The Australian stock market is experiencing a modest uptick on Thursday, having started the day in the red but now building on the slight gains seen during the previous session. This is contrary to the predominantly negative signals coming from Wall Street overnight. The S&P/ASX 200 index is nudging upwards, surpassing the 8,200 threshold. Gains are noticeable in certain energy and technology sectors, though they are partially counterbalanced by declines in the mining sector.
The S&P/ASX 200 Index has climbed 14.10 points, a gain of 0.17 percent to reach 8,230.10, after fluctuating between a low of 8,183.80 and a high of 8,228.70 earlier in the trading session. Meanwhile, the broader All Ordinaries Index increased by 5.00 points or 0.06 percent to settle at 8,481.30. Previously, Australian stock indices closed slightly higher on Wednesday.
Within the primary mining sector, Rio Tinto is marginally down by 0.3 percent, Fortescue Metals is seeing a steep drop of nearly 4 percent, and BHP Group is slightly down by almost 1 percent. In contrast, Mineral Resources is showing a positive trend with a gain exceeding 1 percent.
The performance of oil stocks is mixed. Woodside Energy has decreased by 0.5 percent, while Origin Energy is up nearly 1 percent. Both Beach Energy and Santos are maintaining their positions without significant change.
In the technology sector, Block (which owns Afterpay) is losing over 1 percent, and WiseTech Global is down by nearly 4 percent. Xero and Zip are each slipping by approximately 1 percent, whereas Appen is rising by almost 1 percent.
Among the major banks, Commonwealth Bank and ANZ Banking are each seeing an increase of 0.4 percent. Conversely, Westpac and the National Australia Bank are dipping by 0.1 to 0.3 percent.
In terms of gold mining stocks, Evolution Mining, Gold Road Resources, and Northern Star Resources are all down by nearly 2 percent, with Resolute Mining dropping by 1.5 percent. Newmont is taking a more substantial hit, tumbling over 8 percent.
Economically, Australia's manufacturing sector showed continued contraction in October at an accelerated rate, as per Judo Bank's latest survey released on Thursday. The manufacturing PMI registered at 46.6, a slight dip from September's 46.7, further sinking below the critical 50 mark that distinguishes expansion from contraction. However, the survey revealed that the services PMI slightly rose to 50.6 in October from 50.5 in September.
In the currency exchange realm, the Australian dollar is trading at $0.664 on Thursday.
In the U.S., Wall Street faced headwinds early in the Wednesday session, experiencing more downward pressure as trading progressed. The major indices fell significantly, with both the Dow Jones and the S&P 500 extending their three-day losing streaks.
Despite recovering from their lowest points in late-session trading, the indices remained firmly in negative territory. The Dow dropped by 409.94 points or 1.0 percent to 42,514.95, the Nasdaq fell by 296.47 points or 1.6 percent to 18,276.65, and the S&P 500 declined by 53.78 points or 0.9 percent to 5,797.42.
The principal European markets also concluded the day with losses. The German DAX Index decreased by 0.2 percent, while the French CAC 40 Index dropped by 0.5 percent, and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index decreased by 0.6 percent.
Crude oil prices declined on Wednesday, pressured by reports of a larger-than-anticipated rise in U.S. crude oil inventories last week. Additionally, a strengthening dollar contributed to the decline. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for December dropped by $0.97 or 1.35 percent, rating at $70.77 per barrel.
