Australian shares rose on Wednesday, buoyed by commodity stocks, while QBE Insurance fell after the country’s corporate watchdog said it was taking the insurer to court over misleading pricing discounts.
The S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.3% to 8,227.9, as of 2333 GMT, rebounding from a more than 1.5% fall on Tuesday.
The ASX 200 benefited from a rise in commodity prices, with aluminium rising on record high raw material prices, while gold touched another peak on safe-haven demand.
Oil prices also rose 2% overnight, as traders downplayed hopes of a Middle East ceasefire and focused on signs of improving demand from China.
Mining stocks jumped 0.9%, with shares of top miners BHP Group and Rio Tinto rising 1.2% and 0.5%, respectively. Gold stocks climbed as much as 0.5% to hit their highest level since late July 2020.
Gold miner Northern Star Resources was largely flat but was hovering around a record high. Energy stocks inched up 0.3%.
Woodside Energy and Santos rose 0.2% and 0.5%, respectively.
Heavyweight rate-sensitive financial stocks fell 0.3% as US treasury yields rose amid uncertainty over US election, while the interest-rate cut outlook in the country also weighed on the sub-index.
Three of the ‘big four’ banks retreated between 0.3% and 0.4%, while ANZ Group rose 0.2%.
Australia shares hit record high on Fed rate cut boost
QBE Insurance retreated 0.9%, after Australia’s corporate regulator said it is taking the insurance firm to court, alleging that the company misled customers around the value of discounts offered on certain general insurance products.
Technology stocks fell 0.5%.
Wisetech Global , however, climbed 0.6%. Across the Tasman Sea, New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index retreated 0.3% to 12,780.41.
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