Australian shares closed 0.3 per cent firmer on Thursday as falls in the healthcare, energy, and industrials space offset gains among the resources and tech stocks.P/ASX200 gained 20.2 points to finish at 7288.50. The financials sector firmed 0.
The tech sector gained 2.6 per cent as the yield on benchmark Australian 10-year treasuries retreated marginally to 2.09 per cent, with US 10-year Treasuries offering 1.92 per cent.The US January consumer price index report will likely guide the Federal Reserve’s pace of rate increases. US inflation is expected to have risen 0.5 per cent from December for a 7.3 per cent yearly gain, consensus forecasts say.
Australia’s biggest construction group, CIMIC, reported a 35 per cent drop in annual net profit to $402 million in calendar 2021, but told investors to expect higher profits between $425 million and $460 million this year. Shares plunged 7.1 per cent to $15.89 on the news as guidance came in weaker than expected.
Northern Star reported its first set of results to cover a full half-year reporting period since its merger with Saracen in February 2021. The combined group lifted interim net profit 43 per cent to $261 million on total sales up 63 per cent to $1.8 billion. Its shares closed 0.5 per cent lower at $8.64.