The Australian stock market exhibited positive momentum on Tuesday’s closing, with the S&P/ASX 200 rising by 0.84%, reaching a new 6-month high. This uptrend was primarily driven by notable gains in the Utilities, IT, and Consumer Discretionary sectors.
At the close in Sydney, the S&P/ASX 200 experienced a robust 0.84% gain, reflecting the optimistic sentiment prevalent in the market.
Among the session’s top performers on the S&P/ASX 200, G8 Education Ltd (ASX:GEM) demonstrated a remarkable rise of 12.56%, equivalent to 0.13 points, closing at 1.12. PointsBet Holdings Ltd (ASX:PBH) contributed to the positive trend, adding 7.69% or 0.07 points, concluding at 0.91. Elders Ltd (ASX:ELD) showcased a gain of 4.22%, increasing by 0.31 points, and concluding at 7.66 in the late trade.
Conversely, the session’s worst performers included Tabcorp Holdings Ltd (ASX:TAH), which experienced a decline of 5.25% or 0.05 points, closing at 0.86. Mesoblast Ltd (ASX:MSB) fell 4.84%, or 0.02 points, ending at 0.29. Zip Co Ltd (ASX:ZIP) showed a decrease of 4.07%, shedding 0.03 points and concluding at 0.59.
The Sydney Stock Exchange observed a positive market breadth, with rising stocks outnumbering declining ones by 697 to 544. Additionally, 372 stocks ended the session unchanged.
The S&P/ASX 200 VIX, measuring the implied volatility of S&P/ASX 200 options, was down by 1.65%, reaching 10.01.
In commodities trading, Gold Futures for February delivery experienced a minor decrease of 0.13%, shedding 2.75 points and reaching $2,037.75 per troy ounce. Crude oil for delivery in February rose by 0.10%, or 0.07, reaching $72.89 per barrel. The February Brent oil contract rose by 0.27%, or 0.21, reaching $78.16 per barrel.
The AUD/USD currency pair remained unchanged at 0.67, while AUD/JPY rose by 0.72% to 96.44.
The US Dollar Index Futures showed a minor decline of 0.04%, reaching 102.14, reflecting a relatively stable performance in the currency markets.