Australian Market Slightly Higher

(RTTNews) - The Australian stock market is slightly higher on Thursday, extending the gains in the previous four sessions, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is staying above the 7,500 level, with gains in energy and mining stocks partially offset by losses in financial and technology stocks.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is gaining 9.50 points or 0.13 percent to 7,528.70, after touching a high of 7,551.40 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 9.80 points or 0.13 percent to 7,757.90. Australian stocks ended slightly higher on Wednesday.

Among major miners, BHP Group is gaining more than 1 percent, Rio Tinto is adding almost 2 percent, Fortescue Metals is advancing more than 2 percent and Mineral Resources is rising almost 6 percent after it kept its volume and cost guidance unchanged for FY24.

Oil stocks are higher. Santos and Origin Energy are gaining almost 1 percent each, while Beach energy is adding almost 3 percent and Woodside Energy is edging up 0.2 percent.

In the tech space, Appen is declining almost 3 percent, Afterpay owner Block is losing almost 6 percent, Xero is down almost 1 percent, Zip is slipping 2.5 percent and WiseTech Global is edging down 0.2 percent.

Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank and ANZ Banking are edging down 0.2 to 0.4 percent each, while National Australia Bank is losing almost 1 percent. Westpac is flat.

Among gold miners, Evolution Mining is gaining more than 1 percent, Northern Star Resources is adding almost 1 percent and Resolute Mining is advancing almost 2 percent, while Newmont is losing more than 2 percent and Gold Road Resources is edging down 0.5 percent.

In other news, shares in ResMed are surging almost 8 percent after the medical technology developer maintained its quarterly dividend at US$48 cents.

Shares in Sayona Mining are plunging 9 percent after the lithium miner cut staff at its North American site.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.657 on Thursday.

On Wall Street, stocks showed a strong move to the upside in early trading on Wednesday but gave back ground over the course of the session. The major averages pulled back well off their highs of the session in afternoon trading, with the Dow sliding into negative territory.

The major averages eventually ended the session mixed. While the Nasdaq rose 55.98 points or 0.4 percent to 15,481.92 and the S&P 500 inched up 3.95 points or 0.1 percent to 4,868.55, the Dow fell 99.06 points or 0.3 percent to 37,806.39.

Meanwhile, the major European markets all moved to the upside on the day. While the German DAX Index jumped by 1.6 percent, the French CAC 40 Index advanced by 0.9 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index climbed by 0.6 percent.

Crude oil prices climbed higher on Wednesday on data showing a larger-than-expected decline in U.S. crude inventories, while a weak dollar also contributed to the increase in oil prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for March added $0.72 or nearly 1 percent at $75.09 a barrel.