ASX rises as Xero leaps; BHP, Fortescue slide

The rally in technology stocks and the strong rebound in the big banks pushed the Australian sharemarket higher on Thursday.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 0.4 per cent, or by 30.6 points, to 8224 at the closing bell, buoyed by six out of the 11 sectors. The All Ordinaries added 0.3 per cent as the sharemarket tracked modest overnight movements on Wall Street.

On the ASX, sector heavyweight Xero jumped 5.9 per cent to $171, pushing the wider information technology sector higher. That’s after the accounting software company recorded a 51 per cent increase in half-year earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation to $311.7 million.

The major banks also rose, led by Commonwealth Bank, which added 2.2 per cent to $152.84, a record high. National Australia Bank was up 1 per cent at $38.70, Westpac 1.3 per cent at $32.44 and ANZ 1.2 per cent at $31.63. The sector had fallen on Wednesday as the market pushed out the timing of the first rate cut in Australia to September 2025.

Meanwhile, a resurgent US dollar following the presidential election has continued to wreak havoc on commodity markets and the mining sector. Iron ore futures in Singapore slumped 1.2 per cent on Thursday to $US99.40 a tonne on the December contract.

IG analyst Tony Sycamore said in a note to clients that iron ore at $US100 a tonne was a “key psychological level” that resulted in “mixed outcomes for the major miners”.

Fortescue Metals closed down 1.9 per cent at $17.94 and BHP dropped 1.3 per cent to $40.01. Rio Tinto edged higher to $113.92.

Gold miners also remained under pressure as the precious metal continued its post-US election descent. it has dropped more than 7 per cent from a record high on October 31 and was trading at $US2574.55 an ounce in Asian markets.

Stocks in focus

In corporate news, explosives manufacturer Orica edged up 0.1 per cent to $17.58 after it recorded a full-year net profit of $525 million and a 15 per cent increase in earnings before interest and tax to $806 million. It also declared an unfranked final dividend of 28¢ a share.

Nufarm, a farm chemical supplier, manufacturer and formulator, jumped 6 per cent to $3.88 after its FY24 results came in better than expected. It booked a 29 per cent decline in its underlying earnings before interest, tax and amortisation at $313 million. The company recorded a statutory net loss of $6 million.

GrainCorp dropped 2.9 per cent to $8.59 after competitive global markets and challenging weather conditions last year squeezed profits at the ASX-listed agribusiness. It said the East Coast-based grain receival and storage company reported a net profit of $61.8 million in the 2024 financial year, a 75 per cent drop from last year’s $250 million.

And the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has raised concerns about Cleanaway’s proposed takeover of City of Melbourne council-owned waste business Citywide. The shares, nevertheless, rose 3.2 per cent to $2.80.