Australian Markets Modestly Higher

(RTTNews) - The Australian stock market is modestly higher on Monday, reversing the losses in the previous session, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street on Friday. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index is moving up to near the 9,100.00 level, with gains in iron ore miners and technology stocks partially offset by weakness in energy and financial stocks.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is gaining 31.60 points or 0.35 percent to 9,090.50, after touching a high of 9,099.30 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 34.90 points or 0.38 percent to 9,304.60. Australian stocks closed modestly lower on Friday.

Among the major miners, Fortescue and Mineral Resources are gaining more than 2 percent each, while Rio Tinto is up more than 1 percent and BHP Group is adding more than 3 percent.

Oil stocks are mostly lower. Beach energy and Origin Energy are losing more than 1 percent each, while Woodside Energy is down almost 1 percent and Santos is slipping more than 2 percent.

Among tech stocks, Afterpay owner Block and Xero are gaining almost 2 percent each, while WiseTech Global is up almost 1 percent and Appen is advancing more than 2 percent, while Zip is losing more than 2 percent.

Gold miners are mixedc. Resolute Mining is losing more than 1 percent and Genesis Minerals is edging down 0.2 percent, while Newmont is gaining almost 2 percent and Evolution Mining is edging up 0.5 percent. Northern Star Resources is relatively flat.

Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank is declining almost 2 percent, while Westpac, National Australia Bank and ANZ Banking are losing almost 1 percent each. In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.717 on Monday.

On Wall Street, stocks moved back to the upside during trading on Friday following the sell-off seen during the previous session. The major averages all moved notably higher on the day, with the Dow showing a notable advance.

The major averages all ended the day in positive territory. The Dow jumped 517.80 points or 1 percent to 53,277.01, the Nasdaq climbed 113.29 points or 0.4 percent to 26,180.45 and the S&P 500 rose 33.21 points or 0.4 percent at 7,674.37.

The major European markets all also moved to the upside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index rose by 0.4 percent, the German DAX Index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index both climbed by 0.6 percent.

Crude oil prices edged higher on Friday as the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, heightening supply concerns. West Texas Intermediate crude for October delivery was up $0.44 or 0.51 percent at $87.27 per barrel.