Australian Market Modestly Higher

(RTTNews) - The Australian stock market is trading modestly higher on Wednesday, recouping some of the losses in the previous two sessions, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 staying above the 7,500 levels, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight, as traders reacted positively to US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's remarks that disinflation has begun in 2023, even as they continue to digest the ninth consecutive interest rate hike by the Reserve Bank of Australia.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is gaining 20.00 points or 0.27 percent to 7,524.10, after touching a high of 7,534.10 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 20.80 points or 0.27 percent to 7,733.90. Australian stocks ended notably lower on Tuesday.

Among major miners, BHP Group and OZ Minerals are edging up 0.1 percent each, while Fortescue Metals and Mineral Resources are gaining more than 1 percent each. Rio Tinto is adding almost 1 percent.

Oil stocks are mixed. Woodside Energy and Santos are edging up 0.3 percent each, while Beach energy is losing almost 2 percent and Origin Energy is edging down 0.1 percent.

In the tech space, Appen is surging more than 9 percent, Zip is adding almost 1 percent and Xero is edging up 0.5 percent, while WiseTech Global is edging down 0.2 percent and Afterpay owner Block is losing almost 1 percent.

Among the big four banks, Westpac and National Australia Bank are gaining almost 1 percent each, while ANZ Banking is gaining more than 1 percent, Commonwealth Bank is flat.

Among gold miners, Newcrest Mining is gaining more than 1 percent, Gold Road Resources is edging up 0.1 percent and Northern Star Resources is edging up 0.4 percent, while Evolution Mining is down almost 1 percent. Resolute Mining is flat.

In other news, shares in Boral are surging more than 11 percent after the building materials company reported higher revenues in the six months to December. However, it decided not to pay a dividend.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.697 on Wednesday.

On Wall Street, stocks closed on a buoyant note on Tuesday thanks to strong buying at several counters despite staying weak till noon and suffering a setback after a subsequent recovery. Positive reaction to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's remarks at the Economic Club of Washington lifted the market up. The major averages all ended with impressive gains. The Dow ended higher by 265.67 points or 0.78 percent at 34,156.69. The S&P 500 closed up 52.92 points or 1.29 percent at 4,164.00, while the Nasdaq climbed 226.34 points or 1.9 percent to 12,113.79.

The major European markets closed on a mixed note with investors largely making cautious moves amid concerns about slowing global economy, and geopolitical tensions. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 gained 0.36 percent, while Germany's DAX and France's CAC 40 edged down 0.16 percent and 0.07 percent, respectively.

Crude oil futures advanced Tuesday on expectations of higher energy demand from China, and on supply concerns following a massive earthquake in Turkey on Monday. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for March ended higher by $3.02 or 4.1 percent at $77.14 a barrel, the highest close since January 31.