ASX opens higher as reporting season ramps up
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More news: Australian shares opened marginally higher, supported by positive earnings results in early trade.
The benchmark ASX 200 was up by 30 points, or 0.34%, to 8,947 at 10:31am AEDT. Nine of the 11 sectorial indices opened in the green.
Tech (+2.90%) was the strongest performing sector at the open, led by gains in WiseTech Global (+3.36%), Xero (+2.26%), Life360 (+5.45%) and Macquarie Technology (+1.91%).
Healthcare (+2.05%) also gained, supported by a rise in Ansell (+2.40%) after posting a 0.7% lift in full-year sales.
A2 Milk (+11.15%) was the best performing stock across the ASX 200 after posting a 9.4% increase in half-year profit.
Aurizon (+7.24%) rallied after hiking its dividend and posting a half-year profit increase.
Financials (-0.45%) was the worst performing sector at the open, led by a fall in Bendigo and Adelaide Bank (-1.83%) after reporting a 3.3% profit drop in the first-half.
Australian shares to open higher after tech stocks drag Wall St
The news: Australian shares are set to open higher after a mixed session on Wall Street on Friday. The S&P 500 and Dow Jones closed marginally higher, supported by cooling inflation data. The Nasdaq, however, finished lower weighed down by technology stocks amid uncertainty over the extent to which profits could be disrupted by increased AI competition and the heavy spending required to support the technology.
The numbers: Updated at 7:50am AEDT:
- ASX futures: up 49 points to 8,939.
- Wall Street: Dow Jones up 0.10%, S&P 500 up 0.05% and the Nasdaq down 0.22%.
- Europe: CAC 40 down 0.35%, DAX up 0.25% and FTSE 100 up 0.42%.
- Spot gold: up 2.48% to USD5,043 per ounce.
- Oil prices: Brent up 0.34% to USD67.75/bbl and US WTI up 0.08% to USD62.89/bbl.
- AUD: down 0.26% at 70.72 US cents.
- Bitcoin: down 2.02% to USD68,367.
The context: US major indices had started the session higher after Labor Department data showed the US consumer price index rose 0.2% to 2.4% in January, below the 0.3% forecast by economists polled by Reuters. This prompted markets to raise the probability of a 25 basis point interest rate cut in June to 52.3%, according to CME Group's FedWatch.
However, gains faded later in the session, with the S&P 500 technology and communications sector ending lower as investors grew cautious ahead of Monday’s US Presidents Day holiday.
Megacap tech stocks weighed on the market, with Nvidia and Apple falling 2.21% and 2.27% respectively, as concerns around AI competition and profitability pressured sectors spanning from software and insurance to trucking companies.
Applied Materials provided the strongest boost, rising 8.08% after the chipmaking equipment firm forecast second-quarter revenue and profit above Wall Street expectations.
Locally, A2 Milk, Ansell, JB Hi-Fi, Treasury Wine Estates, BlueScope, Stockland, Aurizon, Abacus Storage King, Ooh Media and GPT are scheduled to report earnings this morning.
The source: Reuters
