ASX 200 surges led by tech and miners; Megaport soars, Rio settles ATO dispute

ASX posts its best session since June. Tech and lithium miners rally, Megaport soars on profit, Woodside cuts jobs, Rio settles ATO dispute and UK inflation hits 40-year high.

Welcome to the Trading Day blog for Wednesday, July 20. The Australian sharemarket soared to a three-week high on widespread gains led by tech. It comes as RBA governor Philip Lowe tells The Australian Strategic Business Forum that inflation will rise further and Megaport surges on its first EBITDA profit.

The S&P/ASX 200 index rose 1.7 per cent to 6759.20 with all sectors higher.

RBA governor Philip Lowe tells The Australian Strategic Business Forum in Melbourne that higher rates are "coming as a shock to some parts of the community" but "we need to have some moderation in aggregate demand".

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 2.4 per cent while the S&P 500 surged 2.8 per cent and the technology-focused Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 3 per cent – marking the best gains in almost a month.

Commodity markets were mixed with oil prices higher. International benchmark Brent crude rose 1 per cent to $US107.35 per barrel and the US Nymex increased 1.6 per cent to $US104.22.

The iron ore futures price fell 2 per cent to $US103.14 a tonne.

The Aussie dollar was trading near US69c at the US close.