The Australian market is experiencing mild gains on Thursday, regaining some ground after losses in the previous two trading days. This recovery follows a general positive sentiment from Wall Street overnight. Currently, the S&P/ASX 200 is slightly above the 8,200 mark, with investors exercising caution amid rising tensions in the Middle East following Iran's ballistic missile strike on Israel.
The S&P/ASX 200 Index is up 9.70 points, or 0.12%, at 8,207.90 after reaching a high of 8,221.70 earlier. The All Ordinaries Index has increased by 9.10 points, or 0.11%, to 8,479.00. On Wednesday, Australian stocks closed the day with slight losses.
In the mining sector, Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals have seen a modest rise between 0.1% to 0.4%, while BHP Group has gained over 1%. Conversely, Mineral Resources has dipped by 0.2%.
Oil stocks are mostly in decline. Woodside Energy, Santos, and Origin Energy have decreased by 0.1% to 0.5% each, whereas Beach Energy remains unchanged.
The technology sector is also facing downturns, with Block, which owns Afterpay, and Appen both dropping over 1%, while Xero and Zip are slightly down between 0.1% and 0.4%. WiseTech Global has decreased by nearly 1%.
In the banking sector, Commonwealth Bank and National Australia Bank see minor gains of 0.2% to 0.5% each. Westpac, however, is down more than 1%, and ANZ Banking has edged down by 0.2%.
Gold miners display mixed performances: Evolution Mining is slightly down by 0.3%, Resolute Mining by more than 1%, and Northern Star Resources by almost 1%. On the other hand, Gold Road Resources is up 0.1%, and Newmont has gained nearly 1%.
On the economic front, Judo Bank's latest survey indicates that Australia's services sector continued to expand in September, albeit more slowly, with a PMI of 50.5, down from August's 52.5. Despite this decline, the index remains above 50, the threshold for expansion. However, the composite index has slipped into contraction territory with a PMI of 49.6 in September, down from 51.7 in August.
In the currency market, the Australian dollar currently stands at $0.688.
In the U.S., Wall Street experienced fluctuations throughout the session on Wednesday, recovering from an early downturn to close slightly higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average inched up by 39.55 points, or 0.1%, to 42,196.52, the Nasdaq rose by 14.76 points, or 0.1%, to 17,925.12, and the S&P 500 edged up by 0.79 points, or less than 0.1%, to 5,709.54.
European markets concluded the day on a mixed note. The German DAX Index declined by 0.3%, while the French CAC 40 Index saw a slight increase of 0.1%, and the UK's FTSE 100 Index rose by 0.2%.
On the commodities front, crude oil prices saw a modest rise on Wednesday as traders anticipate a potential drop in supplies due to the ongoing Middle Eastern tensions. West Texas Intermediate crude futures for November finished up by $0.27, or 0.39%, at $70.10 a barrel.