AU Morning Wrap | Miner Rally Drives ASX Near Record Levels

The US market climbed Wednesday. The market climbed to all-time closing highs for the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average. Just past 4 pm ET the $S&P 500 Index (.SPX.US)$ traded +71 basis points and hit a record intraday trading high. The $Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI.US)$ climbed 1.03%, and the $Nasdaq Composite Index (.IXIC.US)$ climbed 60 basis points.

Australian shares climbed, mirroring the uptrend on Wall Street, driven by optimism about additional US interest rate reductions. Mining stocks surged on expectations of increased stimulus measures from China, propelling the $S&P/ASX 200 (.XJO.AU)$ up by 0.51% to 8228.8 points, approaching its record intraday peak of 8285.7 in late September, saw gains across eight out of the eleven sectors, particularly in the materials and financial industries.

As of latest data, $Bitcoin (BTC.CC)$ is priced at $60,582, down 2.55% in the past 24 hours, while $Ethereum (ETH.CC)$ is priced at $2,368, down 2.92% in the past 24 hours.

$Rio Tinto Ltd (RIO.AU)$'s stock rose by 0.68% following the announcement of its acquisition of $Arcadium Lithium PLC (LTM.AU)$ for $9.9 billion.

Auto parts manufacturer $ARB Corp Ltd (ARB.AU)$ saw a 2.77% increase as it moved closer to finalizing the acquisition of US business 4 Wheel Parts.

Financial services provider $Netwealth Group Ltd (NWL.AU)$ also rose by 3.59% following a significant rise in funds under administration in the September quarter, driven by new investments and positive market movements.

Despite a 21% increase in sales for the September quarter and reaffirmation of fiscal 2025 guidance, Mexican food chain $Guzman y Gomez Ltd (GYG.AU)$ experienced a 0.60% decline in its stock price.

New Zealand dairy company $Synlait Milk Ltd (SM1.AU)$ remained stable as it raised its forecast base milk price for the 2024/2025 season to $NZ9.00 ($8.10) per kg of milk solids due to increased demand.