The Australian stock market is advancing on Thursday after U.S. stocks gained overnight on better-than-expected economic growth and private jobs data. Mining and banking stocks are advancing, offsetting weakness in gold producers and oil stocks.
In late-morning trades, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is adding 18.50 points or 0.33 percent to 5,688.20, off a high of 5,692.40 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 16.60 points or 0.29 percent to 5,750.40.
In the mining space, Fortescue Metals is advancing more than 1 percent, BHP Billiton is adding almost 1 percent and Rio Tinto is rising 0.4 percent.
In the banking sector, ANZ Banking, Westpac, Commonwealth Bank and National Australia Bank are higher in a range of 0.4 percent to 0.7 percent.
Among gold miners, Newcrest Mining is down 0.2 percent and Evolution Mining is losing 0.6 percent.
Oil stocks are also lower after crude oil prices fell overnight. Oil Search is down almost 2 percent, while Woodside Petroleum and Santos are declining more than 1 percent each.
Wellard reported a net loss for the full year that widened more than threefold from last year, reflecting reduced demand from Asia. The cattle exporter's shares are losing more than 8 percent.
Webjet said its full-year profit more than doubled from last year on strong bookings growth. The online travel booking company's shares are rising more than 5 percent.
Harvey Norman recorded a 29 percent increase in its full-year profit after tax, but reduced its final dividend. The furniture and electrical goods retailer's shares are losing almost 5 percent.
On the economic front, Australia will release July data for private sector credit and second-quarter figures for private capital expenditure today.
In the currency market, the Australian dollar erased some of its losses and regained the US$0.79 mark. In early trades, the local unit was trading at US$0.7904, up from US$0.7966 on Wednesday.
On Wall Street, stocks closed higher on Wednesday in subdued trading following the release of some upbeat U.S. economic data, including a report showing a jump in private sector employment. A separate report released by the Commerce Department showed U.S. economic activity increased by more than previously estimated in the second quarter.
While the Nasdaq jumped 66.42 points or 1.1 percent to 6,368.31, the S&P 500 climbed 11.29 points or 0.5 percent to 2,457.59 and the Dow inched up 27.06 points or 0.1 percent to 21,892.43.
The major European markets also moved to the upside on Wednesday. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index rose by 0.4 percent, the German DAX Index and the French CAC 40 Index both climbed by 0.5 percent.
Crude oil futures continued to fall Wednesday, touching their lowest since July amid concerns about the fallout from Hurricane Harvey. October WTI oil slipped $0.48 or 1 percent to settle at $45.96 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com
Market Analysis
April 17, 2026 15:29 ET The ongoing conflict in the Middle East continues to raise concerns for policymakers who worry about the impact of the supply shock and high energy prices on the real economy. Producer price data and various survey results on the housing market were the main news from the U.S. this week. In Europe, industrial production data for the euro area gained attention. GDP figures out of China and the policy move by the Singapore central bank were in focus in Asia.