On Friday, the Australian stock market was slightly higher, despite opening in negative territory, continuing the upward trend from the previous three sessions. This move follows mixed signals from Wall Street overnight. The S&P/ASX 200 index remains solidly above the 8,500 mark, displaying varied performance across different sectors, with energy stocks being the primary laggards.
The S&P/ASX 200 index has risen by 9.20 points, or 0.11%, to 8,529.90, after an initial dip to 8,498.70. The broader All Ordinaries Index has increased by 11.40 points, or 0.13%, to 8,796.50. Australian stocks had shown a significant rise on Thursday.
In the mining sector, both BHP Group and Rio Tinto have edged up by 0.3% to 0.5%, respectively, while Fortescue Metals has gained over 1%. Conversely, Mineral Resources has decreased by nearly 1%.
Energy stocks are mostly trending downward, with Origin Energy, Woodside Energy, and Santos all declining by almost 1%, and Beach Energy dropping more than 6%.
In the technology sector, Block (Afterpay's parent company) has declined by nearly 1%, while both Xero and Zip have fallen by 0.5%. In contrast, WiseTech Global has increased by over 1%, and Appen remains unchanged.
Among the major banks, Commonwealth Bank and National Australia Bank have both dipped by 0.3%, whereas Westpac and ANZ Banking have slightly increased by 0.1% each. The majority of gold mining stocks are on a downward trend: Evolution Mining is down almost 1%, Resolute Mining has dropped nearly 4%, and Northern Star Resources and Newmont have edged down by 0.1% to 0.3%. However, Gold Road Resources has risen slightly by 0.2%.
In other notable movements, Domino's Pizza shares have soared by more than 20% following the closure of 205 loss-making outlets, primarily in Japan. Nick Scali's shares have also surged by over 14% after reporting a half-year net profit that surpassed expectations.
On the currency front, the Australian dollar is trading at $0.628.
In the U.S., Wall Street encountered a lack of clear direction during Thursday's trading, with major indices fluctuating before closing mixed. The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 marked new session highs, ending the day on a positive note for the third consecutive session. The Nasdaq increased by 99.66 points, or 0.5%, to 19,791.99, and the S&P 500 went up by 22.09 points, or 0.4%, to 6,083.57. However, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 125.65 points, or 0.3%, to 44,747.63.
European markets also showed strong upward momentum on the same day. The FTSE 100 in the U.K. jumped by 1.2%, while the French CAC 40 and the German DAX both surged by 1.5%.
Crude oil prices experienced further decline on Thursday, as President Donald Trump reiterated his promise to boost U.S. oil production to reduce prices. March delivery of West Texas Intermediate crude fell by $0.42, or 0.6%, hitting a one-month low of $70.61 per barrel.
