The Australian sharemarket gained on Wednesday, snapping a two-day losing streak as investor sentiment was lifted by fresh stimulus measures from China and the prospect of renewed trade talks with the United States.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index rose 26.9 points or 0.3% to 8,178.3, with eight out of 11 sectors finishing in positive territory.
Markets welcomed confirmation that U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will meet senior Chinese officials in Switzerland on Thursday, a move seen as a potential thaw in the ongoing trade tensions between the world’s two largest economies.
Adding to the positive mood, the People’s Bank of China announced a 10 basis point cut to its key lending rate, lowering it to 1.4%, and signalled further support for listed companies.
Commodity markets responded positively, with Brent crude edging closer to US$63 a barrel after hitting four-year lows earlier in the week.
The rebound helped lift energy stocks, with Woodside up 1.7%, Santos gaining 2%, Beach Energy adding 1.7%, and Viva Energy lifting 2.8%.
Iron ore prices also found support, boosting mining heavyweights. BHP rose 0.9%, Rio Tinto gained 0.6%, and Fortescue Metals advanced 0.6%.
However, healthcare stocks weighed on the broader index, with CSL falling 3% and Telix Pharmaceuticals down 3.4%.
Among individual companies, National Australia Bank jumped 1.6% after reporting first-half cash earnings of A$3.6 billion, exceeding expectations despite a slight decline in the net interest margin.
Nuix plunged 16.0% after withdrawing its full-year guidance for revenue growth and underlying cash flow, citing delayed customer commitments to IT contracts.
JB Hi-Fi was down 0.2% after the company released a third-quarter sales update for FY25, which fell short of market expectations.
Temple & Webster rallied 8% after forecasting full-year earnings margins at the top end of its guidance.
In contrast, Boss Energy surged 12.4% following its presentation at the Macquarie Australia Conference.
On the bond markets, yields on 10-year and 2-year government bonds were down 0.7% and 1.1% to 4.285% and 3.325%, respectively.
