Mar 09, 2022 02:45AM ET
By: AnalysisWatch
Australian shares rose after the close on Wednesday as gains in the IT, telecom services, and gold sectors drove stocks higher.
At the close in Sydney, the S & P/ASX 200 was up 1.04%.
Mesoblast Ltd. outperformed the S&P/ASX 200, rising 16.99%, or 0.18 points, to close at 1.21. Resolute Mining Ltd. rose 8.20%, or 0.03 points, to close at 0.33, and Gold Road Resources Ltd. rose 7.74%, or 0.13 points, to 1.81 in late trading.
Nickel Mines Ltd. was the worst performer, falling 22.71%, or 0.34 points, to close at 1.14. Boral Ltd fell 3.26%, or 0.11 points, to close at 3.26, and Altium Ltd fell 3.00%, or 0.97 points, to 31.41.
On the Sydney Stock Exchange, rising shares outweighed falling ones by 971 to 457, and 371 ended unchanged.
Boral Ltd shares fell 3.26%, or 0.11, to $3.26, a 52-week low. Shares of Gold Road Resources Ltd. rose to a 52-week high, up 7.74%, or 0.13, to 1.81.
The S&P/ASX 200 VIX, which measures implied volatility of S&P/ASX 200 options, fell 11.28% to 16.80.
Gold futures for April delivery rose 0.42%, or $8.50, to $2,051.80 per troy ounce.
Elsewhere in commodity trading, crude oil for April delivery rose 1.12%, or 1.39, to $125.09 a barrel, while the May contract for Brent oil rose 1.39%, or 1.78, to $129.76 a barrel.
The AUD/USD rate was unchanged at 0.73, while the AUD/JPY rate rose 0.55% to 84.50.
Futures for the US Dollar Index fell 0.10% to 98.98.