Australian Market Slightly Higher

(RTTNews) - The Australian market is trading slightly higher on Thursday after opening in the green and briefly slipping into the red, recouping some of the losses in the previous two sessions, following the lack of cues from global markets overnight as they were closed for New Holiday. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is staying well below the 8,100 level, with gains iron ore miners and energy stocks.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is gaining 7.90 points or 0.10 percent to 8,167.00, after touching a high of 8,184.10 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 5.40 points or 0.06 percent to 8,425.90. Australian stocks ended significantly lower on Tuesday ahead of the holiday on Wednesday.

Among major miners, Fortescue Metals is gaining almost 1 percent, while BHP Group and Rio Tinto are edging up 0.3 to 0.4 percent each. Mineral Resources is edging down 0.3 percent.

Oil stocks are mostly higher. Woodside Energy is gaining almost 1 percent, while Beach energy and Santos is edging up 0.1 to 0.2 percent each. Origin Energy is edging down 0.1 percent.

In the tech space, Afterpay owner Block is losing more than 2 percent, Xero is declining almost 1 percent and Zip is down more than 1 percent, while WiseTech Global and Appen are gaining 1.5 percent each.

Among the big four banks, National Australia Bank is edging up 0.1 percent, while ANZ Banking is edging down 0.3 percent. Commonwealth Bank and Westpac are flat. Among gold miners, Evolution Mining, Northern Star Resources and Gold Road Resources are edging down 0.1 to 0.5 percent each, while Resolute Mining and Newmont are gaining almost 1 percent each.

In economic news, Australia's CoreLogic Home Value Index declined by 0.1% month-on-month in December 2024, the first negative movement in nearly two years. This shift followed a surprisingly strong period of growth between February 2023 and October 2024. On an annual basis, Australian home values rose by 4.9% in 2024.

Meanwhile, the Judo Bank Australia Manufacturing PMI fell to 47.8 in December 2024, down from 49.4 in November, according to final data. This marked the eleventh consecutive month of deteriorating manufacturing conditions, with the decline accelerating beyond the initial estimate of 48.2.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.620 on Thursday.

On Wall Street, the markets were closed for New Year holiday on Wednesday after closing lower on Friday.

The major European markets also were closed for New Year holiday on Wednesday after closing notably higher on Friday.