Australia shares end slightly higher as tech, energy gains offset healthcare losses

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Australian shares fluctuated between positive and negative territories to end marginally higher on Friday, as gains in tech and energy countered losses in healthcare, while investors stayed on the edge for further cues on global economic growth.

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04 Aug 2023

The S&P/ASX 200 index ended 0.2% higher to 7,325.3 points. The benchmark fell 0.6% on Thursday.

Markets have remained range-bound, as investors globally are awaiting crucial non-farm payrolls data from the United States later in the global day to assess the health of the economy, even as they remain convinced of an economic downturn towards the end of the year.

Locally, the Reserve Bank of Australia slashed growth and inflation outlook for the year, adding that it could take «some more time» to assess how the economy and the risks to inflation and employment were evolving.

«The Monetary Policy Statement today has served as a reminder that we are not necessarily at the end of the hiking cycle,» Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade said. «The RBA flagged the prospect of perhaps tightening again,