ASX gains as it tracks Wall Street’s tech rally
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The news: The Australian sharemarket has ended higher, tracking Wall Street gains that saw the S&P 500 and Nasdaq indices hit new record closing highs.
The numbers: The benchmark ASX 200 rose 0.68% to finish at 7,821.8, with all 11 sectors finishing in green.
The best-performing sector was IT, up 1.41%, following gains on the tech-heavy Nasdaq that included Nvidia overtaking Apple as the world’s second most-valuable company.
Lovisa gained 2.98% after Macquarie analysts upgraded the company from ‘neutral’ to ‘outperform’, thanks to improving EBIT margins as a result of lower long-term incentive payments for incoming CEO John Cheston.
Magellan ended 1.56% higher after its funds under management bounced back in May despite net outflows.
The worst-performing sector was energy, up 0.01%, with Santos (0.27%) and Yancoal (0.8%) recording gains.
IDP Education was the worst performer across the ASX 200, down 7.08% after it announced it would cut 6% of its global workforce as stricter visa laws have contracted the student market in Australia, Canada, and the UK.
Mineral Resources fell 0.79% after it announced that it had sold a 49% interest in a haul road to Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners for $1.3 billion.
Telix Pharmaceuticals finished 0.06% lower after announcing it had launched an initial public offering on the Nasdaq.
Across the wider market, SkyCity plunged 14.02% after it lowered its earnings expectations for FY24 and FY25 and suspended dividends. It also announced it would be allowed to appeal a long-running dispute with the South Australian treasurer on gaming revenue.
Meanwhile, Rex Airlines dropped 0.72% after its executive chair Lim Kim Hai stepped down from the role after 21 years.
The Australian dollar is higher, buying 66.59 US cents.
The context: Tonight will see the European Central Bank make its latest monetary policy decision, with investors expecting a rate cut.
The latest US unemployment rate figures will be released on Friday.
