Sydney, March 6, 2026, 04:09 AEDT
- ASX 200 climbed 0.4% to finish at 8,940, halting a two-day losing streak.
- Tech and healthcare shares climbed; materials trailed.
- New household spending figures showed consumers are treading carefully.
Australian stocks finished Thursday in the green, recouping part of their earlier slump from this week. Gains in tech and healthcare helped lift the S&P/ASX 200, which settled 0.4% higher at 8,940. Energy also edged up.
The rebound came after the local market’s sharp fall from record highs, as traders pulled back on bets for risk assets and oil prices wavered. “The market appears content to take the de-escalation narrative at face value for now,” IG analyst Tony Sycamore wrote in a note late in the day. IG
Offshore momentum played a role. U.S. stocks ended higher on Wednesday, buoyed by news that Iran may be open to negotiations. Tech shares shouldered most of the gains. Investors remain wary of inflation pressures tied to rising energy prices.
Oil remained in focus. Brent climbed over 3% Thursday, as supply jitters flared up with the Iran conflict spreading. That move kept inflation expectations elevated and tossed another variable into the mix for equity players.
Bulls hoping to see a rebound in consumer strength found scant encouragement in the local data. A seasonally adjusted ABS indicator—already scrubbed for calendar quirks—showed household spending ticking up just 0.3% in January after dropping 0.5% in December. Services drove the modest gain, according to ABS official Tom Lay, who said spending “returned to growth in January.” Australian Bureau of Statistics
After a run of declines, banks bounced back, sending the financials sub-index into positive territory. National Australia Bank, Commonwealth Bank, Westpac, and ANZ all traded higher through the session.
Materials stood out, slipping into the red while every other sector posted gains. Dividend rules factored in: BHP went ex-dividend on the ASX Thursday, so buyers from here miss out on the upcoming payment—a typical weight on large-cap stocks near ex-date.
The S&P/ASX 200, tracked by institutional players as Australia’s key benchmark, pulls together the 200 biggest float-adjusted stocks listed on the Australian Securities Exchange.
Still, the rebound’s on shaky ground. If tensions flare and energy prices stay high, worries over persistent inflation could return, delaying hopes for rate cuts—a scenario that usually hits rate-sensitive stocks hardest.
