Australian shares have lifted following the release of the Reserve Bank of Australia’s minutes, but the market remains in negative territory.
The S&P/ASX200 was around 0.5 per cent lower in early afternoon trade after opening 0.97 per cent lower on Tuesday.
“We’ve had a bit of a rebound,” Australian Stock Report analyst Benny Sada said.
“We’ve had a rally off the lows.
“So far so good, we might end up in positive (territory) by the end of the day.”
Mr Sada said healthcare stocks and Telstra had helped drive the rebound.
Telstra shares were up 2.5 cents at $4.94, while pharmaceutical giant CSL gained 79 cents, or 1.23 per cent, at $65.09.
“The defensive sector of the market has really driven the rebound,” he said.
“That’s where the strength is in the market.”
However, the resources giants were in negative territory, with BHP Billiton shedding 30 cents at $36.74, Rio Tinto was down 50.5 cents at $59.64, and Fortescue Metals was down four cents at $4.01.
Despite posting a $694.7 million net loss, steel and iron ore business Arrium was 12.75 cents, or 12.94 per cent, higher at $$1.12.
Mr Sada said the minutes from the RBA’s August 6 board meeting – which do not rule out more interest rate cuts after it slashed the cash rate to a record low of 2.5 per cent – have had a positive effect.
“The RBA minutes basically offered a relatively pessimistic outlook for the economy, which suggests there may be further rate cuts on the horizon,” Mr Sada said.
“That’s being reflected in the high-yield space in the market.”
There were mixed performances from the big four banks, with ANZ up 19 cents at $29.63, while Commonwealth Bank was down 32 cents at $70.83, and Westpac shed 18 cents at $31.39.
National Australia Bank was up 25 cents at $31.61 after it posted a $1.7 billion net profit for the three months to June.
KEY FACTS
* At 1230 AEST on Tuesday, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was down 25.9 points, or 0.51 per cent, at 5,086.6 points.
* The broader All Ordinaries index was 26.1 points lower, or 0.51 per cent, at 5,076.2 points.
* The September share price index futures contract was down 26 points at 5062 points, with 15,346 contracts traded.
* National turnover was 670 million securities worth $1.7 billion.
