ASX higher as tech stocks jump; oil continues to climb

The Australian sharemarket finished back in the green on Thursday, rebounding from its mid-week plunge, which wiped out more than $50 billion over worries about the fallout from the Iran war.

The gains, led by a rally in tech stocks, came after Wall Street recovered from two days of punishing swings as oil prices stopped spiking and strong US economic reports soothed war-shaken investors.

The S&P/ASX 200 closed 39.1 points, or 0.4 per cent, higher at 8940.30, with eight of its 11 industry sectors advancing. The calmer session came after the local bourse slumped 1.9 per cent on Wednesday, amid worries about the escalating conflict in the Middle East.

The Aussie dollar was trading at US70.40¢ late afternoon AEDT, down 0.5 per cent.

Shares in Star Entertainment initially slumped, then closed unchanged at 12¢ after the Federal Court’s Justice Michael Lee handed down his judgment on the landmark civil case the Australian Securities and Investments Commission brought against the casino operator’s former directors in 2022. The judge found former Star boss Matt Bekier breached his duties as a director of the embattled company, but he cleared the board’s other high-profile directors.

Tech stocks led the rebound on the ASX. Their rally tracked gains by their peers on Wall Street, where Big Tech stocks were the strongest forces lifting the US market overnight. WiseTech Global, Australia’s biggest tech stock, surged 7.1 per cent. Fellow software makers Xero and Technology One were up 4.3 per cent and 3.4 per cent, respectively, and IT data centre operator Next DC jumped 4.4 per cent.

Energy stocks also finished stronger, led by refiners Ampol (up 8.5 per cent) and Viva Energy (up 11.9 per cent), which soared after reports that China has told its largest oil refiners to suspend exports of diesel and gasoline as the escalating conflict in the Persian Gulf disrupts the arrival of crude from the region. Santos rose 1 per cent, but oil and gas giant Woodside lost 1 per cent as it traded ex-dividend.

Having moderated overnight, prices for Brent crude, the international oil standard, continued to climb during the session, trading up 3.8 per cent at $US84.52 a barrel late afternoon AEDT.

Financial stocks, which heavily influence the ASX’s direction as they account for more than a third of the market, softened a bit after a strong morning, but were still closing higher. Of the Big Four banks, CBA was up 0.4 per cent, National Australia Bank rose 1.4 per cent and Westpac added 0.6 per cent, while ANZ Bank slipped 0.5 per cent. Investment bank Macquarie climbed 3.8 per cent.

Property stocks were also in the green, although they also gave up some of their early gains. Warehouse and IT data centre owner Goodman Group led the sector higher with a 2.4 per cent rise.

On the downside, mining stocks were the day’s biggest losers, led by gold miners, which fell for a second day after bullion prices slumped 3.5 per cent on Tuesday. While gold climbed as much as 2.3 per cent overnight, recovering some of that slump, and was up 0.9 per cent to $US5180 an ounce late afternoon, investors continued to cash in on the stocks’ double-digit gains so far this year.

Northern Star Resources fell 1.9 per cent, Evolution Mining dropped 2.1 per cent and Newmont was down 1.3 per cent.

The big iron ore heavyweights were mixed. BHP fell 1 per cent as it also traded without the rights to its latest dividends for the first time, while Rio Tinto and Fortescue Mining gained 1.2 per cent and 2.1 per cent as iron ore prices pushed back up to $US100 per tonne.

Uncertainty about the war and its economic consequences has sent prices in financial markets careening up and down this week, most taking their cues from what the price of oil is doing.

South Korean equities bounced back from their biggest one-day slump on record as bargain hunters returned to a market battered by panic-selling. The benchmark Kospi surged as much as 12 per cent after sinking by about the same amount on Wednesday.

On Wall Street overnight, the S&P 500 rose 0.8 per cent and made back most of its losses since the war with Iran began. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 238 points, or 0.5 per cent, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 1.3 per cent.

US stocks had a boost from increased hopes for the US economy. One report said growth for US businesses in the real estate, finance and other services industries accelerated last month at the fastest pace since the summer of 2022. Encouragingly for inflation, it also said prices for such businesses are increasing at a slower rate, at least before the war with Iran began.

A second report suggested US employers outside the government picked up their hiring last month. That could be a hopeful signal for the more comprehensive report coming on Friday from the US government about the strength of the job market.

A mix of companies helped drive Wednesday’s rise on Wall Street.

Stocks enmeshed in the crypto industry climbed as bitcoin’s price rebounded back above $US73,000. Coinbase Global jumped 14.6 per cent, and Robinhood Markets rallied 8.1 per cent.

Retailers and travel companies strengthened with hopes that a solid economy and an easing for jumps in petrol prices will mean their customers may have more to spend.

In the bond market, Treasury yields were relatively steady after jumping early in the week with worries about worsening inflation. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.09 per cent from 4.06 per cent late on Tuesday.

with AP and Bloomberg

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