All Ords flat as National Australia Bank, banks slip, Endeavour board ructions

The local market managed to hold ground despite selling pressure in the banking sector, with the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) adding 0.1 per cent on Monday. The likes of National Australia Bank Limited (ASX: NAB) and Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited (ASX: ANZ) fell by 0.7 and 1.5 per cent, respectively, offsetting gains in the staples and materials sectors, which both added more than 1 per cent. A sustained rally in iron ore supported Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) and BHP Group Limited (ASX: BHP) to gains of 1.5 and 0.9 per cent respectively, while both Coles Group Limited (ASX: COL) and Woolworths Group Limited (ASX: WOW) posted strong days amid a search for quality, finishing close to 1.4 per cent higher. It was positive news for Endeavour Group Limited (ASX: EDV) with the Dan Murphy’s owner jumping 3 per cent on news that executive chairman Ari Mervis had stepped down from the role due to ‘board disagreements’, allowing for a refresh in leadership positions amid a year of change for the group.

Beach Energy gains on capital returns, Northern Star leads gold rally, WiseTech down on acquisition

A weaker-than-expected employment report in the US was behind a renewed rally in the gold price, with the US Federal Reserve now expected to cut rates again as early as September. Northern Star Resources Limited (ASX: NST) rallied by more than 5 per cent and Evolution Mining Limited (ASX: EVN) closer to 2.5 per cent as gold finished above 3,360 US dollars per ounce. Beach Energy Limited (ASX: BPT) shareholders were positive about an increase in the dividend, tripling current levels, even as the company wrote down key assets. Shares gained more than 3.5 per cent after the company, which is heavily owned by Seven Group Holdings Limited (ASX: SVW), cut the valuation on its WA and Victorian assets by 474 million dollars. It also flagged weaker-than-expected production forecasts for the new year. Logistics technology provider WiseTech Global Limited (ASX: WTC) fell by more than 1.7 per cent after completing its largest-ever takeover offer, buying Texan e2Open for 2.1 billion US dollars. Domain Holdings Australia Limited (ASX: DHG)shareholders also fully approved the sale of the business to US giant CoStar Group Inc (NASDAQ: CSGP) in a move that will likely disrupt the local real estate classifieds market.

S&P 500 surges on dip buying, earnings surprise, Indian tariffs to increase, Musk gets huge Tesla pay

Dip buyers stepped into the market this week, pouncing on much stronger than expected earnings results to push the S&P 500 Index (NYSE: SPX) up 1.5 per cent and the NASDAQ Composite Index (NASDAQ: IXIC) close to 2 per cent. The buying was widespread, with NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA) and Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ: META) both adding more than 3.5 per cent, while the Russell 2000 Index (INDEXRUSSELL: RUT) gained 2.1 per cent. The buying came as earnings for the S&P 500 Index (NYSE: SPX) are expected to see a 9 per cent jump, compared to expectations of below 3 per cent. President Trump announced that Indian tariffs would increase due to the nation’s continued purchase of Russian oil, while the European Union (EU) expects an executive action to be announced this week, putting further pressure on the economy. Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) gained more than 2 per cent after the board approved a near 30 billion US dollar stock award for CEO Elon Musk in hopes it will refocus his attention on the business. Shares in streaming service Spotify Technology S.A. (NYSE: SPOT) gained more than 5 per cent after the company flagged price increases outside of the US.