Market Wrap / China concerns

A quieter global session set the local market up for a flat day, with the S&P/ ASX 200 ticking down 0.04% to 7758.90 point this Wednesday. 

Positive sentiment was driven by the US Administration flagging it remains open to trade discussions with China. Meanwhile, the Sino economy beat forecasts in March, growing 5.4%.

With the impact of tariffs still developing, the outlook remains cloudy and the local mining sector lost 0.8%. Rio Tinto notably flagged that its iron ore shipments are expected to be at the lower end of guidance, sending the stock 2.7% lower. 

Gold players had a more positive session, with the precious metal price closing in on the US$ 3,300 mark. Evolution rose 1.3%. 

Star shares resumed trading, staying unchanged at $0.11 by the close after finally releasing its earnings to the ASX. 

Elsewhere, a lower oil demand forecast hit the energy space with Ampol shedding 3.1%. The petroleum-operator says it expects lower fuel prices to be a tailwind for retail volumes, and posted a 5.7% drop in its Lytton refinery output over the first quarter. 

A gain of 0.8% from market heavyweight CBA helped the overall gains.

And Zip was today’s best performer as it upgraded its FY25 guidance pointing to solid customer engagement, shares rising 16.2%.

Tonight, investors will react to the negative impact of export fees for Nvidia, while locally tomorrow BHP, PLS and AMP are among companies reporting quarterlies.