AU Evening Wrap | ASX 200 declines due to the downturn in the energy and telecommunications services sectors

Moomoo News AU wrote a column · 2 hours ago

Top gainers: $Contact Energy Ltd (CEN.AU)$, $Tabcorp Holdings Ltd (TAH.AU)$ and $Genesis Minerals Ltd (GMD.AU)$

Top losers: $Neuren Pharmaceuticals Ltd (NEU.AU)$, $Cettire Ltd (CTT.AU)$ and $New Hope Corp Ltd (NHC.AU)$

AU Evening Wrap | ASX 200 declines due to the downturn in the energy and telecommunications services sectors

On Wednesday, $S&P/ASX 200 (.XJO.AU)$ declined due to escalating geopolitical tensions. The S&P/ASX 200 Index finished the day down by 47.7 points, or 0.6%, at 8,326.3 points. This drop followed a record high close on Tuesday, which was driven by strong performances in the energy and technology sectors.

In a related development overnight on Tuesday, Ukraine utilized its new long-range missile capabilities to hit a military base within Russia. In response, Moscow, which had previously cautioned against such actions, announced a policy permitting the deployment of nuclear weapons in response to attacks on Russian assets.

Technology stocks, which were particularly robust in the prior trading session, also experienced a slight decline. This downturn occurred in anticipation of the upcoming earnings report from US semiconductor giant $NVIDIA (NVDA.US)$ on Thursday (AEST), with the market looking to Nvidia's results as an indicator of the demand for artificial intelligence.

Gold prices continued their upward trend for a third consecutive session, increasing by 2.5% since Monday. Traders pushed the price of this safe-haven asset to a new record, surpassing $US2630 per ounce. ASX-listed gold mining companies followed suit. $West African Resources Ltd (WAF.AU)$ shares climbed by 2.4% to $1.495, while $Evolution Mining Ltd (EVN.AU)$ shares advanced by 1.02% to $4.95.

$Amcor PLC (AMC.AU)$ announced its completion of the acquisition of Berry Global Group in an all-stock deal, where Berry shareholders received 7.25 Amcor shares for each Berry share they held. Following the acquisition, Amcor and Berry shareholders owned 63% and 37% of the merged entity, respectively. The deal was expected to result in over 35% earnings per share (EPS) growth and achieve synergies of $650 million by the end of the third year post-merger. Amcor shares fell 1.21% to $15.51.

$Webjet Group Ltd (WJL.AU)$ postponed the release of its first half 2025 results due to the complexities involved in its demerger, with an anticipated release no later than November 29. Webjet shares fell 9.78% to $0.83.

$PWR Holdings Ltd (PWH.AU)$ shares fell 24.56% to $6.85 after the company forecasted a significant decline in its first-half FY25 profit to about $3.5 million, compared to $9.8 million in the previous year.

$Nick Scali Ltd (NCK.AU)$ shares fell 1.7% to $13.84 as the company warned that its previous guidance was threatened due to a freight forwarder entering liquidation.

$NexGen Energy Ltd (NXG.AU)$ shares surged 6.48% to $11.83 following the receipt of a crucial permit from Canadian regulatory authorities.