Australian shares end higher on rate cut bets; banks, healthcare lead gains

Published on 09/19/2025 at 02:49 am EDT
(Updates to close)

• ASX 200 posts third straight weekly loss
• Telix and Pro Medicus surge after positive Citi ratings
• Gold stocks snap six-week winning streak

(Reuters) - Australian shares ended higher on Friday, supported by gains in banking and healthcare stocks, a day after a weak labour market report boosted expectations of a rate cut in November.
The S&P/ASX 200 benchmark index closed 0.3% higher at 8,773.50 points. It ended the week down 1%, marking a third week of losses.
Financials rose 0.6%, benefiting from expectations of increased lending volumes that typically follow a lower interest rate environment. Three of the "Big Four" banks ended higher while Westpac slid 0.3%.
Thursday's soft employment data bolstered bets of a rate cut in November after a widely-expected hold by the Reserve Bank of Australia's in its meeting on September 30.
"Essentially traders are looking beyond the potential rates-hold this month and are focusing on prospects that rates could be headed lower in November," said Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade.
Meanwhile, healthcare stocks climbed 0.9% and were steered by Telix Pharmaceuticals, which emerged as one of the top performers on the broader benchmark.
Telix rose 6.4% after Citi initiated stock coverage with a "buy" rating, while an upgrade to a "buy" rating from "sell" propelled software group Pro Medicus' shares by 4.9%.
Analysts said an overnight rally in the U.S. equities provided a positive lead to local equities, with domestic tech stocks surging to a record during the session before giving up some gains to end 0.9% higher. ASX-listed Xero finished up 1.4%.
Gold stocks tracked bullion to climb 0.8%, with Northern Star Resources and Evolution Mining adding 1.2% and 3.2% respectively. Yet, the sub-index logged a weekly loss of 2.6%, snapping a six-week winning streak.
Mining stocks dipped 0.2%, with BHP, Rio Tinto and Fortescue falling in a range of 0.2-1.3%.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index rose 0.9% to 13,231.66 points.
 (Reporting by Sneha Kumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee) 

Sumber : Reuters