AU Morning Wrap: ASX Flat with Energy Sector Gain; Helia Shares Stumble

There's no stopping the S&P 500's record rally. As usual, the benchmark got a boost from $NVIDIA(NVDA.US)$, which bumped off $Microsoft(MSFT.US)$ as the world's most valuable company.

The $S&P 500 Index(.SPX.US)$ rose 0.3% to 5487.03. The tech-heavy $Nasdaq Composite Index(.IXIC.US)$ swung between gains and losses before closing just above positive territory at 17862.23. The $Dow Jones Industrial Average(.DJI.US)$ gained 0.15% to 38834.86.

The Australian stock market has started the day on a positive note, with modest gains driven primarily by oil and gas producers. At the opening bell, the $S&P/ASX 200(.XJO.AU)$ traded at 7774.7, down by 3.4 points or 0.04%

Energy stocks are leading the gains, with a rise of 1% thanks to the overnight increases in oil and LNG. $Woodside Energy Group Ltd(WDS.AU)$ and $Santos Ltd(STO.AU)$ are both up around 1%.

The $AUD/USD(AUDUSD.FX)$ is trading at US66.61¢, an increase of 0.07%.

As of latest data, $Bitcoin(BTC.CC)$ is priced at $65,043, down by 2.05% in the past 24 hours, while $Ethereum(ETH.CC)$ is priced at $3,474, down by 0.82% in the past 24 hours.

Shares in $Helia Group Ltd(HLI.AU)$ saw a significant decline of 15.2% to $3.56 as $CommBank(CBA.AU)$ flagged probable modifications to the company's existing lenders mortgage insurance contract. The present contract constituted over 50% of Helia's gross written premium in 2023.

$Downer EDI Ltd(DOW.AU)$ has secured a new contract worth over $100 million from NBN, leading to a 0.6% increase in share value to $4.71.

$Beach Energy Ltd(BPT.AU)$, backed by Kerry Stokes, witnessed a 3.6% slump in shares to $1.48 following broker downgrades. This is in addition to the 2.2% dip seen yesterday, when the company announced its plan to reduce spending, operating costs, and jobs while elevating return standards for projects to enhance performance.