The Australian sharemarket advanced on Friday, supported by fresh record highs on Wall Street and strength across Health Care, Technology, and Financial sectors.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index gained 28.3 points or 0.3% to 8,773.5, with seven of the 11 sectors finishing higher.
Healthcare led the rally, with Telix Pharmaceuticals jumping 6.4% after Citi initiated coverage with a “buy” rating, citing the potential of its prostate cancer treatment.
Pro Medicus also surged 4.9% as Citi ranked it among its top healthcare picks.
Information Technology rose, with Xero adding 1.4% and TechnologyOne up 2.2%.
The banking sector finished mostly higher. Commonwealth Bank climbed 1.1%, NAB rose 1%, and ANZ added 0.6%, while Westpac dipped 0.3%.
Among major miners, BHP slipped 0.8%, Fortescue eased 0.2%, while Rio Tinto lost 1.3% after reports it plans to cut a significant portion of its top 100 executive roles.
Gold miners gained ground on strong bullion prices, with Northern Star adding 1.2% and Evolution Mining rising 3.2%.
Santos rebounded 0.5%, recovering from Thursday’s three-month low following the collapse of a takeover bid.
Elsewhere, AGL Energy rose 0.3% after securing federal approval for a large-scale wind power and battery storage project in New South Wales, in partnership with Someva Renewables.
On the bond markets, yields edged higher, with 10-year and 2-year government bond rates rising to 4.254% and 3.379%, respectively.
