Australia Market ends mixed

The Australian share market finished session mixed after wiping out early gains on Tuesday, 29 September 2020, as investors elected to closed positions at the end of the month with investors seemingly distracted by the looming Biden-Trump debate showdown. At closing bell, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index declined 0.26 points, or 0.00%, to 5,952.06. The broader All Ordinaries added 6.63 points, or 0.11%, to 6,141.53.

Banks and financials declined, with all Big Four lenders dived in red. Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Westpac Banking Corp shed 0.7% and 1.3%, respectively. Bank of Queensland was down 7.2% after the Brisbane-based lender warned of a pre-tax loan impairment expense of A$175 million in its annual results, mostly due to the COVID-19 impact.

 

Shares of materials and resources declined, as political tensions between Australia and the world's second-biggest economy weighed. Global miners BHP Group and Rio Tinto declined 0.7% and 0.8%.

Tech stocks were the best performers today, surging by 2.4%, following the outperformance of American technology ompanies overnight. Afterpay (APT) rose by 2.5%. Appen climbed 3.6%, Altium gained 3.3%, Xero climbed 3%, and Wisetech Global rose 3.4%.

Travel stocks also did well amid a continued improvement in the nation's coronavirus numbers. Qantas climbed 2.2%, Sydney Airport lifted 2.2%, and Regional Express rose 0.4%.

CURRENCY NEWS: The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.7095 following levels below $0.705 seen yesterday.

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