Australian shares edge higher as precious metals bounce
The Australian share market ended the day higher as gold rebounded from an eight-month low, but local stocks are still losing ground for the week.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index rose 15.5 points or 0.18 percent to 8,764.2 points on Friday, while the All Ordinaries index rose 12.6 points or 0.14 percent to 8,964.2 points.
The ASX200 fell 0.7 per cent for the week and is up just 0.6 per cent so far in 2026.
Moomoo ANZ trading manager Chris Strazzeri said major tech stocks such as Apple, Amazon and Microsoft were under pressure overnight due to concerns about their valuations.
But Mr. Strazzeri said commodities were on a brighter footing, with oil, gold and silver rebounding after several sessions of losses.
The top 10 gainers on the ASX200 on Friday were all gold miners; The precious metal changed hands at US$4,047 per ounce, breaking above Thursday’s eight-month low of US$4,000.
Thailand-based Kingsgate Consolidated led the way with gains of 4.5 percent, followed by Ramelius Resources and Perseus Mining with gains of 3.8 percent and 3.6 percent, respectively.
Gold is still down 12 percent since the beginning of June, mostly due to rising expectations that the Federal Reserve will raise U.S. interest rates later this year.
Elsewhere in the materials sector, BHP was up 0.8 per cent to $58.99, Rio Tinto was up 2.2 per cent to $173.64 and Fortescue was up 0.7 per cent to $19.07.
Overall, seven of the ASX’s 11 sectors closed higher and four closed lower.
Healthcare lost 1.3 percent, with CSL falling 2.4 percent to $114.87.
Tech fell 1.2 percent following weak leadership from Wall Street; NEXTDC fell by 4.5 percent and Megaport by 3.3 percent.
The energy sector gained 0.5 percent, with Brent crude oil changing hands for $73.80 per barrel, up nearly $1 from Thursday.
Woodside increased by 0.8 percent, Santos by 1.4 percent and Whitehaven Coal by 1.1 percent.
The four major banks in the financial sector had a relatively quiet day.
NAB was up 0.1 per cent to $37.51, Westpac was up 0.2 per cent to $35.14, ANZ was up 0.5 per cent to $35.04 and CBA was down 0.4 per cent to $162.02.
The Australian dollar was trading at 68.97 US cents, down from 68.91 US cents at 5pm on Thursday.
In cryptocurrency, Bitcoin fell below $60,000 for the first time since September 2024, and its value has fallen by almost a third since the beginning of the year.
BTC was changing hands on Australian exchanges for $59,300, or about $86,000.
AMP chief economist Shane Oliver said that just like gold, Bitcoin is affected by expectations that the Fed will raise interest rates, which increases the opportunity cost of holding both instruments.
“With the rise of artificial intelligence and related commerce, Bitcoin and crypto have also lost some of their luster and excitement in recent times because they are no longer seen as new,” Dr Oliver said.
ON ASX:
* The S&P/ASX200 index increased by 15.5 points or 0.18 percent to 8,764.2 points.
* More broadly, All Ordinaries rose 12.6 points, or 0.14 percent, to 8,964.2
One Australian dollar is traded as follows:
*68.93 US cents from 68.91 US cents at 5pm (AEST) on Thursday
* 111.39 JPY from 111.55 JPY
* From 60.73 euro cents to 60.58 euro cents
* 52.21 British pence, from 52.31 British pence
* 122.09 New Zealand cents from 122.29 New Zealand cents
Australia’s Associated Press is the beating heart of Australian news. AAP is Australia’s only independent national news channel and has been providing accurate, reliable and fast-paced news content to the media industry, government and corporate sector for 85 years. We inform Australia.
