The Australian stock market experienced a slight pullback in mid-session trading on Thursday, paring back some of its earlier robust gains. This adjustment comes after a positive performance from Wall Street overnight, helping offset losses from the previous day. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 remains above the 8,300 mark, driven by strength in gold mining, technology, and financial sectors.
Specifically, the S&P/ASX 200 Index is up by 105.80 points, or 1.29%, at 8,319.10, after peaking at 8,345.60 earlier in the session. Meanwhile, the broader All Ordinaries Index has risen by 103.70 points, or 1.23%, reaching 8,560.50. This follows a modest decline in Australian stocks observed on Wednesday.
In the mining sector, BHP Group and Fortescue Metals show marginal gains, each rising by 0.2 to 0.5%, while Mineral Resources sees a decline of over 1%. Rio Tinto's stock remains flat.
Oil sectors are mostly under pressure, with Woodside Energy and Santos both slightly down by 0.2 to 0.5%. However, Origin Energy is experiencing a loss exceeding 1%, in contrast to Beach Energy, which has edged up by 0.2%.
Technology stocks are showing strong performances. Block, the owner of Afterpay, and Appen have both gained over 3%, Zip has surged nearly 7%, WiseTech Global is up by 1.5%, and Xero has advanced by over 1%.
Looking at the major banks, Commonwealth Bank has risen by 2.5%, National Australia Bank by nearly 3%, while both Westpac and ANZ Banking have added more than 2% each. Within the gold mining sector, Gold Road Resources is up nearly 3%, Evolution Mining has increased by more than 2%, and Newmont has added over 3%, whereas Resolute Mining has decreased by 2.5%. Northern Star Resources remains unchanged.
On the economic front, the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that the unemployment rate in December was a seasonally adjusted 4.0%, aligning with expectations, and slightly up from 3.9% in November. The participation rate, at 67.1%, exceeded predictions of 67.0%. The Australian economy added 56,300 jobs in December, surpassing forecasts of 14,500, following a revised increase of 28,200 jobs in November from the originally reported 35,600. Full-time employment fell by 23,700, while part-time employment surged by 80,000.
In currency markets, the Australian dollar is trading at $0.622 on Thursday.
The material has been provided by InstaForex Company -
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