AU Morning Wrap: ASX Gains as Iron Ore Miners' Rally; Harvey Norman Sinks on Result

US stocks clawed back some of last week's heavy losses as a retreat in bond yields encouraged bargain-hunting.

"A little bit of a bounce because Friday's reaction was an overreaction," Ken Polcari, managing partner at Kace Capital Advisors, told Reuters.

Australian shares gained at the open as Wall Street rebounded from last week's sell-off.

On the final day of February reporting season, urniture giant Harvey Norman sunk 9 per cent after saying its profit before tax slipped 11.7 per cent to $430.7 million for the six months to December 31.

Over 2022 it said bad debts as a percentage of underlying sales fell to a record low of 1.7 per cent thanks to improved underwriting competencies.

Sezzle posted a net loss of $US0.2 million for January on total income up 18.3 per cent year-on-year for the month to $US11.7 million.

The stock has tumbled 73.3 per cent over the past 12 months to last close at 52¢.

It reported a net loss of $US41.4 million, a 14.9 per cent improvement compared to the prior corresponding period.

Losses per share were 3.32¢ in the second quarter of FY23.

The company also recorded positive free cash flow of $600 million and a record EBITDA of $19.5 million.

A 37 per cent increase in transaction value to $21.7 billion was driven by a growing merchant base and external factors such as the absence of COVID-19 lockdowns and inflation, particularly in hospitality and retail.

Nitro achieved revenue of $US66.8 million ($99.1 million) for 2022, up 31 per cent. Subscription revenues were up 50 per cent and represent 83 per cent of annual business sales revenue. Its statutory loss was $US35.8 million and Nitro did not pay a dividend.

The deal, at $4.10 a share, was a 2.4 per cent discount to the last close.

Investors were speculating that the seller was Pilbara Minerals major shareholder Contemporary Amperex Technology (Hong Kong) Limited, which owned 6.9 per cent of the company's shares prior to the trade.

• Iron ore retreated after Chinese authorities capped steel production at the industrial hub of Tangshan in response to heavy pollution. Steel mills were set to reduce sintering capacity by up to half after the regional government declared a level 2 emergency.

The most-traded May ore contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange ended daytime trade 2.5 per cent lower at 885.5 yuan (US$127.14) a tonne.

• US gold miners rallied as gold logged its first rise in six sessions. Gold for April delivery settled US$7.80 or 0.4 per cent higher at US$1,824.90 an ounce, rebounding from its weakest close of the year. The NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index of US miners climbed 0.63 per cent.

• Nine weeks of increases in US crude stockpiles kept oil under pressure. Brent crude settled 71 US cents or 0.9 per cent lower at US$82.45 a barrel. The front-month contract was on track for a monthly loss of 2.4 per cent.