Australian shares have started the week on a positive note after the latest White House tariff surprise, following days of market turbulence.
The S&P/ASX200 has lifted 82 points, or 1.07 per cent, to 7,726, while the broader All Ordinaries was up 80.8 points, or 1.03 per cent, to 7,934.5.
“In an effort to reduce disruption and likely preparing to impose a new sectoral tariff, the Trump administration exempted smartphones, computers and other electronics from its reciprocal tariffs,” Westpac senior economist Mantas Vanagas said.
“Materially benefiting big US tech firms whose supply chains run through Asia.”
The improvement in local stocks follows a Wall Street rally on Friday, with the S&P500 up 1.81 per cent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq rallying 1.63 per cent as futures point to gains extending in Monday trade.
Markets whipsawed during the previous week as the US launched, delayed and expanded tariffs, fuelling a tit-for-tat trade war with China that resulted in steep duties on goods flowing between the two massive economies.
Ten of 11 local sectors were trading higher on Monday, led by a 1.9 per cent surge in materials stocks and a 1.5 per cent boost to real estate stocks, after the federal government and opposition pitched their housing policies to voters over the weekend.
After grinding lower during most of April’s tariff chaos, iron ore miners BHP and Fortescue were both gaining more than two per cent on Monday as Rio Tinto lifted 1.1 per cent.
Miners were leading the top-200, with Westgold up more than five per cent as the precious metal again hovers below yet another all-time high, after breaking above $US3,240 an ounce last week.
Whitehaven Coal and Nickel Industries also notched more than three per cent gains.
Energy stocks were up 0.7 per cent, thanks in part to an improvement in oil prices as markets considered the impact of the tariff exemption for electronics, which account for roughly 23 per cent of US imports from China.
Positive US-Iran talks on Tehran’s nuclear program also helped settle crude prices, with Brent futures trading at $US62.65, up from just above $US60 on Friday afternoon.
Financial stocks were a mixed bag, edging 0.2 per cent higher as CBA as Westpac eked out a 0.6 per cent gain, ANZ was up 0.4 per cent and NAB grinded 0.2 per cent higher. Macquarie Group was down 2.2 per cent.
The Australian dollar has been gaining ground on the greenback after selling off last week, as the US-China tariff battle weighed on Beijing’s growth expectations.
The Aussie is buying 63.08 US cents, up from 62.02 US cents on Friday at 5pm.
Looking ahead for the week, the Reserve Bank will release its April meeting minutes tomorrow, and Australian unemployment data is due on Thursday.
Investors will be looking to US first-quarter earnings for a sense of company expectations in the coming months, along with any updates from progressing trade partner negotiations.
US Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell is due to speak overnight on Thursday, which will be closely watched for clues to the central bank’s next interest rate move in a rapidly evolving macroeconomic environment.
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