Australia’s ASX 200 added 16 points, or 0.2%, to finish at 8,908 on Friday, extending earlier gains as consumer discretionary, industrials, and commercial services stocks advanced. The benchmark, however, retreated from a more than seven-week high as initial strength faded following a sharp decline in U.S. stock futures. Sentiment was hit after Alphabet suffered a historic share-price slump, reigniting worries about heavy AI-related spending.
Caution also prevailed ahead of Saturday’s release of official PMI data from China, Australia’s largest trading partner. At the same time, traders assessed the likelihood of another rate hike by the Reserve Bank of Australia next week—following four increases already this year—amid concerns that inflation may remain elevated for longer than anticipated.
On the corporate front, Wesfarmers climbed 3.2%, Brambles advanced 2.3%, and Aristocrat Leisure gained 2.0%, leading the market higher. Woolworths rose 1.9% on the back of stronger food sales. In contrast, Coles slumped 7.6% after reporting weak supermarket sales and signaling that first-half EBIT is likely to be flat.
For the week, the ASX 200 rose 1.3%, erasing earlier modest losses. The index also gained 1.4% in October, marking a recovery from September’s 3.2% decline.
