Australian shares fell on Wednesday, led downwards by the financial sector, as investors await US consumer price index data for a signal on a potential Federal Reserve rate hike.
The S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 0.45%, or by 41.20 points, to close at 9,209.40.
Brent crude futures rose to trade around $89 per barrel. The US military said it had disabled the steering gear of a cargo ship attempting to violate a blockade of Iranian ports.
Spot gold rose nearly 0.5% to $4,387.03 per ounce.
Overnight on Wall Street, the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average each fell 0.3%, while the Nasdaq Composite declined 0.6%.
On the domestic front, the volume of job ads in Australia declined 0.4% in July from the previous month, driven mainly by weaker demand in New South Wales, according to a Seek employment report.
In company news, Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX:CBA) logged AU$3.307 in cash earnings per share for the fiscal second-half, compared with AU$3.252 a year ago. For the six months ended June 30, total net operating income was AU$15.15 billion versus AU$15 billion previously.
Suncorp Group (ASX:SUN) logged AU$0.7039 per share in cash earnings for the second half of fiscal 2026, compared with AU$0.5752 a year ago. For the six months ended June 30, gross written premium was AU$7.72 billion versus AU$7.52 billion previously.
Lastly, AGL Energy (ASX:AGL) logged AU$0.937 in underlying earnings per diluted share for fiscal 2026, compared with AU$0.952 a year ago. For the 12 months ended June 30, revenue was AU$13.59 billion versus AU$14.34 billion previously.