The Australian sharemarket opened over 8000 at the opening bell, buoyed by speculation that the Federal Reserve in the United States could kick off its rate-cutting cycle with a half a percentage point move.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 0.7 per cent, or by 53 points to 8012.3 as of 10.11am AEST , after a strong lead from Wall Street saw the S&P 500 once again reset its record high and the Dow Jones reclaim the 40,000 level.
BetaShares chief economist David Bassanese described the local market as "relatively cheap and unloved". He said that it could become "part of the great rotation if global investors start to seek opportunities outside of US large cap technology stocks such as Nvidia."
All 11 sectors were in the green. Healthcare stocks recorded the sharpest gains. Blood plasma collector CSL jumped 1.3 per cent and Cochlear added 1.8 per cent.
The materials sector also recorded gains, led by ASX heavyweight BHP. The mining giant's shares rose 0.9 per cent, Fortescue Metals added 0.9 per cent and Rio Tinto edged higher 0.4 per cent.
It's taken the local bourse just over three years to climb another 1000 points after breaching the 7000 level in April 2021, fuelled by governments and central banks pumping stimulus into the global economy after the COVID-19 pandemic.
"A large part of [recent leg higher] appears to be good management on the part of the Fed," said Mr Miller.
"If you look at the data, there is meaningful disinflation and some cooling of the labour market, but it's not excessive enough to be a harbinger of a recession. So things are looking pretty good. The goldilocks outcome is the scenario that the market is favouring right now."
Traders are also poised to rush into haven assets and re-evaluate trades most linked to former US president Donald Trump's candidacy after he was shot at a rally, according to market watchers.
"Undoubtedly, there'll be some protectionist or haven flows in the Asia early morning," said Nick Twidale, chief market analyst at ATFX Global Markets. "I'd suspect gold could test all-time highs, we will see the yen getting bought and the dollar, and flows into Treasuries too."
However, early market commentary suggests the shooting will boost Mr Trump's chances of winning the election, which will shift focus to securities most exposed to his policies and may ultimately be negative for Treasuries.
Stocks in focus
BHP has entered into an agreement with Vale S.A in relation to group action proceedings in the United Kingdom related to the Fundo Dam disaster in Brazil. The Fundo Dam was owned and operated by Samarco, a joint venture between BHP Brazil and Vale when the collapse of the dam left at least 19 people dead in 2015.
The dual-listed mining giant is a defendant in a group action claim in the English High Court, brought by over 600,000 claimants seeking damages for the disaster.
APM Human Services edged higher 0,4 per cent after announcing it secured financing out to 2030 when it signed a committed letter with Goldman Sachs for new facilities of up to $950 million to retire its existing syndicated corporate facility.
Aussie Broadband shares slumped 18.8 per cent after it lowered its earnings guidance for financial year 2025 to $125 million to $135 million, down from its previous guidance of $135 million to $145 million. The telco also said it was going to aggressively pursue customers at its larger rivals - including Telstra and Optus - with a new brand, Buddy Telco, which offers significantly cheaper broadband services.
With Bloomberg

Sumber : afr.com