Australian equities finished higher at the close on Wednesday, with the S&P/ASX 200 rising 0.24% as gains in the IT, Healthcare and Consumer Staples sectors supported the market.
At the Sydney close the S&P/ASX 200 stood 0.24% higher. Market leadership was concentrated among a handful of large movers: Wisetech Global Ltd (ASX:WTC) led the index, rising 14.08% or 4.05 points to finish at 32.81. Xero Ltd (ASX:XRO) climbed 8.88% or 5.77 points to close at 70.77, and Telix Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX:TLX) advanced 7.42% or 1.08 points to 15.64.
Conversely, several names pressured the market on the downside. Beach Energy Ltd (ASX:BPT) fell 8.24% or 0.08 points to end the session at 0.86, touching five-year lows in the process. Capricorn Metals Ltd (ASX:CMM) declined 5.34% or 0.71 points to close at 12.59, while Insurance Australia Group Ltd (ASX:IAG) slipped 4.59% or 0.38 points to finish at 7.90.
Market breadth in Sydney favored losers: 667 stocks fell versus 490 that advanced, and 425 were unchanged at the close.
Volatility as measured by the S&P/ASX 200 VIX eased, moving down 2.68% to 12.11, indicating lower implied option volatility for the index.
Commodities were softer on the session. Gold futures for August delivery fell 1.11% or 46.06 to $4,103.34 a troy ounce. In energy markets, crude oil for August delivery lost 0.74% or 0.54 to trade at $72.67 a barrel, while the September Brent contract dropped 0.72% or 0.55 to $76.25 a barrel.
Currency moves were modest. The Australian dollar was largely unchanged against the US dollar, with AUD/USD up 0.09% to 0.69, while AUD/JPY edged down 0.02% to 111.74. The US Dollar Index Futures was 0.09% higher at 101.26.
Market snapshot
- S&P/ASX 200 - closed up 0.24%.
- Top gainers: WTC +14.08%, XRO +8.88%, TLX +7.42%.
- Top losers: BPT -8.24%, CMM -5.34%, IAG -4.59%.
- Advancers vs decliners: 490 vs 667, with 425 unchanged.
The session presented a mix of strong individual rallies and broad weakness across more names than advanced, while volatility and major commodity prices moved lower. These dynamics left the benchmark modestly higher at the close.