Market Wrap / earnings bonanza

Solid US earnings results fostered positive sentiment across our market, with the S&P / ASX 200 advancing 0.24% to 8145.60 points.

Australia recording a goods surplus with the US also pushed market sentiment early in the trading session. However, the gold and energy sectors proved to be laggards.

Lower oil prices continued to weigh down on producers like Woodside which lost 2.6% during Thursday's trade.

The miners were also hit, with the sector receding 0.8%. In the gold space, Northern Star extended its losses after flagging a lower full-year output earlier. 

However, a defensive sector that pushed ahead was consumer staples, with Woolworths gaining 1.2% on better-than-expected quarterly sales. 

But the best performer on the index was the IT sector, up 4%, riding on US tailwinds. The data-centre stocks were notably higher, with Digico up 6.3% while WiseTech leaped 6.6%. 

And Judo Bank plunged 16.9% after a weak trading update.

Tonight, Amazon and Apple earnings results are expected to move US markets. As such the tech space is expected to remain in focus during Friday's local session, along with retail as monthly spending is released. 1Q PPI is also due.