Latest news with #US3400
The Age
11 hours ago
- Business
- The Age
ASX edges lower after Trump's Tehran warning; Gold, uranium stocks advance
The Australian sharemarket was treading cautiously on Tuesday after US President Donald Trump called for the evacuation of Tehran, in comments that contrasted with earlier optimism that Israel's war against Iran wouldn't escalate into a wider conflict. Swinging between minor gains and losses, the S&P/ASX 200 was down 10.8 points, or 0.1 per cent, at 8537.20 as of 1.31pm AEST. It had added just 1 point on Monday. The Australian dollar was up 0.1 per cent at US65.31¢ at lunchtime. US futures were down and oil climbed almost 2 per cent following Trump's comments in a social media post from the Group of Seven leaders' summit in Alberta, Canada. It wasn't clear what he was referring to but hours earlier, Trump had said Iran wanted to make a deal, sparking hopes the fighting could remain contained and pushing Wall Street higher in its session overnight. Trump earlier said Iran wanted to talk about de-escalating the conflict with Israel even as the two sides exchanged fire for the fourth consecutive day. Asked if the US would get more involved militarily, the US leader said he didn't want to discuss it. However, he is cutting short his visit to the G7, according to the White House, and returning to Washington. From the world stage back to the local sharemarket, miners, tech and energy stocks gained, holding up the ASX, while the big four banks and utilities were down. Loading Gold miners rose as Trump's warning boosted demand for havens. Bullion rose as much as 0.4 per cent to top $US3400 an ounce, following a 1.4 per cent slide on Monday, which was the biggest daily decline in a month. Northern Star Resources shares rose 2.1 per cent, Evolution Mining gained 1 per cent and Newmont Corporation gained 2.7 per cent. The iron ore heavyweights were mixed, with BHP down 0.5 per cent, while Fortescue and Rio Tinto up 0.1 per cent and 0.2 per cent, respectively. A rally in uranium producers boosted the energy sector after Canadian asset manager Sprott said it would buy some $US200 million ($306 million) worth of the metal for its dedicated physical uranium trust. Paladin Energy climbed 6.2 per cent, Boss Energy gained 6.1 per cent and Deep Energy jumped 8.6 per cent.
Perth Now
22-04-2025
- Business
- Perth Now
Gold shines as share safe haven after Trump Fed threat
Australian shares have edged slightly lower as investors fled from US equities to the safe haven of gold following President Donald Trump's comments threatening to sack "loser" central bank boss Jerome Powell. After falling almost one per cent in early trading, goldminers led a recovery in the S&P/ASX200 to be down 8.5 points, or 0.11 per cent, to 7810.6 by noon on Tuesday. The broader All Ordinaries fell 13.6 points, or 0.17 per cent, to 8008.3. Australian investors initially took their lead from risk-off sentiment on Wall Street overnight. All three US equity indexes lurched more than two per cent lower, while bonds and the US dollar also tumbled, after Mr Trump ramped up pressure on Federal Reserve Chair Powell to lower interest rates. The US economy was headed for a slowdown "unless Mr Too Late, a major loser, lowers interest rates NOW," Mr Trump said in a Truth Social post that heightened fears over the central bank's autonomy. Gold prices surged as investors on a "buyer's strike" of US equities sought a safe haven, said Moomoo Australia market strategist Jessica Amir. "Investor sentiment is sour, evidenced in burgeoning cash balances and hoarding of gold," she said. "That's a good thing for those investors as gold continues to surge to highs, charging above $US3400 - taking this year's gains to 30 per cent - with more room to run." Australian-listed goldminers soared, helping the materials sector post a 0.08 per cent gain. Goldminers Northern Star (2.4 per cent), Evolution (3.8 per cent) and St Barbara (11.5 per cent) were among the best performers. The rest of the big cap miners were mixed, with BHP and Rio Tinto up 0.2 per cent, while Fortescue Metals slipped 0.5 per cent. Of the remaining 10 industrial sectors on the ASX, consumer staples (0.09 per cent) and financials (0.49 per cent) also gained while the rest turned lower. Macquarie Group climbed 1.1 per cent to $181.94 after the financial conglomerate announced it would sell off its North American and European public investments business to Japanese investment bank Nomura. The $2.8 billion deal will see Macquarie's asset management arm relinquish its international equities, fixed income, and multi-asset investments as it concentrates its focus on the Australian market. CBA led the big four banks, climbing 1.3 per cent, while Westpac rose 0.6 per cent and NAB firmed 0.1 per cent. ANZ slipped 0.3 per cent. Energy and IT stocks were the biggest losers. Uranium miner Deep Yellow slumped 6.6 per cent after announcing it would delay development of its flagship Tumas project in Namibia due to depressed uranium prices. "We are at an extraordinary stage in the uranium supply sector," said CEO John Borshoff. "We have a situation where the long-term uranium market is essentially broken. "This is due to more than a decade of sector inactivity, persistently depressed uranium prices, and utility offtake contracting practices which are yet to support the development of greenfields uranium production." The Australian dollar climbed to its highest level against the greenback since December following the US sell-off over the weekend. It was buying 64.15 US cents, up from 63.41 US cents at 5pm on Thursday.
