Australian Market Significantly Higher

(RTTNews) - The Australian stock market is significantly higher on Monday, extending the gains in the previous session, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 moving above the 7,200 level, following the broadly positive cues from global markets on Friday, with gains across all sectors as traders react to the news of an "agreement in principle" reached on the US debt ceiling over the weekend.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is gaining 73.60 points or 1.03 percent to 7,228.40, after touching a high of 7,254.80 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 73.90 points or 1.01 percent to 7,408.40. Australian stocks closed modestly higher on Friday.

Among the major miners, BHP Group, Mineral Resources and Fortescue Metals are gaining more than 2 percent each, while Rio Tinto is adding almost 2 percent.

Oil stocks are mostly higher. Santos and Woodside Energy are gaining more than 1 percent each, while Beach energy is adding almost 2 percent and Origin Energy is edging up 0.3 percent.

Among tech stocks, Zip is gaining more than 2 percent, Appen is skyrocketing more than 18 percent and Afterpay owner Block is adding almost 2 percent, while Xero and WiseTech Global are up almost 1 percent each.

Gold miners are mostly higher. Gold Road Resources is edging up 0.1 percent, Resolute Mining is gaining more than 1 percent and Northern Star Resources is edging up 0.5 percent, while Evolution Mining is edging down 0.4 percent. Newcrest Mining is flat.

Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank, Westpac, ANZ Banking and National Australia Bank are all gaining more than 1 percent each.

In other news, shares in Humm are soaring more than 10 percent after the buy now, pay later firm said it is back in full business. The corporate regulator had ordered Humm of Friday to stop providing its products to new customers. Shares in Leo Lithium are jumping almost 14 percent after signing a deal with China's Ganfeng Lithium to raise $106 million in capital and cooperate on a project in Mali.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.653 on Monday.

On Wall Street, stocks moved sharply higher over the course of the trading day on Friday, extending the rebound seen during Thursday's session. With the continued upward move, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 reached their best closing levels in nine months.

The major averages moved roughly sideways going into the close, holding on to strong gains. The Nasdaq spiked 277.59 points or 2.2 percent to 12,975.69, the S&P 500 surged 54.17 points or 1.3 percent to 4,205.45 and the Dow jumped 328.69 points or 1.0 percent to 33,093.34.

The major European markets also moved to the upside on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index advanced by 0.7 percent, the German DAX Index and the French CAC 40 Index both jumped by 1.2 percent.

Crude oil prices climbed higher on Friday after Russia played down the prospect of additional output cuts by OPEC. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for July ended higher by $0.84 or 1.2 percent at $72.67 a barrel. WTI crude futures gained about 1.6 percent last week.