The Australian share market ended Tuesday’s session broadly unchanged, as investors treaded cautiously ahead of the closely-watched June quarter inflation data, due for release on Wednesday.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index added just 6.9 points or 0.1% on Tuesday to 8,704.6, after recovering from early declines. Eight of the 11 industry sectors finished in the green.
Energy stocks outperformed the broader market, supported by a rebound in crude oil prices overnight amid renewed geopolitical tensions and signs of tightening supply.
Santos advanced 2.1%, while Woodside Energy rose 1.6% after assuming operatorship of the Bass Strait gas assets from ExxonMobil Australia.
Technology and healthcare contributed to gains, with Xero up 0.5%, TechnologyOne adding 1.4%, and Life360 closing 0.2% higher.
Major healthcare stocks CSL, Pro Medicus, and Cochlear advanced 0.5%, 0.9%, and 0.8%, respectively.
The rate-sensitive real estate sector was weaker, with Goodman Group down 0.4%, Charter Hall slipping 0.3%, and Mirvac Group down 1.4%.
Financials finished slightly higher overall, as Commonwealth Bank fell 0.4%, extending its Monday losses after announcing 45 job redundancies linked to the implementation of a new AI-powered chatbot for customer service.
Westpac lost 0.1%, Macquarie Group slipped 0.4%, while National Australia Bank gained 1.2%.
Major iron ore miners were mixed as Singapore iron ore futures recovered from a 2.6% fall on Monday.
Fortescue Metals dipped 0.3%, while BHP rose 0.3% and Rio Tinto finished flat.
In corporate news, Viva Energy plunged 6.4% after the company flagged weaker earnings, citing a 10.4% drop in convenience sales and reduced refining margins.
Tobacco sales fell 27% from the previous year due to the introduction of new packaging laws and a rise in illicit trade, the company said in a statement.
Newmont lost 1.3% after launching tender offers to repurchase up to US$2 billion of outstanding debt notes.
Boss Energy continued its steep slide, falling 5.5% after company tanked 44% on Monday after warning it would miss production targets at its Honeymoon uranium project in South Australia, raising concerns about ore quality.
On the bond markets, Australian yields moved lower, with the 10-year note falling 0.3% to 4.336%, and the 2-year down 0.7% to 3.389%.
