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Woodside and Santos production results boost Aussie share market

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The Australian share market closed at a two-month high, boosted by good production reports from oil and gas producers Woodside Petroleum and Santos.

The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index rose 83.1 points, or 2.02 per cent, to 4,206.7 points, while the broader All Ordinaries index was up 80.0 points, or 1.92 per cent, at 4,236.4 points.

On the ASX 24, the September share price index futures contract was 72 points higher at 4,164 points, with 27,029 contracts traded, according to preliminary calculations.

OptionsXpress market analyst Ben Le Brun said the Australian market was going gangbusters for a change, led by the energy sector.

“It’s led by the energy sector on the back of those production results from Woodside and Santos,” Mr Le Brun said.

Mr Le Brun said the local bourse had continued to make gains from a good start, prompted by a positive lead from the United States.

Wall Street overnight rose on the back of a rise in US housing starts, solid corporate earnings and a report from the US Federal Reserve that detected signs of mild growth in the economy.

On the Australian market, oil and gas producer Woodside Petroleum soared $2.29, or 7.54 per cent, to $32.67 after posting a 43 per cent surge in second quarter production and raising its full-year production target.

Santos surged 59 cents, or 5.84 per cent, to $10.69 after posting gains in quarterly production of nine per cent and revenue growth of 18 per cent.

Global miner BHP Billiton climbed 92 cents to $31.10 and Rio Tinto ascended 58 cents to $53.36.

Among the major banks, Westpac strengthened 36 cents to $22.95, ANZ added 27 cents at $23.23, National Australia Bank gained 31 cents to $24.08 and Commonwealth Bank picked up 65 cents to $55.90.

Fairfax Media was steady at 56.5 cents after appointing Hungry Jack’s founder and Gina Rinehart ally Jack Cowin to the board as an independent director.

Seven West Media shares sagged seven cents to $1.45 on resumption of trading, following the completion of the institutional investor offer stage of its $440 million capital raising to pay down debt.

National turnover was 1.49 billion securities worth $4.56 billion, with 529 stocks up, 349 down and 341 unchanged.