The Australian sharemarket ended marginally higher on Thursday, partially retracing early gains as weakness in the Energy sector offset a strong performance from rate-sensitive technology stocks.
The S&P/ASX 200 index added 10.8 points or 0.1% to 8,617.3, with nine of the 11 sectors finishing in positive territory.
Technology shares led the market higher as investors continued to price in a heightened likelihood of a December interest rate cut from the United States Federal Reserve.
According to the CME Group FedWatch Tool, the probability of a 25 basis point cut stands at 84.9%.
Technology One lifted 1.4%, Xero and Block gained 2.3% apiece, and WiseTech climbed 6.9% after announcing the appointment of Raelene Murphy to its board, giving the company five independent directors alongside two executive directors.
Energy stocks were the biggest drag on the broader index as Brent crude retreated to US$62 a barrel overnight ahead of this weekend’s OPEC+ meeting.
Woodside fell 1%, Santos lost 1.8%, and Beach Energy shed 2.5%.
The iron ore majors also reversed earlier strength, with Rio Tinto down 1.4%, BHP slipping 0.2% and Fortescue down 0.9%.
Gold miners bucked the broader softness, supported by a rise in the spot gold price overnight.
Northern Star finished 0.8% higher, Newmont gained 1.9% and Evolution lifted 2.2%.
In corporate news, Suncorp fell 1.9% after reporting more than 10,000 insurance claims following storms across south-east Queensland and northern New South Wales, estimating a net cost of $350 million.
Reece advanced 4% after launching an on-market share buyback of up to $35 million, following the completion of a $365 million off-market buyback in October.
NRW Holdings gained 3.5% after upgrading its full-year guidance, forecasting revenue of around $4.1 billion and underlying earnings between $260 million and $265 million.
Megaport rose 1.1% as it finalised its acquisition of Latitude.sh, a globally scalable compute-as-a-service business.
DroneShield was the biggest decliner on the ASX 200, falling 7.8% as investors locked in profits.
On the bond markets, yields ticked higher, with the 10-year rising 0.2% to 4.504% and the 2-year up 0.1% to 3.785%.
