The Australian sharemarket edged up, tracking Wall Street’s recovery, on renewed optimism about a high-stakes meeting next week between US President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping.
The S&P/ASX 200 index added 0.2 per cent, or 16.6 points, at the open to 9049.4 at 10.13am AEDT, with eight of the 11 sectors trading in the green. Losses in communications offset gains in energy after the US announced sanctions on Russia’s biggest oil companies, sending oil prices soaring. Beach Energy and Woodside rallied 1.6 per cent each.
Materials also helped, with mining heavyweight Rio Tinto up 1.7 per cent, and Fortescue 0.2 per cent higher. BHP, however, slipped 0.2 per cent.
And while the gold price rebounded after a big sell-off earlier this week, the miners fell. Newmont dropped 2.6 per cent, Northern Star 1.1 per cent, and Evolution Mining 0.1 per cent.
The big four banks were split, with ANZ rising 0.4 per cent but National Australia Bank dipping 0.1 per cent.
Stocks on the move
Whitehaven Coal was the biggest loser, down 3.4 per cent after the company burned $200 million of cash over the three months to September 30 as weak coal prices challenged the sector.
Lender Cuscal gained 1.2 per cent after the competition regulator gave the thumbs up to its acquisition of payment facilitation supplier Indue.
Property group GPT was flat on news it had bought a stake in Sydney office tower Grosvenor Place from Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation in a $860 million deal.
Lithium miner PLS climbed 4.2 per cent following a 30 per cent jump in revenue during the September quarter as output rose.
Furniture retailer Nick Scali advanced 1.3 per cent as its long-time chairman, John Ingram, announced his exit, marking the end of more than two decades of leadership.
Mining company Mount Gibson Iron cratered 23 per cent on news it was shutting down an 80-year-old iron ore mine on Koolan Island, WA, after last week’s rockfall.
