The Australian market is trading marginally higher after some listless trades on Tuesday with investors treading cautiously ahead of the central bank's decision on interest rates.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index, which recovered to 4,585 after an initial fall to around 4,564, is currently trading at 4,578, up 2.5 points over its previous close. The broader All Ordinaries index is up 2.3 points at 4,618. On Monday, the S&P/ASX 200 index ended up 34.3 points or 0.8% at 4,575, and the All Ordinaries index ended at 4,616, recording a gain of 38.1 points or 0.8%.
Energy and financial stocks are finding some support, while information technology and property trusts stocks are trading weak. Mining, consumer discretionary and industrial stocks are exhibiting a mixed trend.
ANZ Bank, National Australia Bank, Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Westpac are up 0.2%-0.6%. Bendigo & Adelaide Bank is gaining about 1%, while Bank of Queensland is down marginally. Macquarie Group shares are down 1.4%.
Among mining stocks, BHP Billiton is down 0.6%, Rio Tinto is losing about 1% and Newcrest Mining is trading flat, while Fortescue Metals is up 0.3%.
In the energy space, Woodside Petroleum, Oil Search and Santos are down with modest losses, while Origin Energy is up with a small gain.
Gold miner St Barbara Ltd is trading down more than 5% after it proposed to consolidate its share base, in a bid to attract international institutional investors.
In economic news, the Reserve Bank of Australia is expected to hand down its decision on interest rates this afternoon. The cash interest rate is currently 4.5%, and is expected to be kept unchanged.
According to a survey, activity in Australia's construction industry remained weak in August, with house building diving to its lowest level in 16 months. The Australian Industry Group/Housing Industry Association performance of construction index (PCI) was broadly unchanged, falling 0.1% to 43.2 in August after a fall in July.
In the currency market, the Australian dollar opened slightly higher on positive global sentiment. In early trades, the Aussie was quoting at US$0.9174-US$0.9177, up from Monday's close of US$0.9169-US$0.9171. The Australian dollar is currently trading at 0.9160 to the U.S. dollar.
Among other markets in the Asia-Pacific region, Japan, Singapore and South Korea are trading weak, while Malaysia, New Zealand and Taiwan are up in positive territory. Markets across the region closed higher on Monday as concerns about global economic recovery eased considerably on the back of a better-than-expected jobs report in the U.S. for August.
Major European markets ended higher on Monday amid optimism about a global recovery. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index gained 0.2%, while the German DAX index and the French CAC 40 index both advanced by about 0.33%. The U.S. market was closed on Monday on account of Labor Day holiday.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.