Australian shares edged to a fresh seven-year closing high on Wednesday as rises in oil and metals prices prompted investors to overlook another mixed bag of company earnings and buy resources stocks.
The S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.3 per cent or 17.9 points to 5,944.9 at the close of trade, its third straight day of gains.
New Zealand’s benchmark NZX 50 index surged to a record high amid an upbeat reporting season, gaining 2.1 per cent or 119.3 points, to finish the session at 5,842.3.
“The huge rally over the last six weeks put us at a level where it is difficult for investors to get enthusiastic about the market despite good leads from overseas and some good reports from Australian companies,’’ said Michael McCarthy, chief market strategist at CMC Markets.
Technology and basic materials led the gains, with mining giant BHP Billiton up 1.4 per cent and Rio Tinto up 0.8 per cent. Resources stocks were underpinned by firmer commodity prices, including a surge in copper.
Shares in shopping centre giant Westfield Group's, pipeline APA, mining services Macmahon Holdings rose after reporting earnings.
In contrast, energy and mining contractor WorleyParsons dived 13.3 per cent to a three-week low of A$9.72 after a 7 per cent fall in first half net profit to A$104.3 million.
Some heavyweight stocks traded ex-dividend and undermined the benchmark index. Energy firm Woodside shed 4.4 per cent, while telecom company Telstra fell 2.1 per cent.
More Like This
Published on February 25, 2015
Comments
Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.
We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.