Australian Market Notably Higher

(RTTNews) - Extending the gains in the previous two sessions, the Australian stock market is modestly higher on Friday, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is staying above the 7,800 level, with gains across most sectors led by mining and energy stocks amid a spike in commodity prices.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is gaining 16.80 points or 0.22 percent to 7,838.60, after touching a high of 7,843.80 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 19.40 points or 0.24 percent to 8,093.70. Australian markets ended significantly higher on Thursday.

Among major miners, BHP Group and Rio Tinto are gaining more than 1 percent each, while Fortescue Metals and Mineral Resources are adding almost 2 percent each. Oil stocks are mostly higher. Santos is edging up 0.3 percent, while Origin Energy and Woodside Energy are gaining almost 1 percent each. Beach energy is losing almost 1 percent.

Among tech stocks, Afterpay owner Block and Appen are gaining almost 2 percent each, while Zip is edging up 0.4 percent. Xero is edging down 0.2 percent. WiseTech Global is flat.

Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank and National Australia Bank are edging down 0.1 to 0.4 percent each, while ANZ Banking and Westpac are losing almost 1 percent each. Gold miners are mostly higher. Evolution Mining and Gold Road Resources are gaining almost 2 percent each, while Northern Star Resources is edging up 0.3 percent, Resolute Mining is surging more than 6 percent and Newmont is advancing almost 4 percent.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.666 on Friday.

On Wall Street, stocks turned in a relatively lackluster performance during trading on Thursday following the rally seen over the course of Wednesday's session. The major averages spent the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line before eventually closing narrowly mixed.

While the Dow rose 78.84 points or 0.2 percent to 38,886.17, the Nasdaq slipped 14.78 points or 0.1 percent to 17,173.12 and the S&P 500 edged down 1.07 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 5,352.96.

Meanwhile, the major European markets moved to the upside after the European Central Bank lowered interest rates. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index climbed by 0.5 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index both rose by 0.4 percent.

Crude oil prices moved higher for a second straight session on Thursday, after five successive days of losses. The decision of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, collectively known as OPEC+, to phase out voluntary production cuts from October weighed on prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for July ended up by $1.48 or nearly 2% at $75.55 a barrel.