Thanks @Quantum Torus@Ravgnome and AM Loungers. A sad day for me as it would have been Cleo's 10th birthday. Even though I have Kev my daycare dog, I miss her like crazy. Anyone who has allowed a dog into their heart would know the gaping hole they leave when they pass away.
The Australian share market has closed more than one per cent higher for the first time in four months, buoyed by banking stocks after a surge on Wall Street overnight.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was up 69.2 points, or 1.18 per cent, at 5939.1 points on Wednesday while the broader All Ordinaries was up 69.3 points, or 1.16 per cent, at 6047.1.
Wall Street provided a leg-up for the Australian indices following major financial and health care companies in the US reporting better-than-expected profits for the third quarter on Tuesday, Bell Direct equities analyst Julia Lee said.
"This earnings season we're expecting to see growth of 19.2 per cent, so that's the sixth time out of seven quarters we would have seen double-digit growth coming out of the US," she said.
Commonwealth Bank and Westpac led the big four's gains on Wednesday, up 1.7 and 1.6 per cent respectively, followed by a one per cent climb for ANZ and a 0.08 per cent lift for NAB.
Healthcare and infotech shares helped drive up the market.
The infotech sector was up nearly two per cent, with gains for Link Admin, Computershare, and Xero Ltd, as the sector turned around recent fortunes, having lost ground for 11 of the past 12 sessions.
Afterpay, however, took a significant hit, closing 18.9 per cent down reacting to speculation it could face a Senate inquiry around its business practices.
Healthcare shares climbed, gaining 2.6 per cent, with Ramsay Health Care, ResMed and Cochlear all up more than three per cent, while CSL shares were up 2.5 per cent.
The heavyweight materials sector was the only drag on the market, dipping 0.3 per cent on sliding copper and iron ore, and a flat gold price.
In companies news, A2 Milk's share price jumped 8.5 per cent to $9.80 after forecasting further growth in nutritional products locally and in China, and liquid milk products in the US.
But Reject Shop's shares went the other way, plummeting nearly 40 per cent after the discount retailer slashed its profit guidance due to slumping sales.
The Australian dollar held its ground as a rebound in global equities pointed to some improvement in risk appetite after a rough couple of weeks.
The Aussie was buying 71.35 US cents at 1630 AEDT, from 71.22 US cents on Tuesday.
ON THE ASX:
* The S&P/ASX200 was up 69.2 points, or 1.18 per cent, at 5939.1 points
* The All Ordinaries was up 69.3 points, or 1.16 per cent, at 6047.1
* In futures trading the SPI200 futures index was up 72 points, or 1.23 per cent, at 5926.0 points at 1630 AEDT.
CURRENCY SNAPSHOT AT 1630 AEDT:
One Australian dollar buys:
* 71.35 US cents, from 71.22 US cents on Tuesday
* 80.07 Japanese yen, from 79.86
* 61.78 euro cents, from 61.58
* 54.20 British pence, from 54.18
* 108.41 NZ cents, from 108.50
GOLD:
The spot price of gold in Sydney at 1630 AEDT was $US1220.93 per fine ounce, up from $US1225.66 on Tuesday.
Wall Street struggled for direction on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve released meeting minutes showing broad agreement on the need to raise borrowing costs further despite sharp criticism from U.S. President Donald Trump over interest rate hikes.
The S&P 500 zigzagged between positive and negative territory after the minutes showed policy makers united on the September hike and anticipating that further gradual increases would be consistent with the economic expansion, labor market strength, and firm inflation that most anticipated.
“This is consistent with the Fed’s rhetoric that they will continue to gradually raise interest rates. A lot has to happen for the Fed not to move again in December,” said Ryan Sweet, head Of monetary policy research at Moody’s Analytics in West Chester, Pennsylvania. “There will be no more hand-holding with the Fed.”
Jim Paulsen, chief investment strategist at The Leuthold Group in Minneapolis, said some traders used the minutes as a reason to change direction.
“Whatever way you lean, you could find something in here to bolster your case,” said Paulsen. “This has more to do with technical trading. We were (near) the highs of the day when it hit. I’m wondering if you were holding at the lows of the day before it hit, you’d have had the opposite impact.”
At 3:06 p.m. ET (2006 ET), the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI fell 60.83 points, or 0.24 percent, to 25,737.59, the S&P 500 .SPX lost 0.14 points, or 0.00 percent, to 2,809.78 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC dropped 4.97 points, or 0.06 percent, to 7,640.52.
By Wednesday, U.S. equities had only partially recovered ground lost in a massive sell-off the week before when it marked its biggest losses since March.
Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones on the NYSE by a 1.69-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.38-to-1 ratio favored decliners.
The S&P 500 posted three new 52-week highs and 11 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 11 new highs and 70 new lows.
Source: Netwealth Morning Business Roundup
Thursday morning brekkie is Corn Fritters with Avocado Salsa. Coffee as usual.
In consideration of others, PLEASE include the STOCK CODE in all your posts.
Happy trading, play nicely and make informed decisions.
