ASX briefings — Wednesday 29 July 2026

ASX 200 closes at 9,038.6, up 1.01%, as the June CPI undershoot takes an August hike off the table

The S&P/ASX 200 closed at 9,038.6 on 29 July 2026, up 90.8 points or 1.01%, its first close above 9,000 since 2 March. June quarter inflation undershot forecasts, with headline CPI at 3.8% and the trimmed mean at 3.6% against a 3.7% forecast, which took an 11 August RBA increase out of market pricing. Health Care led all sectors at +4.24% on CSL.AU +7.15%, while the iron ore majors added about 28 bps after RIO.AU lifted its dividend 43%. Financials were the weakest sector at +0.19% as the four major banks finished flat.