The Australian sharemarket tracked modest gains on Wall Street, buoyed by a rally in technology stocks and banks that pushed Commonwealth Bank to a fresh record high.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index edged up 0.2 per cent, or 17.9 points, to 8297.5 points at the close, reversing an earlier fall and notching its seventh consecutive day of gains. The All Ordinaries rose 0.1 per cent. Six of 11 sectors were in the green, with technology leading the gains.

US equities took a breath from the week’s sustained rally with the S&P 500 Index closing up just 0.1 per cent. Technology stocks were an exception, with Nvidia and Tesla both jumping more than 4 per cent.

Strategists are concerned the market rebound has run a bit too far, too fast after an easing in US and Chinese trade tensions on Monday. AMP chief economist Shane Oliver warned even lower tariff rates still had the potential to cause “significant economic disruption”.

“While confidence may see a bounce, hard economic data is still likely to slow as businesses go through more uncertainty. So shares could still go through another rough patch before things sustainably improve,” he said.

Australian pundits shrugged off a surprise jump in April job numbers and still expect a rate cut from the Reserve Bank next week. The bullish sentiment helped big banks rally with Commonwealth Bank closing up 1.3 per cent at $169.74 – a new all-time high. Consumer discretionary stocks also pushed upwards with Wesfarmers advancing 2.2 per cent to $83.40.

Tech stocks continued to track momentum in their US counterparts. WiseTech advanced 1.9 per cent to $103.77 and Xero 4.7 per cent to $182.05 after posting a 30 per cent jump in full-year profit.

The big miners, meanwhile, followed a retreat in iron ore prices, with BHP off 0.7 per cent to $39.19. The energy sector has also fallen 6.8 per cent in the past week as Brent oil slumped 2.5 per cent to $US64.44 a barrel. Woodside dropped 1.8 per cent to $21.92.

Stocks on the move

In corporate news, mining contractor NRW Holdings tumbled 8.3 per cent to $2.66 after it warned an intervention by the South Australian government to simplify the sale process of Whyalla steelworks could “seriously undermine” the more than $100 million owed to it.

Treasury Wine Estates retreated 5.2 per cent to $8.65 after announcing chief executive Tim Ford was stepping down later this year, ending a five-year stint. He will be replaced by the boss of Lion, Sam Fischer.

Mayne Pharma jumped 8.2 per cent to $6.20, rebounding from Wednesday’s more than 15 per cent loss after a review by Deloitte-backed US pharmaceutical giant Cosette’s $672 million bid for the company.

Insurance Australia Group jumped 5.7 per cent to $8.90 after announcing it would acquire the insurance arm of The Royal Automobile Club of Western Australia for $400 million.

And Graincorp’s shares climbed 8.8 per cent to $7.78 as the grain and edible oils business upgraded its full-year earnings guidance following a strong east coast harvest.