The S&P/ASX 200 closed today up 56 points or 1.33% to 4303 points.
Asian markets experienced mixed results, with the Nikkei 225 closing down 0.5% at 9057 points, and the Hang Seng closing up 0.93% at 20400 points.
Other risk assets are mixed, with the AUD slipping against the USD, now at $1.0468, WTI crude up 0.8% to $87.38 USD per barrel. Gold is up slightly, trading at $1792 USD an ounce.
Movers and Shakers
It’s green across the board, except local healthcare giants CSL and Cochlear down, the former on an FX-imposed earnings slide. The banks closed the day up more than 1% on average, with Westpac (WBC) the leader regaining some of yesterday’s losses.
The resource twins BHP and RIO are the main drivers behind the gains on the broader index up 1% and 1.4% respectively.
Daily Chart
The daily chart shows how this rebound rally has continued unabated, up nearly 14%.
Daily chart of ASX200 - note resistance at 4450 points, or approx. 20% from the bottom
This is not unusual in the context of larage corrections, as I showed last week, rallies during bear markets can easily exceed 20% before reverting back to the primary downtrend.
The local market is buoyant on news of good prior financial year earnings and any resolution from Europe. This is not yet a bull market by a long shot, regardless of the large reversal in “fortune”.
Local earnings season ramped up today with 12 companies reporting, and 9 more to follow tomorrow including AMP, ASX and Wesfarmers. Remember to bookmark the overall update here.