The Australian stock market finished at a record high for the second consecutive session on Thursday, June 3, 2021, after an overnight gain on Wall Street, with positive data from the country’s construction and service sectors, which showed also stimulated the appetite for risky assets.

At the close, the benchmark S & P / ASX200 was up 42.33 points, or 0.59%, to 7,260.15. The largest All Ordinaries rose 41.85 points, or 0.56%, to 7,510.71.

In total, 10 of the 11 sectors in the S & P / ASX200 were higher, with the top performing sectors being energy (up 3.27%), followed by utilities (up 2.05%), technology information (up 1.57%), consumer staples (up 0.94%), financial services (up 0.96%), real estate (up 0 , 74%) and industrials (up 0.73%), while consumer discretionary (down 1.1%) was the worst performing sector.

The best performing stocks in the S & P / ASX200 were IOOF Holdings (up 7.93%), Worley (up 7.69%), Origin Energy (up 6.16%), Beach Energy (up up 5.79%) and ZIP Co (up 4.37%), while the worst performing stocks were Point Holdings (down 4.16%), Adbri (down 3.57%) ), Resolute Mining (down 3.12%), Mesoblast (down 3.12%) and Westgold Resources (down 2.65%).

Shares were higher since the opening, after the U.S. Dow Jones Index ended higher for the fifth consecutive trading day overnight in hopes of a faster-than-expected economic recovery. Sentiment was supported by strong economic growth data from Australia on Wednesday which showed production had returned to pre-Covid-19 levels. Hopes of recovery have prompted investors to focus on the post-corona issues of the with-corona issues.

Energy stocks extended their gains as oil prices peaked more than a year following OPEC + ‘s decision to stick to its plan to ease supply cuts until July. Woodside Petroleum and Santos added 2.3% each.

Inventories of materials and resources rose as iron ore prices surged in hopes of easing the brakes on production of steel products.

Financials were also up, with the “big four” banks gaining between 0.7% and 1%.

ECONOMIC NEWS: Australian services PMI slows to 58.0 In May, Australia’s services sector continued to expand in May, with a services PMI score of 58.0, according to the latest Markit Economics survey on Thursday. That’s down from 58.8 in April, although it remains well above the 50 expansion or recession line that separates expansion from contraction. New business inflows increased for the ninth consecutive month in May, supported by improving economic conditions following the easing of restrictions related to COVID-19 and the positive effects of government stimulus measures.

Although down from the April record, the pace of expansion of new work remained substantial. The sustained increase in orders and activity prompted companies in the service sector to continue to expand their operating capacity. Job creation continued for the seventh consecutive month in May and at the fastest pace since the survey began in May 2016. In addition, the composite index fell to 58.0 in May from 58 , 9 in April.

Australian construction sector AiG grows at slower pace In May, the Australian construction sector continued to expand in May, with a seasonally adjusted Construction Performance Index score of 58, 3, according to the latest Australian Industry Group survey on Thursday. That’s down from 59.1 in April, although it remains well above the 50 expansion or recession line that separates expansion from contraction. All four components of activity rose sharply in May, with the employment index hitting a new record. Indices of activity and new orders have declined but remain elevated as builders nationwide have rushed to fill orders and launch new home construction projects before HomeBuilder grant deadlines. Capacity utilization edged up to its recent peak of 82.5% of used capacity in May.

Australia’s trade surplus increases dramatically in April – Australia’s trade surplus rose to A $ 8.02 billion in April from A $ 5.79 billion in March, as exports increased amid falling prices. imports, the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported Thursday. Exports rose 3% to A $ 39.77 billion, while imports fell 3% to A $ 31.74 billion.

CURRENCY NEWS: The Australian dollar changed hands at $ 0.7728, after hitting an earlier high of $ 0.7754.

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