Company Interview / the COB: in the thick of it

The local share market rose for a fourth consecutive session on Wednesday, thanks to a positive lead-in from Wall Street and better than expected results from market heavyweight CBA. The S&P/ASX 200 rose 23.9 points or 0.31% to 7850.70. The Commonwealth Bank reported a smaller-than-expected decline in annual profit, boosting its shares by 1.3%. CBA raised its dividend to $2.50 per share, from $2.40 a year earlier, taking the year's payout to a record $4.65, fully franked. AGL Energy saw its shares jump as much as 5.3%, reaching their highest point in a year after the energy producer reported a nearly three-fold increase in annual profit. Shares in Seven Group Holdings rose 6.8% after posting a 14% rise in FY24 earnings to $1.93 million. CEO Ryan Stokes said increasing their ownership of Boral to 100% was a strategic outcome. Gold stocks rallied to their highest level in three weeks, supported by near-record bullion prices. Real estate stocks climbed 1% for the fourth consecutive session, while financials gained 0.6%.Elsewhere, ASX shares fell 3.7% as ASIC sued the stock exchange operator over what it calls “misleading” software upgrade statements.  The Kiwi tumbled against the US dollar after the RBNZ cut interest rates a year earlier than its own projections and signalled a lot more to come. The cash rate in New Zealand was cut by 25 basis points to 5.25%.Investors are now focused on tonight’s consumer price data in the US and retail sales data later this week, which are expected to solidify expectations for a significant rate cut by the Federal Reserve.