The Australian market managed to end in positive territory on Tuesday but well off the highs as news about Government's decision to break Telstra dragged the stock price down amid huge volume.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 Index added 0.20% or 9.20 points to close at 4,540, while the All-Ordinaries Index ended at 4,547, representing a gain of 11.10 points, or 0.24%.
On the economic front, minutes of the RBA meeting released today revealed that the Reserve Bank of Australia felt the Australian economy and the global economy were improving, but the recovery was not sufficiently entrenched to begin raising interest rates. As per the minutes, the Board members noted that the global economy was improving, but that "an important question" remained as to whether the improvement would be sustained or whether it was a temporary effect of fiscal and monetary stimulus from central banks and governments.
Separately, a report released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed that the number of construction starts on new homes dropped in the second quarter. The statistical agency said that total dwelling commencements amounted to a seasonally adjusted 30,411 in the second quarter, down 3.7% from 31,566 dwelling starts in the first quarter.
Light sweet crude oil futures for October delivery ended at $68.79 a barrel in electronic trading, down $0.07 per barrel from previous close at $68.86 a barrel in New York on Monday.
Most stocks opened higher and surged ahead in early trade taking cues from Wall Street where the major averages finished in positive territory with moderate gains on late buying. However, the stocks pared most of its gains but managed to end in positive territory after the Government announced fresh set of reforms which will lead to the separation of Telstra's wholesale and retail businesses, by voluntary or forcible means. Following the news, the communication giant's shares slumped 4.31% on huge volume of nearly 297 million shares.
Metals and mining stocks ended in positive territory. BHP Billiton gained 1.08%, Gindalbie Metals added 1.06%, Minara Resources gained 0.59%, and Rio Tinto rose 1.60%.
Among oil stocks, Woodside Petroleum remained unchanged from previous close and Origin Energy added 0.47%. However, Santos edged down 0.33% and Oil Search slipped 0.95%.
Mixed trading was witnessed among the banking stocks. ANZ Bank added 0.36% and National Australia Bank edged up 0.18%. However, Westpac Banking lost 1.20% and Commonwealth Bank of Australia slipped 0.34%.
Gold stocks ended weaker following drop in bullion prices in the international market. Lihir Gold edged down 0.33%, Newcrest Mining lost 1.36% and Sino Gold Mining fell 2.51%.
In the U.S., stocks witnessed a smart turnaround after initial weakness and ended the session in positive territory with modest gains on Monday. The Dow closed up by 21.39 points or 0.2% at 9,627, the Nasdaq moved up by 10.88 points or 0.5% to 2,092 and the S&P 500 rose by 6.61 points or 0.6% to 1,049.
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June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.