Australian bourse gets a boost after offshore rate cuts
The Australian share market was higher at midday, mirroring another strong session on Wall Street after the US central bank cut interest rates.
At noon on Friday, the S&P/ASX 200 index had added 83.8 points, or one per cent, to 8310.1 points. The broader All Ordinaries had risen 87 points, or one per cent, to 8568.6.
US equities extended their gains for the third day with the S&P500 reaching a fresh record high, while “Trump trades” in US Treasuries, commodities and foreign exchange reversed.
Overnight, the US Federal Reserve and the Bank of England both announced rate cuts of 25 basis points, which was in line with expectations.
Westpac economist Jameson Coombs said the Fed stressed the inflation risks remained balanced and further removal of policy restrictions could be warranted.
“But (Fed chairman) Jerome Powell retained flexibility to accelerate or slow the pace of easing depending on the data flow,” Mr Coombs said.
Australian energy stocks were little changed at lunchtime but the remaining ASX200 sectors moved higher, led by tech and mining.
BHP had lifted 1.8 per cent, Rio Tinto had gained 1.9 per cent and Fortescue was up 2.4 per cent.
ANZ picked up 0.7 per cent after announcing an eight per cent drop in cash profit to $6.7 billion, in another sign that margins at the big banks are under pressure amid competition for home loan customers.
Westpac had risen one per cent, NAB had grown a modest 0.1 per cent and CBA had picked up 0.8 per cent.
Shares in Block fell 6.7 per cent after the digital payments company reported third-quarter revenue that missed expectations, pointing to weaker consumer spending.
Property listing firm REA Group lost 0.1 per cent after reporting underlying earnings $243 million, a 23 per cent increase on the year prior, and revenue growth of $413 million, up 21 per cent on last year.
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