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Australian shares bounced higher on Thursday, defying falls in overseas commodities and equities markets, as investors took advantage of buying opportunities following months of heavy selling.
Global building materials maker James Hardie Industries was the biggest gainer, rising 10 per cent after it reported annual net profit had nearly tripled, pushing up the broader market.
Australian stocks have shed 6 per cent in two months amid concerns about slowing growth in China, the country’s biggest trading partner, tumbling commodities prices and the prospect that rate cuts won’t kickstart business spending as quickly as hoped.
Shares fell on Wednesday but clawed back some of their losses in the afternoon so “it looked like we finally found a bit of a floor’’, said IG Markets strategist Evan Lucas.
“We were probably due for a bit of consolidation, a bit of an uptick, which is good to see.’’
The S&P/ASX 200 index gained 36.9 points or 0.7 per cent to 5,647.2 by 0231 GMT, but still some 350 points off its 2015 peak of March 03, when traders expected it would soon exceed 6,000 points.
All major sectors gained, with iron ore giants BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto both up about 1.5 per cent despite declines in the commodity’s price overnight. Rival Fortescue Metals Group firmed 0.5 per cent.
Energy stocks likewise split from the oil price, which fell, with Woodside Petroleum up 1.3 per cent, Origin Energy up 2.4 per cent and Oil Search 1.7 per cent higher.
Banks rose as declines in recent sessions drew investors to their yield potential. Commonwealth Bank of Australia added 1 per cent while Westpac Banking Corp and Australia and New Zealand Banking Group each rose about 0.3 per cent.
Health stocks gained as a weaker Australian dollar boosted potential profits overseas. Hearing aid maker Cochlear jumped 6 per cent and ResMed , which makes products to treat sleep disorders, climbed 2 per cent.
NZ stocks flat
New Zealand stocks were flat after paring modest gains with a mixed showing for top stocks which saw the benchmark NZX-50 index fractionally lower at 5755.25.
Telecommunications stock Spark was down 1.8 per cent at nine-month lows, with softness also for Fletcher Building and Contact Energy.
Kiwi Property Group , the market’s biggest listed property investor, was down 2.5 per cent as it resumed trading after completing a NZ$151.9 million equity raising.
Some of the bigger moves were among small-cap stocks, with technology company Rakon up 8.7 per cent to a near 2-1/2 year high as it posted a small annual profit after several years of hefty losses.
Education provider Intueri Education was down 1.4 per cent after it reported trading at the lower end of guidance, while it was being investigated by authorities over its record keeping.
DNZ Property Fund was up 1.5 per cent after reporting a lift in its annual profit.
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