To The Moon

The Australian sharemarket rose on Friday, in line with Wall Street, on revived expectations that the US Federal Reserve will cut interest rates further.

The S&P/ASX 200 index closed 0.5% higher, or 40 points, to 8628.2, with eight of 11 sectors in positive territory. For the week, the benchmark fell 0.8%, snapping a three-week winning streak. The index was on track to post a 5.8% annual rise, well below the double-digit gains of the US and European indices.

Investor sentiment was supported after American core consumer prices rose by less than expected, though economists warned that the data was distorted lower by the US government shutdown.

Markets are now pricing about a 25% chance of a January rate reduction by the Fed and a near-certain move by April.

On the ASX, technology led gains with Zip, Megaport and Novonix rising more than 3%. WiseTech Global rallied 3.2% to $70.18 after a board review into executive chairman Richard White found no further issues to investigate.

The major banks also had a good session, led by Commonwealth Bank, up 1.8% to $157.75. Westpac added 1.3% to $38.76, National Australia Bank gained 0.8% to $42.14 and ANZ closed flat at $36.03.

Macquarie managed to gain 1.5% to $200.58 despite copping a $35 million fine after admitting it had misreported millions in short securities sales over 15 years.

DroneShield was the top index performer, closing nearly 12% higher at $2.78. The counter-drone tech firm soared 31% this week.

In the resources sector, uranium miners rebounded from heavy selling in the prior session. Boss Energy bounced 11.4% to $1.315, having collapsed 25% on Thursday after a downgrade to its Honeymoon project. Paladin Energy soared 9.3% to $9.09, and Deep Yellow rallied 8.8% to $1.8.

However, lower iron prices weighed on the big miners. Fortescue was among the biggest laggards on the index, down 3.2% to $21.88. BHP dropped 1.2% to $44.36 and Rio Tinto edged up 0.1% to $143.07.

In company news, 4DMedical soared 21% to $3.51 as the business secured a commercial agreement with the Cleveland Clinic to deploy a respiratory imaging technology.

Netwealth tumbled 6.5% to $25.25% after it agreed on Thursday to pay $101 million to compensate superannuation customers who invested in First Guardian. The financial services group has shaved off 11% this year.

Austal advanced 5.8% to $6.6, the biggest one-day gain in three months, as the shipbuilder secured a contract extension to build two additional patrol boats for the Australian Border Force, in a deal valued at more than $135 million. Shares have more than doubled this year.

And, Aussie Broadband fell 1.4% to $4.79 after warning the competition regulator’s new voice interconnection rates would cut earnings from its wholesale networks.