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Summary
- ASX shares are down on Wednesday. After a mixed lead from the US, the indices have shed gains as selling pressure rose sharply.
- Australian companies continue to please investors with dividends as earnings reports are flowing with rising dividends.
Australian shares were tracking lower towards the close of the session on 24 February 2021. The ASX 200 index was down nearly 54 points. The index has recovered in the last trading hour.
The S&P/ASX Technology Index completed a year today. The index has provided a venue for Australian technology companies. But the tech stocks have wiped off investors’ wealth as the shares of the high flying growth stocks are under bear grip today.
Overnight in the US, NASDAQ fell significantly at the open. But Fed Chair Jerome Powell confirmed that interest rates are likely to remain lower. The Federal Reserve wants inflation to trend around 2% level.
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The S&P/ASX All Technology index now has 69 constituents, which was 46 earlier. And the all tech index has also outperformed the benchmark ASX 200 index. Bitcoin investors are also facing the heat as cryptocurrency is losing track.
Australian Dollar was tracking higher today. The local currency made a new three-year high against the US Dollar. Markets are slowly getting convinced that a commodity supercycle is due, driven by a recovery in the global economy.
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Index heavyweights were lower today, therefore dragging the ASX 200 index to a lower bound level. Heavyweight stocks like Rio Tinto, BHP Limited, Fortescue Metals, Commonwealth Bank, Westpac, ANZ Bank, Wesfarmers, CSL, Macquarie, Telstra were all tracking lower.
Best stock in the ASX 200 were IDP Education, Nine Entertainment, Blackmores Ltd, Bega Cheese, Platinum Asset Management. Stocks with the most losses included Appen Ltd, Nanosonics Ltd, Seek Ltd, Eagers Automotive, and Downer EDI.
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