S&P/ASX 200

Australia Job Ads Volume Continues to Decline But at a Slower Pace, Seek Says

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 Wednesday Seek employment report.While the number of job ads continues to fall nationally, the pace of decline has slowed over recent months. At the same time, applications per ad have grown consistently since January and are now at their highest point on record, Seek said.Western Australia, South Australia, and Victoria all posted a rise in job ad volumes month over month in July, with Victoria recording its first monthly rise in a year.A growing number of industries posted an increase in job ad volumes in July, with engineering, construction and mining, resources and energy seeing the highest demand, according to the report.Seek said references to artificial intelligence skills in job ads increased more than 60% in the past year, although they are only present in just over 2% of total ads. Meanwhile, job ads for data center roles have doubled over the past year, notably surging around 248% year over year in South Australia.

Australia's Central Bank to Remain Watchful as Inflation Risks Still Skewed to the Upside, NAB Says

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) will remain watchful after leaving its cash rate unchanged at 4.35% as risks to inflation are still skewed to the upside, National Australia Bank (NAB) said in a Wednesday report.The decision to hold borrowing costs steady was expected, and the central bank maintained its expectations for core inflation to return to within the target range in the second half of 2027, NAB said.In June, the RBA board stated that "growth in demand needs to slow" to ensure inflation returns to the target band, while the latest statement from the August meeting said "growth in aggregate demand needs to remain subdued."This marks "an interesting shift" in the board's assessment, NAB said, adding that one interpretation of the change in language might be that the board believes no further slowing is required, just a steady quarterly run-rate of economic growth around 0.3% to 0.4% through to mid-2027.NAB continues to expect the central bank to remain on hold through the rest of the year before implementing a downward cash rate move around the middle of next year.

ASX Midday Sector Update: Utilities Stocks Jump, Consumer Discretionary Sector Struggles

Utilities stocks advanced nearly 3% at midday Wednesday.Origin Energy (ASX:ORG) gained more than 3% in recent trade.Meanwhile, the consumer discretionary sector struggled, shedding more than 1%.Wesfarmers (ASX:WES) shares fell nearly 1% in recent trade.

ASX Preview: Australian Shares to Fall as Gold Slips Ahead of US Inflation Data; Commonwealth Bank of Australia Fiscal H2 Cash Earnings, Total Net Operating Income Up

Australian shares are poised to fall on Wednesday, tracking a softer gold price as investors await key US inflation data that could shape expectations for the Federal Reserve's policy path.Overnight, the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average each fell 0.3%, while the Nasdaq Composite declined 0.6%.In the macroeconomy, investors are eyeing Reserve Bank of Australia Assistant Governor Christopher Kent's speech on Thursday.In corporate news, Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX:CBA) reported Wednesday fiscal second-half cash earnings of AU$3.307 per share on total net operating income of AU$15.15 billion, compared with cash earnings of AU$3.252 on total net operating income of AU$15 billion a year earlier.Suncorp Group (ASX:SUN) reported Wednesday fiscal second-half cash earnings of AU$0.7039 per share on gross written premium of AU$7.72 billion, compared with cash earnings of AU$0.5752 on gross written premium of AU$7.52 billion a year earlier.Australia's benchmark index rose 0.2%, or 18 points, to close at 9,250.60 on Tuesday.

RBA Statement Remains Hawkish, Cash Rate May Have Peaked, Says ANZ

ANZ said the tone of the Reserve Bank of Australia's post-meeting statement remains hawkish on the inflation front, with the bank's expectation that the cash rate has peaked, although some risk of a final rate hike in November remains, according to a Tuesday note by the bank.The bank said RBA staff are expecting trimmed mean inflation to average 0.8% quarter on quarter over the third and fourth quarters, but the trend in monthly trimmed mean suggests a slightly higher third quarter outcome is possible.Given the end-point trimmed mean inflation forecast of 2.4%, the board may have some tolerance for a small inflation miss in the third quarter, while the RBA appears hopeful on the housing market, noting that momentum has shifted with prices falling in some capital cities and new housing loans declining noticeably, ANZ added.

Australian Shares Finish Higher; SGH Fiscal 2026 Underlying EPS, Revenue Down

Australian shares ended slightly higher on Tuesday after the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) decided to leave the cash rate unchanged for the second time.The S&P/ASX 200 Index closed 0.2% higher, or by 18 points, at 9,250.60.Brent crude futures ​rose to trade around $88 per barrel as uncertainty continues over a potential deal that would reopen the Strait of Hormuz for shipping.In domestic news, the RBA decided to leave the cash rate target unchanged at 4.35%, saying that while the economy appears to be slowing as expected after three rate lifts since the beginning of 2026, inflation remains too high and is not expected to return to around the midpoint of the target range until late 2027.Australian consumer confidence rose 0.3 points in the week of Aug. 3 to 9 to 75 points, reaching a relatively steady state, ANZ said. The four-week moving average eased 0.1 points to 74.1 points.Business confidence in Australia fell 1 point to negative 6 in July, as uncertainty over the Middle East conflict and oil prices continued to weigh on the business outlook, National Australia Bank said.In company news, SGH (ASX:SGH) logged AU$2.25 in underlying EPS for fiscal 2026, compared with AU$2.26 a year ago. For the 12 months ended June 30, revenue was AU$10.59 billion versus AU$10.74 billion previously.Santos (ASX:STO) dispatched the first 450,000-barrel cargo of Alaska North Slope crude from its Pikka phase one development, loaded aboard the Polar Resolution at the Valdez Marine Terminal for delivery to US West Coast refineries.Lastly, Austal (ASX:ASB) received a non-binding, conditional proposal from a unit of South Korea's Hanwha Group to acquire its US operations for an indicative enterprise value of up to $1.2 billion.

RBA Press Conference: A Little Bit Less Tightness in the Labor Market is Needed to Bring Inflation Down; Slowed-Down Growth Means Monetary Policy is Working

RBA Press Conference: Arguments in Favor of a Rate Hike Were Elevated Inflation, Continued Middle East Conflict

RBA Press Conference: Excess Capacity, Tight Labor Market, Middle East Conflict, AI Boom Remain Priority in Terms of Risks to Inflation Outlook; Housing Not Included

RBA Press Conference: Monetary Policy Board Did Not Discuss an Interest Rate Cut at August Meeting, Only Raise and Hold

RBA Press Conference: This was the Last Meeting for Non-Executive Monetary Policy Member Ian Harper

Business Confidence in Australia Falls in July Amid Middle East Uncertainty, NAB Says

Business confidence in Australia fell 1 point to negative 6 in July, as uncertainty over the Middle East conflict and oil prices continued to weigh on the business outlook, National Australia Bank (ASX:NAB) said in a Tuesday report.Business conditions rose by 1 point to 4 index points, driven by modest improvements in profitability and employment.Confidence rose across most Australian states in July, led by sharp gains in South Australia and Tasmania, while business conditions strengthened significantly in Victoria and Western Australia.The July survey shows that measures of cost and price growth rose, but remained well below the pace seen at the peak of the Middle East conflict in March.Businesses continue to face mounting cost pressures, with labor costs rising to their highest level since January 2025 and purchase and product prices returning to pre-conflict levels.Capacity utilization rose sharply in July, climbing 0.9 percentage points to 83%, while mixed signals from capital spending intentions and forward orders pointed to continued weakness in the outlook.

Restrictive Rates, Tax Policy Changes, Global Uncertainty Dampen Australian Housing Market Sentiment, ANZ Says

The combination of restrictive interest rates, recent tax policy changes, and global uncertainty have dampened sentiment in Australia's housing market, ANZ Research said in a note on Tuesday.Housing prices in Sydney and Melbourne declined slightly more than forecasted, and prices in Brisbane and Perth started falling earlier than expected since June.Auction clearance rates are "very soft," coming in below 50% for the past 10 weeks across the capitals of Australian states and territories, ANZ noted. The bank now expects capital city housing prices to fall 4.3% in 2026 and 3.4% in 2027, compared with its previously forecasted declines of 2.1% in 2026 and 3.3% in 2027.This would result in a peak-to-trough decline of almost 11% across the capital cities, ANZ said.Housing credit growth is expected to moderate to 2.2% year over year by early 2028, with annual growth in investor credit turning negative by late 2027, per the report.

Reserve Bank of Australia Maintains Cash Rate at 4.35%

The Reserve Bank of Australia decided to leave the cash rate target unchanged at 4.35%, saying that while the economy appears to be slowing as expected after three rate lifts since the beginning of 2026, inflation remains too high and is not expected to return to around the midpoint of the target range until late 2027, according to a Tuesday statement by the central bank.The central bank said the board decided to leave the cash rate unchanged while it assesses how the economy is evolving, but will continue to do what it considers necessary to bring inflation sustainably back to target, including increasing the cash rate further if upside risks materialize.The RBA said disruption to global oil supply is adding directly to inflation, with higher fuel prices being passed through to the prices of other goods and services. This means inflation is likely to remain high for some time, in addition to the effect of capacity pressures in the economy.The RBA said resolution of the Middle East conflict remains uncertain, and global oil supply is expected to take time to recover, maintaining upward pressure on energy prices and inflation, while a period of prolonged uncertainty may also weigh on growth overseas and in Australia.

Reserve Bank of Australia Leaves Cash Rate Target Unchanged at 4.35%

RBA Widely Expected to Hold Cash Rate Steady at 4.35% in August, Commonwealth Bank Says

Money markets and economists are nearly agreed that the Reserve Bank of Australia's (RBA) monetary policy board will hold the cash rate steady at 4.35% on Tuesday, the last day of its two-day August meeting, according to a same-day note from the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.Quarterly trimmed mean inflation, RBA's preferred measure, is above its 2% to 3% target range, at 3.6%. But the June data was lower than the 3.8% figure forecast by the RBA in May.The re-escalation in the conflict in the Middle East also risked reigniting inflation after it eased in June, according to the lender's head of Australian economics Belinda Allen.The weaker demand environment will also give businesses less scope to pass on higher costs, Allen added.

ASX Midday Sector Update: Energy Stocks Jump, Consumer Staples Sector Struggles

Energy stocks jumped more than 3% at midday Tuesday.Woodside Energy Group (ASX:WDS) gained over 3% in recent trade.On the flip side, the consumer staples sector struggled, shedding nearly 1%.Woolworths Group (ASX:WOW) shares fell 1% in recent trade.

Australian Consumer Confidence Rises, Reaches 'Relatively Steady' State, ANZ Says

Australian consumer confidence rose 0.3 points in the week of Aug. 3 to 9 to 75 points, reaching a relatively steady state, according to a Tuesday note from ANZ.The four-week moving average eased 0.1 points to 74.1 points.Weekly inflation expectations fell 0.2 percentage points to 5.7%, while the four-week moving average was unchanged at 5.7%.Current financial conditions over the last year increased 0.2 points to 65.4, while financial conditions over the next 12 months declined 1.5 points to 82.4.The decline in households' confidence in the 12-month outlook for their finances and the rise in inflation expectations may have been due to a pick-up in petrol prices, ANZ economist Madeline Dunk said.Short-term economic confidence over the next 12 months was up 2.7 points to 69.5, while medium-term economic confidence over the next five years rose 2.1 points to 82.3.The "time to buy a major household item" sub-index fell 1.9 points to 75.7, per the report.

ASX Preview: Australian Shares to Fall as Oil Surges; SGH Fiscal 2026 Underlying Earnings, Revenue Down

Australian shares are poised to fall on Tuesday as oil prices surged 5% after Iran and the US traded demands for compensation, reducing hopes of a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and raising concerns over tighter global energy supplies.Overnight, the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average each fell 0.1%, while the Nasdaq Composite declined 0.3%.In the macroeconomy, investors are eyeing the Reserve Bank of Australia's interest rate decision.In corporate news, SGH (ASX:SGH) reported Tuesday fiscal 2026 underlying earnings of AU$2.25 per share on revenue of AU$10.59 billion, compared with underlying earnings of AU$2.26 on revenue of AU$10.74 billion a year earlier.Life360 (ASX:360) reported Tuesday second quarter earnings of $0.06 per share on revenue of $159 million, compared with earnings of $0.08 on revenue of $115.4 million a year earlier.Australia's benchmark index fell 0.3%, or 31 points, to close at 9,232.60 on Monday.