Australian Market Slightly Higher

The Australian stock market is slightly higher in choppy trading on Thursday, extending the gains of the previous four sessions, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 just below the 7,100 mark, following the positive cues overnight from Wall Street. Traders are also concerned as the country’s second-most populous state braces for a 7-day lockdown from midnight as a cluster of COVID-19 cases grew in Victoria.

Victoria has recorded 12 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours as the state braced for a likely lockdown to contain Melbourne’s growing COVID-19 outbreak. There are 34 active cases.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is gaining 3.00 points or 0.04 percent to 7,095.50, after touching a high of 7,110.00 and a low of 7,082.40 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 3.10 points or 0.04 percent to 7,334.70. Australian markets ended modestly lower on Wednesday.

Among major miners, BHP Group and Rio Tinto are gaining almost 1 percent each, while OZ Minerals is up almost 3 percent. Fortescue Metals and Mineral Resources are adding almost 2 percent each.

BHP Group is reportedly in discussions with fertilizer maker Nutrien Ltd related to a partnership in the miner’s potash project in Canada.

Oil stocks are higher after crude oil prices edged up overnight. Oil Search, Woodside Petroleum, Beach Energy and Santos are edging up 0.3 percent each, while Origin Energy is flat.

Among Tech stocks, Appen is losing more than 2 percent, while Afterpay and Xero are down more than 1 percent. WiseTech Global is edging down 0.2 percent.

Among the big four banks, Westpac is flat, while National Australia Bank, Commonwealth Bank and ANZ Banking are edging up 0.2 percent each.

Among gold miners, Evolution Mining and Northern Star Resources are losing almost 1 percent each, while Newcrest Mining is down more than 1 percent and Gold Road Resources is edging down 0.5 percent. Resolute Mining is flat.

In other news, ASIC has launched civil penalty proceedings in the Federal Court against five companies that are or were, part of wealth management company AMP Ltd. Group for allegedly charging life insurance premiums and advice fees to more than 2,000 customers between May 2015 and August 2019, despite being notified of their death. AMP is gaining almost 5 percent.

New Zealand-based medtech firm Fisher & Paykel Healthcare reported a 94 percent surge in profits on a constant currency basis to NZ$524 million or A$238 million. Overall revenues were also up 61 percent on a constant currency basis to NZ$1.97 billion. However, the stock is plunging almost 10 percent.

Fruit and vegetable grower Costa Group Holdings reported slightly better-than-expected performance in the first half, based on strengths in its international growing operations in China and Morocco. The company said overall first-half performance is expected to be marginally above the prior year. However, the stock is plummeting more than 23 percent on a mixed domestic performance.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.773 on Thursday.

On Wall Street, stocks moved mostly higher over the course of the trading day on Wednesday, partly offsetting the modest weakness seen in the previous session. The major averages all closed in positive territory, although the tech-heavy Nasdaq outperformed its counterparts.

After ending Tuesday’s trading marginally lower, the Nasdaq climbed 80.82 points or 0.6 percent to 13,738.00. The S&P 500 also edged up 7.86 points or 0.2 percent to 4,195.99, while the narrower Dow inched up 10.59 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 34,323.05.

Meanwhile, the major European markets turned in a lackluster performance on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index closed marginally higher, the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index closed just below the unchanged line and the German DAX Index edged down by 0.1 percent.

Crude oil futures settled higher on Wednesday, rising for a fourth straight session as data showed a drop in U.S. crude inventories last week. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for July ended up $0.14 or 0.2 percent at $66.21 a barrel.

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