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Market Wrap

ASX finishes flat; CBA drops while BHP rallies

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The news: The Australian sharemarket closed marginally lower as big banks and the communications sector experienced losses which offset a mining rally.

Coming off a record close on Wednesday, the ASX 200 fell 0.02% to end at 8595.8, with eight of the 11 sectors finishing in the red.

The telecommunications services sector (-1.5%) and the financials sector (-1.3%) were the worst performers while the materials sector (+3%) was the biggest gainer.

Biggest movers:

  • Boss Energy (-5.9%) – The biggest loser on the ASX 200 despite there being no company-specific news.
  • Vault Minerals (-3.6%) – The gold miner is set to miss full-year sales guidance after softer-than-expected production at its Mount Monger mine in Western Australia.
  • Big banks – Commonwealth Bank (-2.2%), NAB (-1.1%), Westpac (-0.7%) and Macquarie Group (-0.8%) all finished lower while ANZ (+0.5%) finished higher.
  • Telecommunications services sector (%) – Telstra (-1.2%), REA Group (-3.4%), CAR Group (-1.6%), TPG Telecom (-1.5%) and Seek (-0.9%) finished lower.
  • Iron miners – Iron ore and steel prices surged after China's leadership pledged to curb "disorderly" low-price competition and accelerate efforts to boost domestic demand. BHP (+5.6%), Rio Tinto (+1.8%) and Fortescue (+1.8%) finished higher.
  • Whitehaven Coal (+8.2%) – Was the biggest gainer on the ASX 200 as UBS analysts said they saw "limited downside" to metallurgical coal at current prices.
  • Lithium miners – Pilbara Minerals (+11.3%), Mineral Resources (+7.8%), Liontown Resources (+5%) and BHP (+5.6%) were among the biggest gainers on the ASX 200 despite no news.
  • Pro Medicus (+7.8%) – Announced it has signed two US contracts worth a cumulative $190 million.

Other news:

  • Regal Partners (+9.3%) – Announced an estimated first-half performance fee revenue for 2025 that is about 40.7% lower than the same period last year.
  • Gold Hydrogen (+8.7%) – Toyota Motor Corporation Hydrogen Factory, Mitsubishi Gas Chemical and ENEOS Explora signed binding agreements to make strategic investments worth $14.5 million in the prospective natural hydrogen and helium extractor.
  • GemLife Communities Group (+4.1%) – The luxury retirement community operator debuted on the ASX after a $750 million initial public offering, the largest in Australia this year.
  • NWH Holdings (+3.7%) – Its NRW Civil and Mining arm secured a $167 million contract from Rio Tinto to deliver construction services at the Brockman Syncline One mine development.
  • Domino’s (+2.2%) – Early gains following an upgrade from Morningstar analysts reversed in the afternoon. Executive chair Jack Cowin defended the business on an investor call as he faced a barrage of questions on why CEO Mark van Dyck suddenly departed.
  • AMP (+1.1%) – Flagged it will defend against a class action lawsuit against its superannuation business NM Super in the Federal Court in Victoria and separate proceedings in the NSW Supreme Court filed by property investor Dexus (%).
  • G8 Education (-7.4%) – Macquarie analysts downgraded their rating and target price for shares in the early childhood and care provider as it faces a challenging outlook. Meanwhile, a former employee was charged with sexual assault offences involving children.

What’s ahead:

  • The US Bureau of Labor Statistics will release data on the unemployment rate, average hourly earnings and non-farm employment change for June this evening at 10:30pm AEST.
  • The US market will not be open on 4 July due to the Independence Day public holiday.
  • The Australian Bureau of Statistics will release estimates on household spending for May on Friday at 11:30am AEST.

By Brandon How