Even as fragile ceasefire efforts in the Middle East unraveled just 24 hours after they were struck, Australia’s benchmark share market managed to hold onto a mild upward trajectory in Thursday’s trading session. New cross-border strikes against Lebanon renewed geopolitical uncertainty across global markets, but the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) still closed out the day with small incremental gains, bucking fears of a broader downturn.
The benchmark ASX 200 index added 21.4 points, or 0.24 percent, to close at 8,973.20, while the wider All Ordinaries index edged up 3.2 points to finish at 9,168.90. Of the 11 major industry sectors tracked on the exchange, only four closed with positive gains, led by a massive 2.58 percent surge in the energy sector. On the opposite end of the spectrum, the information technology sector recorded a steep 6.46 percent drop, erasing most of the prior day’s strong rally.
Market analyst Tony Sycamore of IG explained that a rebound in global crude oil prices triggered the sharp pullback in tech stocks. “The rebound in crude oil prices has weighed heavily on the ASX200 Tech sector, which has given back almost all of yesterday’s impressive 7.31% gain,” Sycamore noted. Global benchmark oil prices climbed 2.4 percent to settle at $US97.06 a barrel, reversing the previous day’s downward movement as geopolitical instability in the oil-rich Middle East erased hopes of falling energy costs.
The day’s biggest losing stock was logistics tech firm WiseTech Global, which plummeted 10.9 percent to close at $38.62 per share. By contrast, major Australian energy firms posted robust double-digit and single-digit gains. Woodside Energy rose 3.96 percent to $33.33, while Santos gained 2.45 percent to $7.95. Refiners and retailers Ampol and Viva Energy closed up 3.46 percent and 3.31 percent respectively, boosted by a federal government announcement that Export Finance Australia had finalized terms to support increased fuel imports into Australia.
Regional lender Bendigo and Adelaide Bank emerged as one of the top-performing financial stocks of the day, jumping 8.41 percent after announcing two new partnerships with tech firms that will cut annual operating costs by $65 million via workforce reductions. The bank also reported stronger-than-expected cash profits for the March 2025 quarter, coming in $138 million above analyst consensus forecasts. Australia’s big four retail banks also posted mild positive growth: National Australia Bank led the group with a 2.18 percent gain to $45.50, ANZ climbed 1.07 percent to $38.75, Westpac added 1.67 percent to $42.65, and Commonwealth Bank rose 1.29 percent to $182.53.
Against the US dollar, the Australian dollar held steady through the session’s volatility, ending trading flat at 70.3 US cents.