ASX rises 2.6pc; RBNZ sets stage for negative rates
Key Points
- Australian shares closed 2.4 per cent higher.
- Preliminary retail sales fall 4.2 per cent in August.
- The Reserve Bank of New Zealand has kept the cash rate steady at 0.25 per cent.
ASX soars to best session in two months
The Australian sharemarket has soared to its best session in two months on Wednesday, with a strong contribution from CSL and the major banks.
The S&P/ASX 200 Index advanced 139.8 points, or 2.4 per cent, to 5923.9, recovering all its losses from the previous three sessions.
CSL led the gains, adding 17.7 points to the index alone with its 3.8 per cent advance to $297.21.
Commonwealth Bank rose 1.9 per cent to $64.27, Transurban firmed 4.9 per cent to $14.44 and Woolworths added 3.8 per cent to $38.25.
Service Stream shares soared 14 per cent to $2.03, Eagers Automotive firmed 7.1 per cent to $9.72 and Flight Centre advanced 6.5 per cent to $13.68.
Northern Star Resources led the declines, falling 2.1 per cent to $13.61, Ramelius Resources dropped 7.3 per cent to $2.16 and Evolution Mining declined 0.7 per cent to $5.84.
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