ASX 200 ends the week down 0.7% as oil and lithium sink resources; Judo Capital falls 41%
ASX 200 week close: 8,764.2 (-0.7%) S&P 500 Friday close: 7,354.0 (-0.05%) Sentiment: mixed
The S&P/ASX 200 closed the week to 26 June 2026 at 8,764.2, down 0.7% or about 64 points, as a collapse in oil and a fresh lithium selloff pulled resources lower while healthcare and consumer names held the index off its lows. Judo Capital (JDO.AU) was the standout move of the week, down 40.7% after it cut FY26 profit guidance on three souring loans. The Reserve Bank held the cash rate at 4.35% on Tuesday 23 June, its first pause of 2026, and a firmer US dollar sent the Australian dollar to 0.6900.
The week on the ASX
Five choppy sessions left the S&P/ASX 200 at 8,764.2 on 26 June 2026, a 0.7% weekly fall, with defensive sectors offsetting a heavy resources selloff. The Reserve Bank held the cash rate at 4.35% on Tuesday 23 June, its first hold after three increases this year, and Governor Michele Bullock kept a further rise on the table. Wednesday's May inflation figures backed her caution: the headline rate eased to 4.0% from 4.2%, but the trimmed mean rose to 3.6% from 3.4%, with housing up 6.5% the largest annual contributor. A hawkish Federal Reserve added to the move, firming the US dollar and sending the Australian dollar down 1.6% on the week to 0.6900. Under the index the split was wide: healthcare and consumer names rose while lithium, energy and gold miners fell hard, and the All Ordinaries finished down 0.9% at 8,964.2. The AU volatility gauge ended the week at 11.72, up 0.1%, so the calm at the index level masked sharp single-name moves.
Sector scorecard (5-day)
Healthcare led the 5 day scorecard with the major index names up about 8%, while battery materials fell about 16%.
- Best: Healthcare, about +8% (RHC.AU +9.1%, RMD.AU +8.5%, A2M.AU +7.2%).
- Worst: Battery materials, about -16% (ELV.AU -19.2%, CXO.AU -16.4%, PLS.AU -14.3%).
- Energy fell about 12% (KAR.AU -12.5%, BPT.AU -11.9%) and gold miners about 13% (CYL.AU -14.9%, PNR.AU -12.4%).
- Dispersion (healthcare best vs battery materials worst): about 24 points. Figures are medians of the index weight names cross-checked on Yahoo for the 19 to 26 June window.
Top movers, week ending 26 June
Judo Capital (JDO.AU) was the worst index move of the week at -40.7%, while EchoIQ (EIQ.AU) led the gainers at +29.8%.
| Ticker | Week | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| EIQ.AU | +29.8% | Pro Medicus (PME.AU) deal: up to A$20m strategic investment plus a US reseller pact for the EchoSolv heart-scan platform |
| BNZ.AU | +25.6% | Maiden gold target at the Glenburgh project in WA; Icon drilling showed about 95.5% gold recovery |
| BCI.AU | +15.7% | No price-sensitive news; Mardie salt build is past 70% and nearing first production |
| LIN.AU | +11.5% | Kangankunde rare-earths project shifted into commissioning, first output on track for Q4 |
| TEA.AU | +10.1% | Bought JPS Group for up to A$75m, affirmed FY26 profit guidance, paid a 10c special dividend |
| JDO.AU | -40.7% | Cut FY26 profit guidance after three loans soured; one borrower entered administration, about A$800m of value gone |
| PDI.AU | -23.8% | Funding overhang on the US$463m Bankan gold build, made worse by weaker bullion |
| A4N.AU | -22.7% | High-purity alumina caught in the battery-materials selloff, with a lingering Stage 2 funding overhang |
| ELV.AU | -19.2% | Lithium selloff: Chinese lithium carbonate futures fell about 10% on the week |
| DRO.AU | -16.8% | Counter-drone group sold with the defence sector; a governance cloud over prior contract figures still hangs over the stock |
Friday US session
The S&P 500 closed Friday 26 June at 7,354.0, down 0.05%, a flat finish to a week that fell 1.6%.
- S&P 500: 7,354.0 (-0.05%)
- Nasdaq: 25,297.6 (-0.24%)
- Dow: 51,876.1 (-0.09%)
- VIX: 18.41
The week's losses were concentrated in tech: the Nasdaq fell 3.3% over the five sessions while the Dow rose 0.3%, a rotation out of growth as a firmer US dollar and a hawkish Fed repriced rate expectations. The US volatility gauge rose 6.5% on the week to 18.41 even as it eased 2.5% on Friday. Gold rose 1.2% on Friday to US$4,096 an ounce but ended the week down 2.1%. Brent fell 3.8% on Friday to US$72.60, its lowest since late February. The Australian dollar finished at 0.6900, down 1.6% on the week, which lifts the AUD value of US dollar earnings for names such as CSL.AU and James Hardie (JHX.AU).
Macro themes that played out
Brent crude fell 6.8% in the week to US$72.60 and WTI fell 7.5% to US$69.23 after Israel and Iran stepped back from conflict.
The oil move followed a de-escalation between Israel and Iran, a US-Iran framework, the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to tanker traffic, and Saudi output loading at Ras Tanura, which together sent Brent to its lowest since late February. Energy names KAR.AU (-12.5%) and BPT.AU (-11.9%) fell with the oil price, while counter-drone group DroneShield (DRO.AU) lost 16.8% as war premium left defence stocks. On rates, the RBA held at 4.35% on 23 June and Bullock flagged higher fuel and building costs feeding through to housing; Wednesday's May CPI backed the caution, with the trimmed mean at 3.6%. With a hawkish Fed also firming the US dollar, the Australian dollar fell to 0.6900. In battery materials, Chinese lithium carbonate futures fell about 10% on the week, pulling ELV.AU (-19.2%), CXO.AU (-16.4%) and PLS.AU (-14.3%) lower. Bullion fell 2.1% to US$4,096 an ounce on the stronger dollar, sending gold miners CYL.AU (-14.9%) and PNR.AU (-12.4%) down with it.
Week ahead, Mon to Fri (AEST)
The week ahead is shaped by quarter-end, the 30 June Australian financial year end, and US June payrolls on Thursday 2 July.
- Mon 29 Jun: ASX reopens; quarter-end and financial-year-end positioning into Tuesday.
- Tue 30 Jun: Australian end of financial year, the deadline for tax-loss selling; China NBS manufacturing PMI for June.
- Wed 1 Jul: New financial year begins; China Caixin manufacturing PMI for June; US JOLTS job openings for May overnight.
- Thu 2 Jul: US ISM manufacturing and ADP employment overnight; US June non-farm payrolls released a day early at about 22:30 AEST, consensus near 172,000 jobs.
- Fri 3 Jul: US markets closed for the Independence Day holiday (4 July falls on a Saturday), leaving thin offshore liquidity into the AU close. No domestic CPI this week; the next monthly inflation indicator is due 29 July.
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