Australia Market rebounds on bargain hunting

The Australian share market finished session higher on Wednesday, 09 March 2022, as investors chased for undervalued stocks after the key benchmark indices suffered heavy losses in previous three sessions.

Sentiment was also helped after Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky said his country is no longer pressing for NATO membership, a delicate issue that was one of Russia's stated reasons for invading its pro-Western neighbor.

However, market gains capped amid concerned that Russia could be subject to international sanctions in the long term, which may further push up elevated commodity prices

At closing bell, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 rebounded 72.71 points, or 1.04%, to 7,053.03. The broader All Ordinaries index added 78.91 points, or 1.09%, to 7,331.82.

The top performing stocks in this index were MESOBLAST LIMITED and PALADIN ENERGY LTD, up 16.99% and 10.00% respectively. The bottom performing stocks in this index were NICKEL MINES and BORAL, down 4.75% and 3.26% respectively.

Financial stocks gained, led by top four lenders, as Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Philip Lowe said its plausible interest rates could rise in 2022.

ECONOMIC NEWS: Australia Westpac Consumer Confidence Weakens In March- Australia consumer confidence took a hit in March, the latest survey from Westpac Bank revealed on Wednesday with an index score of 96.6 - down 4.2% from the February reading of 100.8. This is the weakest print since September 2020, which is also the last time the index was below the 100-level indicating that pessimists outnumber optimists. That previous low marked the end of a fifteen-month run of pessimism that began when the economy hit a flat patch in the second half of 2019 and worsened dramatically with the onset of the global pandemic just over two years ago.

CURRENCY NEWS: The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.7293, having declined from above $0.738 earlier this week.

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