Australian Market Modestly Higher

The Australian stock market is trading modestly higher on Tuesday, snapping the three-session losing streak, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is moving above the 8,200 level, with gains in iron ore miners and energy stocks partially offset by weakness in gold miners, financial and technology stocks.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is gaining 31.20 points or 0.38 percent to 8,223.10, after touching a high of 8,253.80 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 32.00 points or 0.38 percent to 8,463.90. Australian stocks closed sharply lower on Monday.

Among the major miners, BHP Group is gaining almost 1 percent, Rio Tinto is edging up 0.5 percent, Fortescue Metals is adding more than 1 percent and Mineral Resources is advancing more than 2 percent.

Oil stocks are mostly higher. Origin Energy, Beach energy and Santos are edging up 0.4 to 0.5 percent each, while Woodside Energy is gaining almost 1 percent.

Among tech stocks, Afterpay owner Block and Zip are edging down 0.5 percent each, while Xero is edging up 0.3 percent. Appen and WiseTech Global are flat.

Gold miners are mostly lower. Gold Road Resources is losing almost 1 percent and Resolute Mining is down more than 1 percent, while Evolution Mining and Newmont are edging down 0.2 to 0.3 percent each. Northern Star resources is gaining almost 1 percent.

Among the big four banks, Westpac, ANZ Banking and National Australia Bank are edging down 0.3 percent each. Commonwealth Bank is flat.

In other news, shares in City Chic Collective are skyrocketing almost 20 percent after reporting strong holiday trading, despite the company recording a 3.6 percent decline in revenue in the second half of 2024.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.618 on Tuesday.

On Wall Street, stocks showed a notable move to the downside early in the session on Monday but regained ground over the course of the trading day. The S&P 500 climbed well off its worst levels of the day and into positive territory, although the Nasdaq remained in the red.

The S&P 500 rose 9.18 points or 0.2 percent to 5,836.22, while the Nasdaq fell 73.53 points or 0.4 percent to a one-month closing low of 19,088.10. The narrower Dow, on the other hand, spent most of the day in positive territory before closing up 358.67 points or 0.9 percent at 42,297.12.

Meanwhile, the major European markets moved to the downside on the day. While the German DAX Index slid by 0.4 percent, the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index and the French CAC 40 Index both fell by 0.3 percent.

Crude oil prices rose sharply to a five-month high on Monday amid potential supply risks after the U.S. imposed sweeping sanctions on Russia’s oil exports, while a stronger dollar also weighed. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for February closed up $2.25 or nearly 3 percent at $78.82 a barrel.

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