Stocks 1.2pc lower for the week

Friday’s gains, led by energy stocks, have failed to turn the bourse positive for the week.

The Australian sharemarket has ended the week on a positive note, despite fading into the close for a second straight day.

At the closing bell, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index had climbed 21.6 points, or 0.39 per cent, to 5,497.4, while the broader All Ordinaries index lifted 22.2 points, or 0.4 per cent, to 5,585.6.

The market still ended down 1.2 per cent on the week due to a sharp 2 per cent fall through Tuesday and Wednesday as investors failed to draw the positives out of the Reserve Bank’s latest rate cut.

Friday’s gains were again driven by the energy sector, which was aided by another sharp rise in the price of crude during the offshore session.

“Oil market concerns continued to dissipate, as $US39-$US40 seemed to be a key level for a lot of short positions to close out and the buying associated with the short covering helped the WTI oil price rise another 2.3 per cent overnight,” IG market analyst Angus Nicholson said.

CMC Markets chief market strategist Michael McCarthy echoed similar sentiments, noting charting analysts were pointing to a further recovery of another few per cent in the near-term.

Santos added 1.5 per cent to $4.66, Origin bounded 3.1 per cent to $5.63 while WA-based giant Woodside Petroleum advanced 1 per cent to $26.89.

Energy stocks as a whole lifted 1.2 per cent, on the back of a 2 per cent jump on Thursday. However, they didn’t outperform all-comers on this occasion as a heavy bid on the mining giants saw the materials sector end up 1.7 per cent.

BHP leapt 3.7 per cent to $20.03, Rio Tinto rallied 1.9 per cent to $49.52 and iron ore miner Fortescue surged 5.6 per cent to $4.56 despite ore prices sliding 3 per cent during offshore trade.

It was a quiet day on the earnings front after reporting season kicked into gear on Thursday, with Virgin Australia the only big name to report – and investors were already aware of its full-year profit numbers.

Regardless the airline did offer more detail on its divisions, with subsidiary Tigerair Australia recording its first ever profit and the airline’s shares rising 2.1 per cent to 24.5c on the news.

Elsewhere, Brambles climbed 0.9 per cent as the company announced the creation of an energy container joint venture with a US-based group, Propertylink endured a rough first day of trade in sliding 3.4 per cent and Intueri tumbled 19 per cent as soft guidance coincided with the departure of its CEO.

Wagering giant Tabcorp surged 4.3 per cent after Credit Suisse raised its price target on the group and Deutsche Bank reignited talk of a merger with Tatts.

In finance, the big banks struggled for direction, with ANZ and Westpac edging higher and NAB finishing in the red.

Commonwealth Bank outperformed with a 0.6 per cent rise.

Among blue chips, Telstra skidded 0.7 per cent to $5.66 and Qantas was steady at $3.14.

Meanwhile, the Australian dollar moved clear of US76c and finished the local session at US76.55c. The local unit barely responded to the Reserve Bank’s latest Statement on Monetary Policy, despite the central bank giving a hint it would strongly consider a further rate cut in the next six months.