Australia Stocks mixed

Headline indices of the Australia stock market traded between gains and loss before settling marginally higher on Friday, 13 July 2018, as firm cues from Wall Street overnight and higher commodity prices offset by the global trade uncertainties. ASX sector were mixed, with shares in healthcare, industrials, and information technology issues being notable gainers, while financial, property trusts, and consumer staples were notable losers. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index edged up 1.50 points or 0.02% to 6,269.80. The broader All Ordinaries Index marginally up by 3.93 points or 0.06% to 6,353.70.

Shares of materials were up after iron ore prices edged up overnight. Rio Tinto shares advanced after the company said it has signed a heads of agreement to sell its interest in Indonesia's Grasberg mine - the world's second biggest copper mine, for $3.5 billion.

Shares of financials were the key drag for the local bourse with ANZ Banking, Westpac, National Australia Bank and Commonwealth Bank declined in a range of 0.3% to 0.6%.

Energy stocks were softer after crude oil prices edged lower overnight after the International Energy Agency or IEA warned that the world's oil supply cushion "might be stretched to the limit" due to production losses. WTI crude dipped $0.05 to $70.33 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.. Among energy stocks, Woodside Petroleum, Oil Search, and Origin Energy were sliding in the range of 0.5% - 1%.

CURRENCY NEWS: The Commodity-linked Australian dollar was up against greenback on Friday. The local currency was quoted at US$0.7405, down from US$0.7387 on Thursday.

OFFSHORE MARKET: US stock market rebounded to close higher on Thursday, partly due to optimism about the upcoming earnings season. Easing trade concerns also contributed to the rally. The tech-heavy Nasdaq soared 107.30 points or 1.4% to a new record closing high of 7,823.92, the Dow jumped 224.74 points or 0.9% to 24,924.89, and the S&P 500 surged up 24.27 points or 0.9% to 2,798.29.

The major European markets also moved back to the upside on Thursday. The French CAC 40 Index jumped by 1%, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index advanced by 0.8% and the German DAX Index climbed by 0.6%.

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