from Qantas, combined with further gains for the resources sector, propelled the Australian sharemarket to a near six-month peak on Wednesday.
West Texas Intermediate traded around $US80 a barrel, after gaining about 1 per cent the prior session, as traders braced for details about a plan to cap Russian crude prices, and data showed a fall in US stockpiles. The major miners were mixed as China’s escalating COVID-19 outbreak weighed on iron ore prices. The most-traded January futures contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange fell 2.2 per cent to 719.5 yuan a tonne.Fortescue fell 0.7 per cent to $19.07 after advising that Guy Debelle will transition from the role of Fortescue Future Industries’ chief financial officer to the board of FFI Australia to focus on his health.
Mall landlord SCA Property Group fell 0.7 per cent to $2.67 after warning at its annual general meeting that it expects higher floating interest rates to have a negative impact on its FY23 earnings.