ASX edges higher on tech, property rally

Australian shares edged higher on Wednesday, buoyed by interest rate sensitive tech and real estate stocks after the Reserve Bank left the cash rate on hold on Tuesday.

At the closing bell, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 added 0.1 per cent, or 11.2 points, to 7804.5, with seven of 11 industry sectors finishing in the green.

The broader All Ordinaries also advanced on Wednesday, climbing by a similar amount to 8076.7.

The increase follows a rally of 1.4 per cent on Tuesday – the index’s strongest performance in three months – after RBA governor Michele Bullock reaffirmed the central bank’s neutral bias, taking some economists by surprise.

ASX edges higher on tech, property rally

“After all the volatility in April, the index, supported by the RBA’s reluctance, rightly or wrongly, to seriously consider interest rate hikes, is within touching distance of record high,” Capital.com senior financial market analyst Kyle Rodda said.

On the benchmark, tech stocks rose 0.6 per cent. NextDC added 2.2 per cent to $17.46, Wisetech climbed 0.6 per cent to $97.02, and Xero rose 0.4 per cent to $127.59.

Property stocks gained 0.5 per cent even as sector heavyweight Goodman Group trading 0.3 per cent lower to $34.29 after it revealed its portfolio had increased to $80.5bn.

Financials also advanced, up 0.2 per cent, in a mixed session for the big four banks.

While Commonwealth Bank added 0.6 per cent to $119.74 and ANZ jumped 1.2 per cent to $29.12, NAB shares lost 0.5 per cent to $33.96. Westpac traded flat at $27.89.

The materials sector was the biggest drag on the benchmark, off 0.1 per cent, as iron ore futures dipped below $US115 on the Singapore exchange.

BHP slipped 0.1 per cent to $43.38, Rio Tinto slumped 1.2 per cent to $130.20, and Fortescue sank 0.5 per cent to $26.64.

In individual stocks, Perpetual was the biggest laggard on the benchmark, diving 7.1 per cent to $22.32.

US global investment firm KKR has agreed to acquire the local money manager’s trustee and advice division for $2.2bn, subject to shareholder approval.

Elsewhere in the sector, Pinnacle Investments was one of the top performers, vaulting 6.7 per cent to $12.61.

On Tuesday, the asset manager revealed that affiliate fund’s under management had jumped six per cent to $106bn in the March quarter.

Flight Centre reaffirmed its guidance for the current financial year, with underlying profit before tax forecast between $300m and $340m, with international travel now just five per cent below pre-pandemic levels. Shares traded at $21.05, up 2.2 per cent.

Nine Entertainment shares traded 1.3 per cent higher to $1.52 after it released a trading update, with the media company reported total group costs were flat on levels over the 2023 financial year.

Shares in listed law firm QANTM added 5.4 per cent to $1.77. The company has received a takeover from rival IPH worth $1.90 a share, which its board is now considering.