Australia: Shares inch higher as financials and gold stocks advance

AUSTRALIAN shares rose marginally on Thursday after a three-day slide, with financials and gold stocks leading the gains, even as better-than-expected US retail sales data dampened hopes of a pivot by the Federal Reserve.

The S&P/ASX 200 index climbed 0.1 per cent to 7,131.10 by 2356 GMT. The benchmark had closed 0.3 per cent lower in the previous session.

Data released overnight showed retail sales in the United States rose more than expected last month, clouding the inflation outlook and hopes that the Fed could ease its aggressive rate hikes.

In Australia, gold stocks gained 0.9 per cent as bullion prices hovered near three-month highs, while investors’ focus shifted from global tensions to the Fed’s rate-hike strategy. Top gold miner Newcrest Mining and Northern Star Resources climbed 1.3 per cent and 1.7 per cent, respectively. Financials were up 0.2 per cent, with three out of the “big four” banks gaining between 0.5 per cent and 1.5 per cent.

In corporate news, fund manager Pendal Group and buyer Perpetual decided to tweak the buyout structure of their US$1.58 billion deal by reducing the cash component and hiking the stock component.

Shares of ASX declined 3 per cent after the bourse operator said it would pause its clearing software replacement project. ASX said it would take a pretax charge of up to A$255 million in the first half of fiscal 2023 from the halt. Healthcare and tech stocks were among the top percentage gainers on the Australian bourse, climbing 0.7 per cent and 1 per cent respectively. Energy stocks fell 0.9 per cent following a dip in oil prices overnight. Heavyweights Santos and Woodside Energy dropped 0.8 per cent and 0.6 per cent, respectively. Miners slipped 0.8 per cent, with index heavyweights Rio Tinto, BHP Group and Fortescue Metals Group losing between 0.3 per cent and 1.7 per cent. In New Zealand, the benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index was up 0.5 per cent at 11,288.00. REUTERS