Sydney, June 17, 2026, 07:01 (AEST)
- Woolworths closed at A$38.26 on Tuesday, edging 0.03% higher just before the ASX opened for Wednesday trade.
- The S&P/ASX 200 closed barely changed at 8,917.70 on Tuesday as the RBA left rates steady at 4.35%.
- Woolworths’ latest filings were just standard securities disclosures. Market focus remains on how its food sales are tracking, margin performance, and any cost pressure tied to fuel.
Woolworths Group Ltd traded flat into the ASX pre-open on Wednesday. The shares finished Tuesday at A$38.26, up 0.03%. There was no new price-sensitive news from the company. Its own site listed an intraday range from A$37.88 to A$38.29 late Tuesday.
This is key because the market isn’t open for regular trading yet. ASX cash equities sit in pre-open from 0700 to 0959 Sydney time. Normal trading only starts near 0959:45, so Woolworths is still priced at Tuesday’s close.
S&P/ASX 200 edged up 0.04% to close at 8,917.70 on Tuesday. The Reserve Bank of Australia kept its cash rate at 4.35% and said it might tighten again if inflation doesn’t ease.
Supermarkets feel the impact from rates and inflation in household budgets, energy bills, wage costs, and on price discounting. Deloitte Access Economics partner Stephen Smith said the RBA faced “a very cloudy outlook” as it weighed whether policy needed to be tighter or just left steady. Reuters
Woolworths filed two notices with the ASX on Monday, one about unquoted securities and the other about securities ceasing. The company did not flag either as price sensitive, meaning they weren’t expected to shift the stock.
Woolworths’ grocery turnaround remains the focus. The company said in April that group sales hit A$18.10 billion for the 13 weeks to April 5, beating Visible Alpha consensus. Shares fell anyway after Woolworths lowered its outlook for Australian Food earnings growth, blaming fuel costs and customer-retention spending.
Woolworths CEO Amanda Bardwell said at the time the Middle East conflict was starting to weigh on customers and staff, who were already feeling cost-of-living pressures. Woolworths also announced a three-month price freeze on 300 staple products from May 1, saying it would take on supplier cost hikes over that period.
Woolworths’ stock had built a base in the first half. The company reported an underlying net profit of A$859 million and set a 45 Australian cent interim dividend. Australian Food sales were up 5.8% in the first seven weeks of the second half. RBC Capital Markets analyst Michael Toner said the first-half Australian Food sales line was “the strongest number we have seen in some time from WOW.” Reuters
Coles Group finished Tuesday at A$23.43, off 0.3% on the day. The move leaves it nearly in line with rival Woolworths, keeping the pressure on both supermarket chains. Together, Coles and Woolworths account for roughly two-thirds of the country’s grocery market. Small moves in prices, deals or shopper numbers can make a difference in who comes out ahead.
The risk is clear. If fuel, freight or supplier costs go up faster than shelf prices, Woolworths’ price freezes and promos could help sales but hurt margins. If rates stay high, shoppers might keep trading down, and Coles could keep pushing on price. Until Woolworths’ next trading update, the market is likely to stick to the same main questions: sales momentum, margin discipline, and how much inflation is still in grocery.
