Day traders' after-market lounge August 27

Thanks afternoon crew.

End-of-day summary:

The share market suffered only its second setback in two and a half weeks as upbeat earnings from several index heavyweights failed to offset caution as stock prices once again neared record levels.

The ASX 200 climbed to within eight points of its previous closing peak before fading to a loss of 13 points or 0.16%. At today's top, the index had regained almost all of its losses since a US recession scare sent shares here tumbling almost 480 points in two sessions.

While shareholders in BHP, Woodside and Coles celebrated trading updates today, those gains did not offset selling among banks, tech companies and industrials following a mixed night on Wall Street. The S&P 500 eased 0.32% ahead of tomorrow night's quarterly update from Nvidia.