Australian Market Slightly Higher

(RTTNews) - Australian shares are trading sharply higher on Wednesday, extending the gains in the previous session, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 moving above the 8,600 level, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight, with gains across most sectors led by mining and technology stocks. Energy stocks were the only weak spot.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is gaining 149.60 points or 1.76 percent to 8,631.40, after touching a high of 8,635.50 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 156.90 points or 1.81 percent to 8,840.80. Australian stocks ended modestly higher on Tuesday.

Among major miners, BHP Group and Rio Tinto are surging more than 5 percent each, while Mineral Resources is advancing more than 4 percent and Fortescue is gaining more than 2 percent.

Oil stocks are mostly lower. Santos is down almost 1 percent and Origin Energy is losing more than 1 percent, while Woodside Energy and Beach energy are declining almost 2 percent each.

In the tech space, Afterpay owner Block and Zip are advancing more than 4 percent each, while Appen and Xero are adding more than 2 percent each. WiseTech Global is gaining more than 3 percent.

Among the big four banks, ANZ Banking is edging up 0.1 percent, while Westpac and Commonwealth Bank are gaining almost 1 percent each. National Australia bank is flat.

Among gold miners, Evolution Mining, Genesis Minerals and Northern Star Resources are jumping almost 8 percent each, while Newmont is surging almost 5 percent and Resolute Mining is advancing more than 4 percent.

In economic news, the manufacturing sector in Australia fell into contraction territory in March, the latest survey from S&P Global revealed on Wednesday with a manufacturing PMI score of 49.8. That's down from 51.0 in February and it moves beneath the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.

Meanwhile, the total number of building permits issues in Australia was up a seasonally adjusted 29.7 percent on month in February, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Wednesday - coming in at 19,022. That blew away expectations for an increase of 5.8 percent following the 7.2 percent contraction in January. On a yearly basis, permits climbed 10.8 percent after slumping 15.7 percent in the previous month.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.693 on Wednesday.

On the Wall Street, stocks saw further upside over the course of the trading day on Tuesday after moving sharply higher early in the session. The major averages all showed strong upward moves, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq leading the way higher.

The major averages ended the day not far off their highs of the session. The Nasdaq soared 795.99 points or 3.8 percent to 21,590.62, the S&P 500 spiked 184.80 points or 2.9 percent to 6,528.52 and the Dow surged 1,125.37 points or 2.5 percent to 46,341.51. The major European markets all also moved to the upside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index advanced by 0.6 percent, the German DAX Index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index both rose by 0.5 percent.

Crude oil prices plummeted Tuesday on reports that Trump was willing to push Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz through diplomatic efforts. West Texas Intermediate crude for May delivery was down $1.28 or 1.24 percent at $101.60 per barrel.