The Australian sharemarket closed higher for a seventh consecutive session on Friday, lifting to a two-month high as optimism over potential trade talks between China and the United States buoyed investor sentiment.
The S&P/ASX 200 climbed 92.4 points or 1.1% to 8,238.0, notching a 3.3% weekly gain.
Ten of the index’s 11 sectors ended in positive territory, led by strong performances in energy and healthcare.
Investor optimism follows comments from China’s Commerce Ministry that Beijing is considering trade discussions with Washington.
The news sparked an uptick in oil prices and energy stocks, with Woodside Energy rising 2% and Santos advancing 2.3%.
Healthcare shares also lifted the market. CSL gained 2.1%, Sigma Healthcare gained 3%, ResMed lifted 1% and Sonic Healthcare gained 1.2%.
Financials rose 1.3% overall, with Commonwealth Bank lifting 1.4% to new record highs. Westpac gained 1.9%, National Australia Bank added 1.4%, and Macquarie Group gained 2.6%.
Tech stocks outperformed despite a negative earnings outlook from Amazon and Apple in the U.S.
Xero added 0.4%, and TechnologyOne gained 1.4%, while WiseTech Global added 1.1% after confirming it is exploring a potential acquisition of U.S.-listed supply chain platform e2open.
However, not all companies participated in the rally. Block Inc. tumbled 26.7% after a disappointing first-quarter update and a downgrade to its full-year outlook.
Corporate Travel Management also slid 10%, warning that tariffs were dampening client demand and would impact revenue and earnings growth.
On the bond market, yields on 10-year and 2-year Australian government bonds eased 0.7% and 0.8% to 4.168%, and 3.295%, respectively.
