ASX closes higher; BlueScope leads gains amid acquisition interest
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The news: The Australian sharemarket finished higher as BlueScope Steel led gains after declaring a special dividend on Wednesday after rejecting a takeover bid from SGH and Steel Dynamics.
The benchmark ASX 200 rose 0.47% to end at 8,861.7 with six of the 11 sectors finishing in the green.
The materials sector was the best performer as BlueScope (+4.2%) led gains on the ASX 200. Its $1 special dividend is being interpreted by market watchers as an effort to push the value of potential takeover offers higher.
BHP (+2.6%) also lifted after signing two memorandums of understanding with Rio Tinto (+0.4%) to develop iron ore deposits in the Pilbara. Iron ore shipments from the Port of Port Hedland, the only port that BHP exports from, also hit a monthly record for December 2025.
Biggest movers:
- Vitrafy Life Sciences (+26%) – Rallied after entering into a 12-month exclusive agreement with French animal reproduction firm IMV Technologies.
- 4DMedical (+5.6%) – Announced a $150 million capital raise, with participation from multiple new institutional investors to help fuel its US expansion.
- Catalyst Metals (+2.4%) – Delivered record quarterly gold production in the three months to December.
- Treasury Wine Estates (-4.9%) – Citi analysts downgraded the stock from ‘neutral’ to ‘sell’ following reports that its US distributor RNDC is looking to sell operations, including in several states it wholesales for Treasury Wines. The analysts reiterated their target price of $4.80.
Other news:
- Ryman Healthcare (+1.2%) – Reported a 5% drop in sales of retirement living occupation right agreements for the quarter ending 31 December 2025, with total sales of 375 compared with 394 a year earlier.
- Ora Banda Mining (-0.6%) – Reported high-grade drilling results at its Waihi Project and expanded the high-grade mineralisation area on the Golden Pole lode.
- Generation Development Group (-2%) – Agreed a pay hike for chief executive Grant Hackett following a benchmarking review with ASX-listed peers and the company's expanded operating scope.
What’s ahead:
- The US Department of Labor will release weekly unemployment claims data on Friday at 12:30am AEDT.
- The Federal Reserve Bank of New York will release manufacturing index data for January on Friday at 12:30am AEDT.
- The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia will release manufacturing index data for January on Friday at 12:30am AEDT.
