Australia Market rebounds from two-year lows

Headline indices of the Australian share market rebounded from 21-months low on Thursday, 22 November 2018, as investors chased for beaten down stocks on tracking a relief rally on Wall Street overnight. Most of ASX issues inclined, with shares in healthcare, consumer staples, energy, and materials being notable gains. In late afternoon trades, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index added 30.13 points, or 0.5%, to 5,672.90 points, while the broader All Ordinaries index rose 30.98 points, or 0.54%, to 5,753.10 points.

U.S stocks finished higher on Wednesday. On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed largely flat at 21,464.69 while the S&P 500 rose 0.3% to 2,649.93. The Nasdaq Composite also advanced 0.9% to close at 6,972.25. In economic news, jobless claims rose to 224,000 and durable goods orders fell 4.4%. U.S. financial markets are closed for Thanksgiving on Thursday.

Healthcare sector was top performer among ASX issues, with CSL up 2.4% to A$183.05 and Cochlear up 3.2% to A$167.84.

Shares of energy companies inclined on the back of Wednesday's bounce in crude prices. Origin Energy lifted 1.8% to A$6.75, while Woodside, Oil Search, Santos, and Caltex also edged higher.

Shares of major miners were higher after yesterday's heavy losses, with Mineral Resources (MIN) surging 23% after entering into an agreement for a potential 50:50 JV with Albermarle of the Wodgina lithium project. Albermarle would pay a purchase price of US$1.15 billion for the 50% stake. MIN has also provided FY19 Earnings (EBITDA) guidance between A$280 million and A$320 million at its AGM today.

Shares of banks and financials were higher, with ANZ rising 1.3%, Commonwealth and NAB both rose 0.8% and Westpac was up slightly.

CURRENCY: Australian Dollar was little changed against greenback and other major currencies on Thursday. The Australian dollar was quoted at 72.62 US cents, up from 72.31 cents on Wednesday.

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