Key Points
- Australian stock market gained as the S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.78%, driven by gains in the Industrials, IT, and A-REITs sectors.
- Mesoblast Ltd. (ASX:MSB), Pointsbet Holdings Ltd. (ASX:PBH), and Westgold Resources Ltd. (ASX:WGX) were among the top performers.
- Appen Ltd. (ASX:APX), Nickel Mines Ltd. (ASX:NIC), and Whitehaven Coal Ltd. (ASX:WHC) were among the worst performers.
- 524 advancing stocks slightly outnumbering 510 declining ones, while 377 remained unchanged. The S&P/ASX 200 VIX declined by 0.65%.
Australia’s stock market ended higher on Tuesday, with the S&P/ASX 200 advancing 0.78% or 64.50 to 8,314.00, driven by strong performances in the Industrials, IT, and A-REITs sectors. Investor sentiment remained positive, pushing several stocks higher as the trading session progressed.
Mesoblast Ltd. (ASX:MSB) led the gains, which surged 6.01% or 0.11, to close at 1.94 AUD, marking a three-year high. Pointsbet Holdings Ltd. (ASX:PBH) followed with a 5.35% increase, adding 0.05 points to end at 0.98 AUD, while Westgold Resources Ltd. (ASX:WGX) climbed 4.30% or 0.13 points to settle at 3.15 AUD by late trade.
On the downside, Appen Ltd. (ASX:APX) led the session’s losses, falling 4.04% or 0.09 points to close at 2.14 AUD. Nickel Mines Ltd. (ASX:NIC) also struggled, declining 2.84% or 0.025 points to 0.86 AUD, while Whitehaven Coal Ltd. (ASX:WHC) slipped 3.22% or 0.21 points to finish at 6.31 AUD.
Market breadth reflected a mixed sentiment, with 524 advancing stocks slightly outnumbering 510 declining ones, while 377 remained unchanged. This marginal advantage in rising stocks underpinned the overall market’s upward movement. The S&P/ASX 200 VIX, which measures the implied volatility of the S&P/ASX 200, declined 0.65% or 0.066 to 10.16.
In commodities, gold futures for February delivery recorded minimal movement, up 0.01% or 0.14 to $2,670.14 per troy ounce. Crude oil for January delivery fell 0.54% or 0.38 to $70.33 a barrel, while Brent oil for February delivery rose marginally by 0.04% or 0.03 to $73.94 a barrel.
AUD/USD remained flat on the currency front, showing little change at 0.64, while AUD/JPY slipped 0.24% to 97.94. The US Dollar Index Futures increased 0.03% to 106.59, reflecting minor dollar strength in global markets.
