Australian shares rose marginally on Thursday, driven by the strength in heavyweight financials and mining stocks, with positive US data cementing the possibility of the Federal Reserve taking a pause from interest rate hikes.
The S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.1% to 7,159.3 by 0035 GMT. The benchmark closed 0.7% lower on Wednesday. Data from the US showed underlying inflation continued to slowly decrease, firming bets that the Fed would stand pat on interest rates for now.
In Australia, investors awaited August employment data for further cues on economic growth in the country. A Reuters poll showed that the jobless rate would likely remain steady at 3.7%.
Domestic miners were up 0.8%, tracking rising copper and iron ore prices after a moderate rise in US underlying inflation data.
Sector leaders BHP Group, Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals Group were up 0.1%, 1.2%, and 2.5%, respectively.
Financial stocks inched 0.1% lower, with the ‘Big Four’ banks gaining between 0.1 and 0.3%.
National Australia Bank later fell as much as 0.2% after it said it would close down their Hong Kong office, as its Singapore, Tokyo and Shanghai offices were the preferred customer outreach hubs in Asia.
Gold stocks rose 0.3% in volatile trade, even as prices for the yellow metal inched lower on Wednesday due to a stronger dollar.
Sector majors Newcrest Mining gained 0.1%, while Northern Star Resources rose 0.5%.
With markets refocusing on tighter oil supply for the rest of 2023, domestic energy stocks followed suit to advance 0.4% as oil prices ticked higher.
Woodside Energy lost 0.1%, while Santos gained 0.5%. Across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index fell 0.3% to 11,323.68.
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