The Australian sharemarket closed higher on Wednesday as investor sentiment was lifted by Wall Street gains and optimism over easing United States-China trade tensions.
The S&P/ASX200 index jumped 103.8 points or 1.3% to 7,920.5, with all 11 sectors finishing in positive territory.
Energy stocks were among the standout performers, with Viva Energy, and Beach Energy advancing 2.9% and 2.6%, respectively.
Santos gained 6.1% after Goldman Sachs increased its 12-month price target to $7.85, implying a 40% upside.
Woodside Energy also added 3.6% after the company reported a 13% year-over-year rise in revenue in Q1 2025, reaching A$3.32 billion.
Paladin Energy emerged as the day’s top performer, soaring more than 26.2% after its Langer Heinrich mine reported record quarterly output, despite recent weather-related disruptions.
The local technology sector tracked strong U.S. gains, mirroring a rally in Tesla shares, which rose over 5% in extended trading despite weak earnings.
Block surged 8.6%, WiseTech Global added 5.5%, Xero gained 2.9%, and Computershare gained 3.7%.
Mining stocks advanced, with BHP climbing 3.1% amid reports that CEO Mike Henry may be preparing to step down.
However, gold miners were sharply lower as spot gold eased from record highs of US$3,500 overnight as investors rotated into riskier assets.
Gold Road Resources fell 6.3%, Evolution Mining tumbled 10.9% and Northern Star Resources dropped 9.6%.
Commonwealth Bank declined 1.6% as investors took profits following Tuesday’s 4% surge to record highs.
Online luxury retailer Cettire plunged 24.4% after reporting weaker demand from U.S. consumers, attributed to the economic drag of Trump’s trade tariffs.
Bond yields moved higher, with the 10-year and 2-year government bond yields rising to 4.217% and 3.295%, respectively.
