The S&P/ASX200 has added to yesterday’s gains a day after Donald Trump re-took the White House, as financials boost the index, though steep falls in shares of Woodside Energy (ASX: WDS) are capping gains. The miners are also taking a hit, down nearly 1% as investors remain on edge over Trump’s mixed messages when it comes to tariff plans.
The energy plays are also down as oil prices fall further, extending yesterday’s losses after President Trump declared a national energy emerging in the United States, fuelling concerns of higher U.S. output.
On the local currency cards, both the Australian and New Zealand units are treading water, recovering some of yesterday’s knock after President Donald Trump mentioned possible tariffs on China and Canada could be imposed on February 1. Though no further detail was offered, leaving traders uncertain.
Markets though are still largely on the sidelines watching and waiting for next week’s all important fourth-quarter inflation print here at home. Analysts are hopeful the key core number will slow enough to green light a rate cut form the Reserve Bank of Australia when it meets on February 18. Futures currently see a 78% of a 25-basis point cut in the 4.35% cash rate at the meeting.
Looking at some of the stocks to watch in today’s trade. Woodside Energy (ASX: WDS) has slumped to touch a two-week low after the top oil and gas producer said softer realised prices and higher costs impacted full year revenue, down 6% year on year. Looking ahead 2025 production is expected to be in line with last year’s record output. The stock is up 2.6% this year, including today’s move.
Australian listed shares of Beach Energy (ASX: BPT) are among the day’s top performers after the oil and gas producer reported a rise in second quarter production, beating Citi’s estimates with the company logging a 32% jump in quarterly sales revenue from the previous quarter. The stock is up over 7% this year, including today’s moves.
Sticking with production reports, shares of Evolution Mining (ASX: EVN) have leapt to a four-year high after reporting an improved and better-than-expected output in the second quarter, boosted by strong bullion prices, underpinned by a flock to safe-haven assets amid uncertainty surrounding U.S. President Donald trump’s potential trade tariffs. The stock is up nearly 20% this year, including today’s moves.
Elsewhere, shares of Bubs Australia (ASX: BUB) are surging in today’s trade after the company bounced back to profitability in the first half a of fiscal 2025 thanks to strong growth in key markets, U.S. and China. EBTIDA came in just shy of AU$3 million for the period, more than recovering from the near AU$7 million loss a year ago.
On the flip side, shares of Iluka Resources (ASX: ILU) have taken a hit after the miner missed second quarter sales and revenue targets, coming in 12 and 17% below Citi’s forecasts respectively. ILU is down over 3% this year, including today’s moves.
Finally, it seems global stocks are basking in a post-inauguration Trump glow, though the tariff uncertainty is weighing on the US dollar, keeping it pinned near two-week lows.
Stock specific, investors have cheered Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) earnings, with shares surging 14% in after-hours trade as the streaming giant added a record number of subscribers last quarter, enabling it to increase prices for most service plans in the United States and other countries, and gave a boost to Nasdaq futures.
Staying in the tech space, AI is set to get a funding boost as President Trump unveils an up to $500 billion private sector investment to fund infrastructure for artificial intelligence. Late last night Trump announced OpenAI, SoftBank and Oracle will form a joint venture called Stargate, which saw SoftBank shares surge 9% in Tokyo, while Oracle (NASDAQ: ORCL) gained 7% overnight.
Back to Asian equities, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 jumped 1.4% tracking broad gains on Wall Street, while MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside of Japan was relative flat as a slip in Chinese stocks offset broad gains in Taiwan and South Korea.
The big dollar eased overnight, as did the Euro, down from a three-week top, while the CAD, which had hit a five-year low on Tuesday, clawed back most of those losses and the Mexican Peso has edged 0.1% lower.
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