Australian Market Notably Higher

(RTTNews) - The Australian stock market notably higher on Tuesday, recouping the losses in the previous session, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 staying above the 7,200 level, following the broadly positive cues from global markets overnight, with gains across most sectors, led by gains in mining and energy stocks amid firmer commodity prices.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is gaining 33.40 points or 0.46 percent to 7,258.20, after touching a high of 7,273.60 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 33.90 points or 0.46 percent to 7,453.50. Australian stocks closed sharply lower on Monday.

Among the major miners, BHP Group and Rio Tinto are gaining more than 1 percent each, while Mineral Resources is advancing more than 4 percent, Fortescue Metals is adding almost 3 percent and OZ Minerals is edging up 0.1 percent.

Oil stocks are higher. Beach energy and Santos are gaining more than 1 percent each, while Woodside Energy is advancing almost 2 percent and Origin Energy is edging up 0.5 percent. Among tech stocks, Afterpay owner Block is losing almost 3 percent and Appen is declining more than 1 percent, while WiseTech Global and Zip are adding almost 1 percent each. Xero is gaining more than 1 percent.

Gold miners are higher. Northern Star Resources and Newcrest Mining are gaining almost 2 percent each, while Gold Road Resources is advancing almost 4 percent, Evolution Mining is adding almost 3 percent and Resolute Mining is up more than 3 percent.

Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank and Westpac are edging down 0.2 to 0.3 percent each, while ANZ Banking and National Australia Bank are edging up 0.1 to 0.2 percent each.

In economic news, retail sales in Australia were up a seasonally adjusted 1.9 percent on month in January, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Tuesday - coming in at A$35.091 billion. That beat forecasts for an increase of 1.5 percent following the 3.9 percent contraction in the previous month. On a yearly basis, retail sales climbed 7.5 percent.

The ABS also said Australia posted a current account surplus of A$14.114 billion in the fourth quarter of 2022. That beat forecasts for a surplus of A$6.5 billion following the upwardly revised A$753 million in the three months prior (originally a shortfall of A$2.3 billion).

Meanwhile, private sector credit in Australia was up 0.4 percent on month in January, the Reserve Bank of Australia said on Tuesday, up from 0.3 percent in December. On a yearly basis, credit rose from 7.6 percent in December to 8.0 percent in January.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.675 on Tuesday.

On the Wall Street, stocks gave back ground over the course of the trading day on Monday after moving sharply higher early in the session. The major averages pulled back well off their early highs but managed to close in positive territory.

The Dow surged more than 360 points in early trading but ended the day up by just 72.17 points or 0.2 percent at 32,889.09. The Nasdaq climbed 72.04 points or 0.6 percent to 11,466.98 and the S&P 500 rose 12.20 points or 0.3 percent to 3,982.24.

The major European markets also moved to the upside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index surged by 1.5 percent, the German DAX Index jumped by 1.1 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index climbed by 0.7 percent.

Crude oil prices pulled back Monday, handing back recent gains on concerns that higher interest rates will tip the global economy into a recession. West Texas Intermediate crude for April delivery slid $0.64 or 0.8 percent to $75.68 a barrel.