A modest rally among banking and energy stocks has lifted the share market.
After a subdued open to trade there was a positive swing in the afternoon, Patersons Securities associate director Mark Goulopoulos said.
“The banks were all positive and extending their gains, up consistently this week after hitting lows at the end of last week,” he said.
Commonwealth Bank rose 23 cents to $76.37, National Australia Bank climbed 25 cents to $27.92 and Westpac lifted 22 cents to $32.74, while ANZ dropped seven cents to $25.42.
Energy stocks made up lost ground throughout the day, including Woodside Petroleum which went from red to green, adding eight cents to $26.76.
Origin Energy slipped one cent to $5.07 and Santos gained three cents to $3.86.
BHP Billiton fell nine cents to $17.61 and Rio Tinto dropped 16 cents to $44.57.
Gold was a standout performer in the wake of the European Central Bank’s stimulus announcement.
“Generally speaking, further stimulus tends to devalue currencies and in that environment gold becomes more attractive,” Mr Goulopoulos said.
Newcrest Mining jumped 56 cents, or 3.3 per cent, to $17.50 and Evolution Mining soared eight cents, or five per cent, to $1.685.
Mr Goulopoulos said the long-term impact of the ECB’s decision on Australia would be minor.
“You’ve got Europe and Japan stimulating heavily via their central banks, the US is going in the opposite direction and Australia is caught in between.”
KEY FACTS:
* At 1615 AEDT, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was up 16.3 points, or 0.32 per cent, at 5,166.4 points.
* The broader All Ordinaries index was up 13.9 points, or 0.27 per cent, at 5,224.8 points.
* The March share price index futures contract was up 12 points at 5,170 points, with 41,890 contracts traded.
* National turnover was 1.74 billion securities traded, worth $3.84 billion.
