A sharp rally in technology stocks led the Australian sharemarket to its sixth consecutive session of gains, tracking a dramatic reversal on Wall Street overnight.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index added 0.2 per cent, or 19.4 points, to 8145.6 at the closing bell, buoyed by nine out of the 11 sectors, and extending its two-month high. The All Ordinaries lifted 0.3 per cent.

Sentiment was buoyed by a late rally on Wall Street that pushed the S&P 500 higher at the close. The gauge initially sank as much as 2 per cent after a quarterly GDP report showed the US economy contracted for the first time since 2022, but a separate report showed the Federal Reserve’s preferred gauge of inflation stagnated in March, raising the prospect of a rate cut.

“A lot of different themes came through in the market action today. But the biggest of all is a stark concern about global growth,” noted Michael McCarthy, chief executive of trading platform MooMoo.

US futures were pointing higher after tech giants Microsoft and Meta posted better-than-expected quarterly earnings results, sending Microsoft’s shares up almost 7 per cent in after hours trading.

That helped lift the ASX tech sector, which jumped 4 per cent. WiseTech rallied 6.6 per cent to $94.37 and Xero jumped 3.2 per cent to $169.51.

Data centre stocks in particular were well bid after Microsoft and Meta suggested a ramp-up of investment. NextDC rose 4.6 per cent to $12.37, DigiCo Infrastructure REIT gained 6.3 per cent to $2.86 and Goodman Group advanced 3.4 per cent to $31.

Stocks on the move

Meanwhile, mining giants tracked a lower iron ore price on weak Chinese factory activity. BHP retreated 0.9 per cent to $37.83 and Rio Tinto 1 per cent to $115.90. Singapore’s benchmark iron ore contract dropped 1.5 per cent to $US94.85 a tonne.

A weaker oil price with global benchmark Brent falling to $US61 a barrel also weighed on the energy sector. Oil and gas giant Woodside slumped 2.6 per cent to $20.20 and Santos was off 1.5 per cent to $5.92.

In corporate news, Judo Bank shares plunged 16.9 per cent to $1.48 after it issued a surprise third-quarter trading update that warned lending growth would be lower than guidance provided in February.

Platinum soared 11.4 per cent to 63 cents after L1 Capital said it was in discussions to merge with the fund manager after buying a significant stake from the billionaire founder Kerr Neilson.

And, Woolworths advanced 1.2 per cent to $31.94 after e-commerce sales surged to $2.2 billion in the first quarter, driving a marginal rise in group sales.