ASX closes higher; Karoon leads energy rally amid Iran supply fears
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The news: The Australian sharemarket finished higher as oil producers rallied amid Iranian supply disruption fears, although gains were partially offset by a fall in share prices in the banking sector.
The benchmark ASX 200 rose 0.14% to end at 8,820.6 with eight of the 11 sectors finishing in the green.
Energy was the best performing sector as oil producers Santos (+2.8%), Woodside (+2.6%), Karoon Energy (+7.4%) and Beach Energy (+5.2%) soared as crude oil prices remained elevated as OPEC-member Iran violently cracks down on widespread anti-government protests.
The financials sector was the worst performing as Commonwealth Bank (-1.3%), Westpac (-0.6%), NAB (-1.1%) and ANZ (-0.3%) fell.
Biggest movers:
- Neuren Pharmaceuticals (+6.1%) – Projected global sales of its Rett syndrome treatment Daybue are set to reach approximately USD700 million ($1 billion) in 2028.
Other news:
- Monadelphous Group (+1.6%) – Inked a long-term maintenance services contract with Rio Tinto (+0.8%) valued at around $300 million in aggregate over five years.
- Deep Yellow (+1%) – Announced that its incoming chief executive Greg Field will start next month, three months earlier than planned.
- Mayne Pharma (-2.3%) – Chair Frank Condella has stepped down and been replaced by board member Bruce Robinson. Fellow directors Patrick Blake and Anne Lockwood will also step down following the release of the company’s half year results as the company looks to shrink the size of the board.
- Humm Group (-0.7%) – The board of the buy now, pay later company has urged shareholders to vote against a spill motion tabled by activist shareholders Raper Capital and Collins Street Asset Management.
What’s ahead:
- The US Bureau of Labor Statistics will release producer price index and retail sales data for December on Thursday at 12:30am AEDT.
