Updated August 24, 2026 — 5:35pm,first published August 24, 2026 — 5:21am
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Australia’s share market has started the new week higher, as BHP and the materials sector hit record highs, while banks and insurers sold off.
The S&P/ASX200 gained 44.2 points on Monday, up 0.49 per cent, to 9103.1, as the broader All Ordinaries rose 47 points, or 0.5 per cent, to 9316.7.
Money continued to rotate from banking stocks into miners as local economic concerns combined with rising commodity prices and outsized resource sector earnings.
BHP shares soared three per cent to hit an all-time high of $67.72, helping the resources sector reach its own fresh peak.
“Overall, the chase for the mining stocks – driven by pretty good earnings from BHP, Rio, Mineral Resources – is now being heightened by what happened at the end of last week in terms of US treasury and the (bond) buyback,” IG market analyst Tony Sycamore said.
“For the resource sector the path of least resistance is likely higher,” Mr Sycamore said.
Energy miners also rallied, with coal and uranium producers ticking higher, while Santos and Woodside lost ground after oil prices shaved some of the previous week’s gains.
Oil prices have started the week slightly lower, as traders await an overnight announcement on planned US sanctions on Iran and potentially its trading partners.
Precious metals and Bitcoin have also appreciated, as record US government debt and bond buyback plans reignited the “sell America” trade.
Gold is at 15-week highs near $US4646 ($8404), an ounce, rallying more than 16 per cent from July lows, and analysts say the debasement trade could send it higher.
“This means a rotation toward scarce, hard-to-print assets such as gold, Bitcoin and real assets, on the view that persistent fiscal deficits and accommodative policy will erode the purchasing power of fiat currencies over time,” Global X ETFs investment strategist Justin Lim said.
“We believe (gold) could reach $US5000 ($7000) by mid-September.”
Earnings season continued, with strong performance beats from lithium miner PLS (+7.9 per cent), Ampol (+4.3 per cent) and Adore Beauty (+19.3 per cent).
