The Australian sharemarket closed higher on Tuesday, buoyed by a 0.5% gain in the benchmark S&P/ASX index to 7824.2 points, primarily driven by a 1.5% surge in the materials sector, amidst speculation of increased iron ore demand from China. This rally was led by notable gains in key mining stocks such as Rio Tinto, BHP Group, and Fortescue Metals, following a rebound in iron ore prices fuelled by expectations of support for China’s steel sector and post-holiday restocking activities.
Futures
The Dow Jones futures are pointing to a fall of 8 points.
The S&P 500 futures are pointing to a rise of 2.75 points.
The Nasdaq futures are pointing to a rise of 18.25 points.
The SPI futures are up 35 points.
Best and worst performers
The best-performing sector was Materials, up 1.48 per cent. The worst-performing sector was REITs, down 0.95 per cent.
The best-performing large cap was Whitehaven Coal (ASX:WHC), closing 4.84 per cent higher at $7.36. It was followed by shares in IGO (ASX:IGO) and Lynas Rare Earths (ASX:LYC).
The worst-performing large cap was Meridian Energy (ASX:MEZ), closing 3.64 per cent lower at $5.30. It was followed by shares in Viva Energy Group (ASX:VEA) and Cochlear (ASX:COH).
Asian markets
Japan’s Nikkei has gained 1.06 per cent.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng has gained 0.65 per cent.
China’s Shanghai Composite has gained 0.03 per cent.
Commodities and the dollar
Gold is trading at US$2,363.20 an ounce.
Iron ore is 6 per cent higher at US$104.45 a tonne.
Iron ore futures are pointing to a 4.79 per cent rise.
Light crude is trading $0.04 higher at US$86.47 a barrel.
One Australian dollar is buying 66.07 US cents.