ASX hits another record high as AMP and Star Entertainment soar
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The news: The Australian sharemarket started the trading day strongly before paring gains after labour force data showed a resilient jobs market, but the ASX 200 still ended at a record high.
The numbers: The benchmark index gained 0.86% to close at 8,355.9, with nine out of 11 sectors finishing in green. It also hit an intraday high of 8,384.5.
The top performers across the ASX 200 today included:
- AMP (17.34%) — The wealth manager lifted its assets under management (AUM) during the September quarter and completed the return of $1.1 billion of capital through buybacks.
- The Star (15.69%) — The NSW casino regulator ruled that it could keep its suspended gaming licence and handed it a $15 million fine.
- Uranium miners Paladin Energy (10.73%), Deep Yellow (8.01%), and Boss Energy (6.43%) — Commodities investor Sprott lifted its stake in Paladin and Deep Yellow while Amazon closed a deal to support nuclear energy projects.
Quarterly earnings continued and included:
- Perpetual (-0.76%) — The first quarter saw a 3% rise in AUM due to positive market movements but shareholders were unimpressed at the company’s AGM as its chair apologised for its poor share price and rejected its remuneration report.
- BHP (-1.56%) — September quarter iron ore output was up 2% to 64.6 million tonnes. During afternoon trade China’s housing minister announced fresh property support measures but this failed to bolster iron ore futures and iron ore miners on the ASX tumbled.
- Santos (ended flat) — Q1 results were in-line with expectations as it reported lower sales and production volumes but also announced a 20% increase to capital expenditure.
- Treasury wines (0.17%) — The winemaker reported double-digit net sales revenue growth.
In other news:
- BOQ (4.34%) — Shares continued to rally from Wednesday after its better-than-expected full-year result and some analysts raised their price targets on the stock.
- Neuren Pharmaceuticals (3.07%) — Its Rett syndrome treatment received market authorisation in Canada, boosting the potential for royalties and sales.
- Beach Energy (-0.21%) — Beach and Santos have commissioned a carbon capture storage project in South Australia.
- NEXTDC (-0.52%) — The data centre operator has agreed to buy a new Sydney-based site for $353 million.
The Australian dollar is buying 66.89 US cents.
What’s ahead: Upcoming events tonight include:
- The European Central Banks’s next monetary policy decision, which is expected to be a 25 basis point cut.
- The latest data on US retail sales data and unemployment claims will be released.
