Australian share markets finished higher on Wednesday, led by gains in Financials, Gold and Utilities that pushed the S&P/ASX 200 up 1.66% to a fresh three-month high at the Sydney close.
The session's top performers on the benchmark included AGL Energy Ltd (ASX:AGL), which jumped 11.64% - a rise of 1.03 points to close at 9.88. James Hardie Industries PLC (ASX:JHX) rallied 11.37%, adding 3.78 points to finish at 37.02. Miners also featured prominently: Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX:EVN) gained 8.41%, or 1.26 points, to end the day at 16.24.
On the downside, CSL Ltd (ASX:CSL) recorded the sharpest fall, dropping 11.80% or 21.67 points to close at 161.97. Resmed Inc DRC (ASX:RMD) declined 4.35%, falling 1.68 points to 36.93, while DroneShield Ltd (ASX:DRO) lost 3.85%, a decrease of 0.13 points to 3.25.
Market breadth showed more stocks advancing than retreating on the Sydney exchange, with 654 gainers versus 501 decliners and 362 names finishing unchanged.
Two notable price milestones occurred during the session. CSL slipped to five-year lows, reflecting its 11.80% drop to 161.97. By contrast, Evolution Mining pushed to an all-time high as its share price climbed 8.41% to 16.24.
Implied volatility, as measured by the S&P/ASX 200 VIX, eased by 5.53% to 11.71, indicating lower expected near-term swings in the index.
Commodities trading showed mixed increases. Gold Futures for April delivery rose 0.96%, gaining 48.21 to trade at 5,079.21 a troy ounce. Crude oil for March delivery increased 0.63%, up 0.40 to $64.36 a barrel, while the April Brent contract climbed 0.54%, or 0.37, to $69.17 a barrel.
Currency moves were modest. AUD/USD was 0.52% at 0.71 and AUD/JPY slipped 0.32% to 108.93. The US Dollar Index Futures declined 0.22% to 96.46.
Market implications and context
The session featured strong participation across cyclical sectors tied to commodities and energy, which supported the benchmark's advance. At the same time, a notable fall in a major healthcare name contributed to headline volatility and weighed on defensive sector performance.