ASX edges higher on consumer discretionary rebound, tech sells off
ASX miners under pressure towards market close
BYD earnings dampen hopes China car stocks will reverse rout
Copper declines as tech sell-off, oil rally dent risk appetite
Oil gains on signs US may resume military strikes against Iran
RBNZ likely to raise key rate at next two meetings, survey shows
The sharemarket pared early gains to close slightly higher on Friday as the sell-off in Wall Street technology stocks eventually hit sentiment in Australia.
The S & P/ASX 200 Index rose 16.3 points, or 0.2 per cent, to 8908.1, but had earlier tracked as much as 1 per cent higher to a seven-week high. Eight of the 11 sectors closed in the green, led by a rebound in consumer discretionary.
Coles sparked an early slide in consumer staples, plunging 12.5 per cent on a weak sales update before paring losses to 7.7 per cent at $21.66 per share as a broad technology sell-off took over as the market’s biggest drag.
More than $US500 billion($711 billion) in value was wiped from Google owner Alphabet over fears that artificial intelligence is eating into its main advertising business. It was the biggest one-day fall in the technology giant’s history, and is the latest sign of cracks in the AI trade. The Nasdaq was down 1.6 per cent, and the semiconductor index fell 2.1 per cent.
Then in late US trading, shares in chip maker Intel plunged 22 per cent after its revenue forecast missed analysts’ estimates, hurt by lacklustre demand for personal computer processors and supply chain problems with its lucrative data centre components. Amazon also took a hit after weak fourth-quarter revenue guidance sounded alarm bells over softening retail demand, as inflation and rising household costs squeeze consumers. Its cloud unit, however, recorded its fastest growth in nearly five years.
