Day traders' after-market lounge January 31

Thanks afternoon crew.

End-of-day summary:

Australian shares set a record for the first time in more than two years after a cooldown in inflation prompted markets to price in two interest rate cuts this year.

The ASX 200 finally swept past its August 2021 all-time high after stalling just below on three previous occasions, most recently at the start of this month. The index rallied 80.5 points or 1.06% to a fresh closing peak of 7680.7.

Rate-sensitive utilities and property stocks led the charge following news that the annual rate of inflation fell to a two-year low of 4.1% last month from 5.4% at the last reading. The monthly Consumer Price Index indicator declined to 3.4% from 4.3% in November.

Financial markets responded by pricing in a rate cut by August, with another to follow by November.

Today's rally came despite pressure on US stock futures. S&P 500 futures slid 0.38% following underwhelming trading updates this morning from index heavyweights Microsoft and Alphabet.