Thanks @shovel40, @Fiji1 and morning crew.Half-time wrap:A week...

Thanks @shovel40, @Fiji1 and morning crew.

Half-time wrap:

A week of modest gains for Australian stocks drifted towards a lacklustre conclusion as the war on inflation dominated discussion on both sides of the Pacific.

The ASX 200 dipped 12 points or 0.17% by the halfway mark. The Australian benchmark remained on track for a weekly gain, thanks to solid gains on Wednesday and yesterday.

The market shrugged off mediocre leads from the US following the July consumer inflation report. The S&P 500 finished just 0.03% ahead after being up more than 1% earlier in the night as investors digested a mixed report - headline annual inflation up, core annual inflation down.

Back home, RBA Governor Philip Lowe used his final appearance before the House economics committee to reiterate it's too early to conclude inflation has been contained and no further rate hikes are on the horizon.

"We have made progress here and things are moving in the right direction, but it is too early to declare victory," Lowe said. "Looking forward, it is possible that some further tightening of monetary policy will be required to ensure that inflation returns to target within a reasonable timeframe," he added.

Personal trading: Missed the starter's pistol on LDX this morning. Couldn't see much else. Took W2V late yesterday - looks like it's setting up for a rebound next week. The waters where I usually cast a line were full of rusty old bikes and dead fish this morning.