now looking the clearest.
The ASX200 struggled on Tuesday under the weight of four major stocks tumbling by more than 10%, dragging the index lower from both a points and sentiment perspective. A strong banking sector couldn't dig the bourse out of trouble, as health care and IT stocks were dragged underwater by sector giants CSL and WiseTech, each sinking more than 15%.
The ASX 200 advanced +0.4% on the last Monday of October, with winners and losers fairly evenly matched, but the influential banks and heavyweight resource stocks dragged the broader index higher. The combination of Friday's strong session on Wall Street following the soft CPI and optimism over a US-China trade deal lifted the local market and US futures, which were up +0.7% when the domestic day session ended.
Many economists have long warned that Trump’s tariffs would ignite a sharp rise in inflation, but that threat continues to be a dog that won’t bark. On Friday, another nail was driven into the hawks’ coffin as US inflation data came in softer than expected. Wall Street surged to new record highs, with the cooler print reinforcing market expectations that the Fed will deliver four to five rate cuts over the next year, starting with a 0.25% move this week.
The ASX 200 recovered from early losses to close marginally higher on Thursday as “buy the dip” again prevailed. At its worst, the index was down over 40-points before reversing higher in the late morning with the miners and energy names improving throughout the day, ultimately lifting the market into positive territory. Energy stocks rallied more than +3% after US sanctions on Russian oil lifted crude prices, aided by the Woodside gas deal, which provided a springboard for the sector's biggest company.
The ASX200 fell -0.7% on Wednesday, with volatility resurfacing in a session that saw stocks falling alongside gold and cryptocurrencies. . It was a day in which assets favoured by retail momentum traders bore the worst losses, among them precious metals, crypto and companies in the artificial-intelligence space.
The ASX200 continued to advance in a “three steps forward, two back” fashion on Tuesday, posting a new all-time high before fading into the close. Gains were broad-based, with over 60% of the main board rising and 10 out of the 11 main sectors, with only the defensive facing consumer staples slipping lower.
Wall Street ended October on a strong note, with AI enthusiasm, solid corporate earnings, and looser financial conditions propelling equities to a sixth straight month of gains, while credit markets marked their third consecutive advance.
The ASX 200 slipped 0.5% on the penultimate day of October, as strength across lithium, copper, and uranium names failed to offset another weak session for rate-sensitive sectors. Consumer discretionary (-4.2%) and real estate (-2.7%) led the declines, with notable heavyweights Wesfarmers (WES) -7.1% and JB Hi-Fi (JBH) -4.5% dragging the index lower.
The ASX200 finished 1% lower on Wednesday after a hot CPI print dashed hopes of an interest rate cut into Christmas - by the end of the day, futures markets were pricing in a 20% chance of some Christmas joy for mortgage holders and arguably more telling, only one cut at most by next Christmas! Michele Bullock has been warning markets to be conservative with their dovish forecasts, and it's her crystal ball that’s now looking the clearest.
The ASX200 struggled on Tuesday under the weight of four major stocks tumbling by more than 10%, dragging the index lower from both a points and sentiment perspective. A strong banking sector couldn't dig the bourse out of trouble, as health care and IT stocks were dragged underwater by sector giants CSL and WiseTech, each sinking more than 15%.
The ASX 200 advanced +0.4% on the last Monday of October, with winners and losers fairly evenly matched, but the influential banks and heavyweight resource stocks dragged the broader index higher. The combination of Friday's strong session on Wall Street following the soft CPI and optimism over a US-China trade deal lifted the local market and US futures, which were up +0.7% when the domestic day session ended.
Many economists have long warned that Trump’s tariffs would ignite a sharp rise in inflation, but that threat continues to be a dog that won’t bark. On Friday, another nail was driven into the hawks’ coffin as US inflation data came in softer than expected. Wall Street surged to new record highs, with the cooler print reinforcing market expectations that the Fed will deliver four to five rate cuts over the next year, starting with a 0.25% move this week.
The ASX 200 recovered from early losses to close marginally higher on Thursday as “buy the dip” again prevailed. At its worst, the index was down over 40-points before reversing higher in the late morning with the miners and energy names improving throughout the day, ultimately lifting the market into positive territory. Energy stocks rallied more than +3% after US sanctions on Russian oil lifted crude prices, aided by the Woodside gas deal, which provided a springboard for the sector's biggest company.
The ASX200 fell -0.7% on Wednesday, with volatility resurfacing in a session that saw stocks falling alongside gold and cryptocurrencies. . It was a day in which assets favoured by retail momentum traders bore the worst losses, among them precious metals, crypto and companies in the artificial-intelligence space.
The ASX200 continued to advance in a “three steps forward, two back” fashion on Tuesday, posting a new all-time high before fading into the close. Gains were broad-based, with over 60% of the main board rising and 10 out of the 11 main sectors, with only the defensive facing consumer staples slipping lower.
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