AU Morning Wrap: ASX Lifts; Telstra Falls Over 4%

Stocks rose on Tuesday, with the $S&P 500 Index (.SPX.US)$ and $Nasdaq Composite Index (.IXIC.US)$ reaching fresh record highs. Investors are now awaiting $NVIDIA (NVDA.US)$'s earnings on Wednesday: the fan favorite in the artificial intelligence sector caps the last of the Mag Seven to report.

The tech-heavy $Nasdaq Composite Index (.IXIC.US)$ rose 0.22%. The $Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI.US)$ closed 0.17% higher, and the $S&P 500 Index (.SPX.US)$ added 0.25%.

At the open, Australian shares rose 0.2%, driven by gains in the tech sector. However, $Telstra Group Ltd (TLS.AU)$, a major telco, fell by 4% after announcing job cuts and hosting an analyst on Tuesday. Iron ore miners, including $Fortescue Ltd (FMG.AU)$, which rose 1.7%, and $Rio Tinto Ltd (RIO.AU)$, which firmed 1.3%, saw gains as prices for the steel making ingredient rose by 2.1% to $120.95 a tonne overnight.

$BHP Group Ltd (BHP.AU)$'s bid for $ANGLO AMERICAN (AAUKF.US)$ has a bid deadline of 5 pm on May 22, as per the UK Takeover Panel's rules. BHP must announce a firm intention to make an offer or announce that it does not intend to make an offer by that date.

The $AUD/USD (AUDUSD.FX)$ is trading at US66.69¢, an increase of 0.05%.

As of latest data, $Bitcoin (BTC.CC)$ is priced at $70,155, down 1.55% in the past 24 hours, while $Ethereum (ETH.CC)$ is priced at $3,790, up 2.91% in the past 24 hours.

$Web Travel Group Ltd (WEB.AU)$, an online travel agency, has announced its intention to separate its consumer and business operations into two separate entities listed on the Australian Securities Exchange. In its FY2024 financial results, the company reported growth in group bookings and profits.

$Plenti Group Ltd (PLT.AU)$, a consumer lender, has released its financial year results showing a net profit increase of 36% to $6.1 million, with revenue up 47% to $211 million for the year ending on March 31st.

$Droneshield Ltd (DRO.AU)$, a small-cap company specializing in counter drone systems, has announced that it has won a repeat $5.7 million contract from a US government customer. The contract highlights the growing demand for counter drone technologies as drones become more prevalent in both commercial and military settings.