ASX 200 afternoon report: 9 November 2023

The ASX 200 trades 20 points (0.30%) higher at 7015 at 3.00 pm AEDT.

ASX 200 sheds October Blues with Wall Street rallying boost

A late rally on Wall Street has provided a tailwind for the ASX 200, allowing it to continue erasing the remnants of a dismal October. At this morning's peak of 7045, the ASX 200 was up almost 3.90% for November, following a 3.80% decline in October.

Fueling the rebound was last week's softer US economic activity and employment data, coupled with a more cautious stance from the Federal Reserve. This sentiment was echoed locally by the Reserve Bank of Australia's (RBA) dovish interest rate hike on Tuesday.

Today’s market movement

Health care sector

• CSL: +1.92% to $252.60, 10% above its $228.65 low last week
• Ansell added 1.17% to $23.00
• Bionic ear company Cochlear + 0.53% to $253.66

Financial sector

The financial sector outperformed, led by CBA.

• CBA: + 1.70% to $102.40
• Macquarie: +1.44% to $163.42, looking to build on its rebound from a 52-week low
• Westpac: - 1.82% to $21.31 after trading ex-dividend
• NAB: + 0.79% to $29.40 despite reporting a slightly lower-than-expected profit ($7.73bn vs $7.82 exp) and dividend (0.84c vs $0.85c exp)

Resource sector

Inflation in China fell by -0.2% YoY in October, reigniting fears of deflation in the world’s second-largest economy. Softer Chinese activity and inflation have raised the odds of additional government stimulus measures.

• Fortescue: +1.17% to $23.37
• Mineral Resources: + 0.96% to $59.81
• Rio Tinto: + 0.71% to $120.22
• BHP: + 0.58% to $44.96

IT sector

The IT sector snapped a six-day winning streak falling 4.35%. Behind the move was an earning miss from Xero.

• Xero: -12.06% to $100.90
• ZIP: - 6.33% to $0.37c
• Humm Group: - 1.18% to $0.42c
• Wisetech Global: -1.26% to $62.84

Energy sector

With two sessions left to go, crude oil is on track for its second consecutive weekly fall of more than 5%, after closing at $75.33 overnight. This week’s sell-off in crude oil is a reaction to China’s soft trade data on Tuesday that inflamed concerns around global growth.

• Beach Energy: -1.14% to $1.52
• Woodside Energy: - 0.84% to $33.07
• Santos: - 0.27% to $7.31

ASX 200 technical analysis

Last week, the ASX 200 closed above 6950, which negated the technical damage following October's sell-off. If the ASX 200 can close above resistance at 7000/10 today, it will provide a platform for the index to test the 200-day moving average at 7200, with scope to range highs at 7400.

You can watch our video review of this week's RBA rate hike, and what comes next for the ASX 200 here.

ASX 200 daily chart

• _{TradingView: the figures stated are as of 9 November 2023. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. This report does not contain and is not to be taken as containing any financial product advice or financial product recommendation.}