Australian shares have already handed back most of an early lead after optimism about the AI boom didn’t translate into significant upside for the local exchange.
The S&P/ASX200 rose 21.3 points, or 0.24 per cent, to 8,753, as the broader All Ordinaries gained 26.5 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 8,945.6.
The top-200 spiked almost 49 points at the open after a tech-led rally on Wall Street overnight, but an unconvincing bounce from under-pressure mining stocks and a lack of follow-through for bank stocks left it on track for yet another flat session.
“The simple arithmetic at the moment is that the markets are being driven by one big tailwind and two big headwinds,” Capital.com senior market analyst Kyle Rodda said.
Supporting market sentiment was strong corporate fundamentals, with US tech companies printing extraordinary profits, he said.
“Weighing against it is the uncertainty stemming from geopolitical risks and higher oil prices, and inflation and interest rate uncertainty – with the former partially contributing to the latter,” Mr Rodda said.
“A sustained recovery in global equities may depend on persistent strength in corporates and a further easing of geopolitical risk and interest rate uncertainty.”
Local energy stocks weighed heavily on Tuesday, as hopes of US-Iran talks sent Brent crude down to $US101.10 a barrel, while diesel prices in the US and Europe have hit record highs.
Woodside and Santos each fell more than 1.5 per cent, while Viva lost 0.5 per cent but Ampol swung the same magnitude in the other direction.
Uranium stocks were bolstered by renewed confidence in the AI trade due to optimism surrounding the release of Meta’s new chatbot.
The raw materials segment rebounded 0.6 per cent as BHP and Rio Tinto lifted, as copper prices advanced for a fourth straight session on renewed demand from China.
Gold stocks were broadly higher as the precious metal hovered near $US4,346 ($A6,121) an ounce and the local sub-index improved by 0.5 per cent.
The heavyweight financials sector gave up an early lead to trade slightly below flat by lunchtime, with the big four going nowhere fast while major insurers dipped.
IT stocks outperformed the other sectors with a 3.7 per cent surge after Wall Street’s Nasdaq hit a fresh record overnight, while local consumer cyclicals rallied 1.2 per cent
In company news, QBE has promoted its Pacific business boss Johnathan Groves to Asia Pacific chief executive, reporting to group chief executive Andrew Horton from November.
Former REA Group chief financial officer Owen Wilson will join the board at Dan Murphy’s owner Endeavour as an independent non-executive director.
The Australian dollar is buying 71.05 US cents, down from 71.28 US cents on Monday at 5pm.
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