Australian Market Extends Early Gains In Mid-market

(RTTNews) - The Australian market extends early gains and is trading modestly higher in mid-market moves on Thursday after opening in the green and briefly slipping into the red. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is moving close to the 8,200 level, with mining, energy and technology stocks extending their gains.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is gaining 26.40 points or 0.32 percent to 8,185.50, after touching a high of 8,199.70 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 28.10 points or 0.33 percent to 8,448.60. Australian stocks ended significantly lower on Tuesday ahead of the holiday on Wednesday.

Among major miners, Fortescue Metals is gaining more than 2 percent and Mineral Resources is adding more than 1 percent, while BHP Group and Rio Tinto are edging up 0.3 to 0.5 percent each.

Oil stocks are mostly higher. Beach energy, Santos and Woodside Energy are gaining almost 1 percent each, while Origin Energy is edging down 0.1 percent.

In the tech space, Afterpay owner Block is losing more than 2 percent and Xero is declining almost 1 percent, while Zip is edging up 0.5 percent, WiseTech Global is adding more than 2 percent and Appen is surging more than 8 percent.

Among the big four banks, National Australia Bank is edging up 0.1 percent, while ANZ Banking is edging down 0.3 percent. Commonwealth Bank and Westpac are flat. Among gold miners, Evolution Mining and Northern Star Resources are edging up 0.3 to 0.5 percent each, while Gold Road Resources is gaining almost 1 percent, Resolute Mining is adding almost 2 percent and Newmont is advancing more than 1 percent.

In economic news, Australia's CoreLogic Home Value Index declined by 0.1% month-on-month in December 2024, the first negative movement in nearly two years. This shift followed a surprisingly strong period of growth between February 2023 and October 2024. On an annual basis, Australian home values rose by 4.9% in 2024.

Meanwhile, the Judo Bank Australia Manufacturing PMI fell to 47.8 in December 2024, down from 49.4 in November, according to final data. This marked the eleventh consecutive month of deteriorating manufacturing conditions, with the decline accelerating beyond the initial estimate of 48.2.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.621 on Thursday.