Stocks eke out positive close

The local market has edged into the black at the end of the session, with banks firmly in focus.

The Australian sharemarket has eked out a positive session, shunning a negative lead from Wall Street as US rate hike worries resurfaced.

At the close, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index ticked up 5.5 points, or 0.1 per cent, to 5,484, while the broader All Ordinaries index tacked on 5.1 points, or 0.09 per cent, to 5,569.9.

Gains were seen for the first time all session at the closing readjustment, with the market’s finish at its highs for the day a positive sign for trading momentum.

The prospect of rising US interest rates and the reduced chance of rate cuts in Australia continued to dampen interest in defensive and high-yield sectors, while resources stocks again outperformed.

“The prospects of higher interest rates makes the present value of steady cash flow producing assets such as property and utilities correspondingly less valuable,” IG market analyst Angus Nicholson said.

Much of the focus through the local session was on the parliamentary grilling of Commonwealth Bank boss Ian Narev and the Reserve Bank’s latest policy update through the afternoon.

Neither offered much in the way of surprises, which allowed investors to push stocks away from the red numbers seen throughout the majority of the session.

The banking sector lagged as parliamentary sessions threaten to again drag their misdemeanours into the spotlight and as investors shifted away from a yield focus.

ANZ advanced 0.6 per cent and NAB rose 0.2 per cent, while Westpac lost 0.1 per cent.

CBA trailed its peers as it weakened 0.3 per cent.

ANZ, NAB and Westpac are slated to answer to front up to separate interrogations over the next two days.

The resources sector shone in comparison, aided by another rise in the price of crude during offshore trade.

In energy, Santos surged 2.7 per cent to $3.80, Origin Energy added 0.2 per cent to $5.53, while Woodside gained 0.7 per cent to $29.06.

In materials, a mixed showing from base metals overnight failed to slow momentum.

BHP Billiton lifted 0.7 per cent to $22.90, Rio Tinto jumped 1.1 per cent to $52.48 and Fortescue tacked on 0.2 per cent $4.90.

Among blue chips, Telstra ended steady at $5.20, while Qantas lifted 1.3 per cent to $3.18 as it unveiled a partnership with Airbnb.

Elsewhere, Seven West Media skidded 2 per cent to 75c as it sold its share in streaming service Presto to partner Foxtel, while Bradken skyrocketed 32 per cent after announcing its board had backed a takeover offer.

Meanwhile, the Australian dollar bounced around through the session as investors analysed the rate hold statement from the RBA, but ended the local trading day steady around US76.75c.