ASX200 rises higher after massive Wall St rally

A feverish bull run on Wall St propelled the local share market to fresh records on Wednesday.

The benchmark ASX200 lifted 58.6 points, or 0.73 per cent, to settle at a record high of 8057.9 points, while the broader All Ordinaries index rose 60.2 points, or 0.73 per cent, to close at 8303.5.

Tech stocks climbed 0.79 per cent to 3184.8.

The rally was broadbased, with all 11 industry sectors ending in the green, led by the rate-sensitive real estate sector with a 1.49 per cent gain.

Goodman Group lifted 1.16 per cent to $36.67 a share, Scentre Group rose 1.83 per cent to $3.34 and Domain Holdings jumped 2.15 per cent to $3.32.

With Wednesday’s session, the benchmark has gained 241 points, or 3 per cent, from the July 10 close at 7816.8 points.

“Last week saw the annual Running of the Bulls in Pamplona, a tradition that dates back to the 13th century in Spain and runs from July 6 to July 14 every year,” IG market analyst Tony Sycamore said.

“The timing coincided with the start of the Australian version of the Running of the Bulls for the Australian stock market.

“Given that the timing and speed of the move have likely caught some investors by surprise, we expect the ASX200 to be well supported on dips between 8000 and 7900.”

The bull run is taking its cues from Wall St, which is in the grip of its own feverish rally driven by excitement around AI, expectations of imminent US Federal Reserve rate cuts and the increasing likelihood of a Donald Trump victory in the November US presidential election, which some investors see a positive for business.

The Dow Jones gained 1.85 per cent, or 742 points, overnight on Tuesday to hit a record high of 40,964.

The S and P 500 lifted 0.64 per cent to 5667, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq edged up 0.2 per cent to 18,509.

The big miners closed lower on Wednesday, with BHP falling 0.9 per cent to $42.70, Fortescue losing 1 per cent to $22.36 and Rio Tinto edging down 0.3 per cent to $116.46.

But the big banks were up, with Commonwealth Bank gaining 0.8 per cent to $133.50, Westpac rising 1 per cent to $28.48, NAB lifting 1 per cent to $37.77 and ANZ climbing 0.64 per cent to $29.97.

Gold miners also tracked higher on rising gold prices.

Bellevue Gold lifted 1.9 per cent to $190, West African Resources jumped 3 per cent to $1.54 and Evolution Mining rose 1.53 per cent to $3.98.

In corporate news, embattled casino operator Star Entertainment lifted 2 per cent to 50c after announcing a fix to its electronic gaming machines.

Counter-drone technology company DroneShield continued its sharp tumble, falling 9.4 per cent to close at $1.83 following a 22.3 per cent crash on Tuesday.

There is no obvious news propelling the free fall but the company has suggested a Capital Brief article may have triggered the sell-off.

Fashion business Cettire swung sharply throughout the day after releasing additional results that showed gross revenue would reach between $975m and $980m for FY24.

The stock jumped in morning trade but ultimately shed 4 per cent to close at $1.44.

The top gainer on the ASX200 was healthcare company Polynovo Limited, which surged 9.3 per cent to $2.59.

The largest laggard was uranium miner Deep Yellow, which lost 3.5 per cent to $1.37.

The Aussie dollar gained 0.06 per cent to buy US67.3c at the close.