The Australian sharemarket opened slightly higher, following a modest rally on Wall Street, which saw the S&P 500 reach a new high. The S&P/ASX 200 index is currently up by 0.59% at 7,520.90, reflecting a similar trend in US stocks, with the S&P 500 closing up 0.2% and the Nasdaq 100 up 0.3% overnight.
The SPI futures are pointing to a rise of 46 points.
Best and worst performers
The best-performing sector is Health Care, up 1.57 per cent. The worst-performing sector is Consumer Discretionary, down 0.09 per cent.
The best-performing large cap is IGO (ASX:IGO), trading 4.27 per cent higher at $7.32. It is followed by shares in GQG Partners (ASX:GQG) and WiseTech Global (ASX:WTC).
The worst-performing large cap is IDP Education (ASX:IEL), trading 7.89 per cent lower at $20.32. It is followed by shares in Mercury NZ (ASX:MCY) and Lynas Rare Earths (ASX:LYC).
Commodities and the dollar
Gold is trading at US$2042.20 an ounce.
Iron ore is 0.8 per cent lower at US$129.45 a tonne.
Iron ore futures are pointing to a 1.36 per cent rise.
One Australian dollar is buying 65.70 US cents.