The key takeaways from the last 24 hours

ASX closed on Monday, and finished modestly lower on Friday the 6 of June

The Australian share market extended its rally for a fourth consecutive week, buoyed by optimism surrounding renewed trade negotiations between the United States and China. Market sentiment improved following comments from US President Donald Trump, who indicated trade talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping would resume after a “very good” phone call focusing on critical mineral exports. Despite the positive backdrop, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) ended Friday down 0.3 per cent, or 23 points, to 8515.7 points, with eight out of 11 sectors closing in negative territory. However, the index still posted a 1 per cent weekly gain. The broader All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) also dipped 0.3 per cent.

Mixed results for material stocks on Friday

The recommencement of trade discussions helped alleviate fears of weakened Chinese commodity demand, resulting in gains for resource-linked stocks. Iron ore futures in Singapore advanced 0.8 per cent to USD95.65 per tonne, supporting miners such as BHP Group Limited (ASX: BHP), which rose 0.7 per cent to AUD38.23, and Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG), up 1 per cent to AUD15.65. In contrast, critical minerals stocks faced headwinds amid speculation that China may relax export restrictions on rare earths. Pilbara Minerals Limited (ASX: PLS) dropped 5.2 per cent to AUD1.28, while IGO Limited (ASX: IGO) fell 3.5 per cent to AUD4.19. Broader weakness swept through the index ahead of key US employment data, prompting profit-taking across bank and tech names, with Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) retreating 0.8 per cent to AUD179.90.

Softening US labour and US dollar

Currency markets reacted to softening US labour market signals, with the US dollar weakening and the Australian dollar climbing to a six-month high of USD0.6537. In corporate news, Ora Banda Mining Limited (ASX: OBM) plunged 14.1 per cent to AUD1.10 after flagging that full-year gold production would fall short of guidance due to downtime at its Davyhurst project. Meanwhile, Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN) gained 3.5 per cent to AUD10.76 following news that competitor Virgin Australia Holdings Limited had secured strong demand for its AUD685 million IPO, albeit with some investor allocations being scaled back.