ASX opens flat dragged lower by consumer staples
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More news: Australian shares opened relatively flat, buoyed by gains across the mining, industrials and telecommunications sectors.
The benchmark ASX 200 was down by 5.7 points, or 0.06%, to 9,169 at 10:38am AEDT. Eight of the 11 sectoral indices opened in the red.
Mining (+0.26%) was the best performing sector, with gains supported by Northern Star (+1.76%), Evolution Mining (+1.28%), Lynas Rare Earths (+6.96%) and Newmont Corporation (+1.97%).
Block (+27.59%) skyrocketed at the open after announcing that it will slash its workforce to just under 6,000 due to improvements in AI tools.
Pexa (+8.03%) rose despite delivering an $18.7 million total comprehensive loss in the first-half.
Elsewhere, consumer staples (-2.46%) was the worst performing sector, led by a slump in Coles (-7.57%) after reporting a weaker-than-expected trading update in the second-half.
Harvey Norman (-6.79%) also fell despite posting a 15.2% increase in interim net profit, while TPG Telecom (-4.44%) slumped despite swinging to $461 million full-year profit.
Australian shares to open flat after Nvidia slump weighs on tech
The news: Australian shares are set to open modestly flat as Wall Street fell sharply on Thursday, after Nvidia’s quarterly results failed to reassure investors amid ongoing jitters over artificial intelligence, weighing on the tech sector.
The numbers: Updated at 7:35am AEDT:
- ASX futures: up 9 points to 9,149.
- Wall Street: Dow Jones up 0.10%, S&P 500 down 0.59% and the Nasdaq down 1.22%.
- Europe: CAC 40 up 0.72%, DAX up 0.45% and FTSE 100 up 0.37%.
- Spot gold: up 0.63% to USD5,197 per ounce.
- Oil prices: Brent down 0.05% to USD70.81/bbl and US WTI down 0.13% to USD65.30/bbl.
- AUD: up 0.17% at 71.11 US cents.
- Bitcoin: up 0.79% to USD67,446.
The context: All three major US indices traded lower overnight, with the Nasdaq shedding 1.34%, as Nvidia shares dropped 5.53% in afternoon trade, weighing on the broader semiconductor and tech sector.
Nvidia’s fourth-quarter results, released after Wednesday’s close, exceeded analysts’ expectations and included guidance above market forecasts. However, investors focused on slowing revenue growth as the company faces tougher year-on-year comparisons.
The mixed market reaction reflects ongoing uncertainties around artificial intelligence. After surging over the past few years, Nvidia shares cooled amid questions over the scale and sustainability of AI spending. Traders have also rotated out of companies seen to be at risk of disruption from the technology.
Elsewhere, oil prices fell after briefly topping USD66 on reports that the US and Iran will continue nuclear talks at a technical level next week following “significant progress” in Switzerland.
Locally, TPG Telecom, Pexa Group, Coles and Star Entertainment are among companies scheduled to report earnings today.
