Australia shares climb as miners, energy stocks rally; Woodside jumps on upbeat results

Australian shares rose on Wednesday led by miners and energy stocks, as investors stayed cautious ahead of the looming U.S. tariff deadline, while Woodside Energy climbed over 2% after posting stronger-than-expected second-quarter results.

The S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.4% to 8,708.1 by 0031 GMT. The benchmark ended flat at 8,677.20 points on Tuesday.

With an August 1 deadline for sweeping U.S. import tariffs looming, investors await signs of relief, after Washington announced a trade deal with Japan.

Australia faces a 10% baseline tariff on most exports to the U.S.

Meanwhile, minutes from the Reserve Bank of Australia’s July meeting on Tuesday showed a cautious stance in July, with board members deciding to keep the interest rate unchanged against market expectations, opting to wait for more evidence of a sustained slowdown in inflation.

Local miners led the charge on the benchmark by rising as much as 2.2%, tracking a rise in iron ore prices.

Shares of miners Fortescue were up 2.4%, while BHP and Rio Tinto gained 1.8% and 2.7% respectively.

Energy stocks climbed 0.8% due to rising oil prices.

Woodside Energy’s shares outpaced the broader sub-index, and were up 2.4%.

The country’s top gas producer reported a stronger-than-expected 8% rise in second-quarter revenue.

Gold stocks also rose 2.2%, tracking a surge in bullion prices.

Shares of gold miners Northern Star Resources and St Barbara were up 2.6% and 2.4% respectively.

Countering gains, the financials sub-index shed 0.2% with shares of National Australia Bank and Commonwealth Bank of Australia down 0.7% each.

Information technology sub-index also dropped 0.3%, with Australian-listed shares of Xero down 0.8%. Shares of WiseTech Global fell 0.6%.

New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index fell 0.3% to 12,790.74.