ASX 200 adds 18 points as the RBA holds at 4.35% and energy runs 3.91%
ASX 200 close: 9,250.6 (+0.19%) Breadth: 125 advancers / 79 decliners (219 largest listings) Sentiment: mixed
The S&P/ASX 200 closed at 9,250.6 on 11 August 2026, up 18 points or 0.19%, as a 3.91% energy rally and a 2.15% health care gain outweighed a 0.35% fall in financials. Austal ASB.AU rose 17.45% after Hanwha tabled a non-binding offer of US$1.05bn to US$1.20bn for its US shipbuilding arm. The RBA left the cash rate at 4.35% at 14:30 AEST in a unanimous decision and blamed disrupted oil supply for inflation it now expects to run above target until late 2027.
What moved the index
- Energy (XEJ +3.91%): about 18 bps of the 19 bps index move, on a sector weight near 4.5%. Brent added 1.87% to US$89.36 during Australian hours after a 6% overnight surge, and the RBA statement named disrupted global oil supply as a direct contributor to inflation. Karoon KAR.AU rose 6.38%, Beach Energy BPT.AU 5.45%, Santos STO.AU 5.36% and Woodside WDS.AU 3.84%.
- Health care (XHJ +2.15%): about 19 bps on a weight near 9%, the largest single sector contribution of the session. CSL.AU gained 2.87% to $138.33 and ResMed RMD.AU 3.79% to $31.23.
- Materials (XMJ +0.51%): about 10 bps on the index's second-largest weight near 19%. BHP.AU added 0.65%, RIO.AU 0.45% and Newmont NEM.AU 2.83%.
- Financials (XFJ -0.35%): about 12 bps of drag on a weight near 33%. ANZ.AU fell 1.29%, Bank of Queensland BOQ.AU 3.07% and IAG.AU 3.95%, one day before Commonwealth Bank CBA.AU reports FY26.
Those four drivers net to roughly +35 bps. Consumer staples (-1.46%), industrials (-0.75%) and information technology (-0.83%) took back about 14 bps between them, which leaves a residual under 3 bps against the +19 bps the index actually moved.
Session highlights
- 9,276 was the afternoon high. The index gave back 25 points into the 16:00 close and finished 0.23% under its record close of 9,271.6.
- Three reporters fell more than 10%. Life360 360.AU lost 19.44%, Amotiv AOV.AU 13.50% and SGH.AU 10.27%. All three reported at or above guidance, and investors sold the forward guidance instead. Amotiv sits outside the ASX 200.
- Energy closed at its highest since 6 May. All seven of the largest local energy names finished higher, from Origin ORG.AU at +1.30% to Karoon KAR.AU at +6.38%.
- 125 of the 219 largest listings rose and 79 fell, so the advance was wider than an 18-point index move suggests.
- AU VIX fell 1.04% to 10.37 and the Australian dollar held 0.7060 against the US dollar through the RBA decision.
Sector scorecard
- Best: Energy (+3.91%)
- Worst: Consumer Staples (-1.46%)
- Dispersion (best minus worst): 5.37 pts
- Consumer staples had no offsetting winner. Woolworths WOW.AU fell 2.04%, Endeavour EDV.AU 1.65%, Coles COL.AU 1.09% and Metcash MTS.AU 0.63%, four names down out of four.
Top movers
S&P/ASX 200 constituents only. Chrysos C79.AU (+17.21%) and Core Lithium CXO.AU (+11.48%) both moved more but sit outside the index.
| Ticker | Move | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| ASB.AU | +17.45% | Hanwha offer of US$1.05bn to US$1.20bn for Austal USA |
| HLI.AU | +10.16% | 27c special dividend and a further $75m buyback |
| EOS.AU | +6.52% | Unannounced. Defence peer to Austal ASB.AU +17.45% |
| KAR.AU | +6.38% | Brent +1.87%, sector's best single-name close |
| BPT.AU | +5.45% | Brent +1.87% to US$89.36 |
| 360.AU | -19.44% | User growth slowed to 16%, Q3 margin guided near 18% |
| ARF.AU | -12.50% | Four broker downgrades after Edge default notices |
| SGH.AU | -10.27% | FY27 EBIT guided flat to low single digit vs +3.7% |
| 4DX.AU | -7.27% | Unannounced, likely flow-driven |
| IAG.AU | -3.95% | Unannounced, no result until later in August |
Notable announcements
- Austal ASB.AU booked a non-cash provision that swings FY26 group EBIT to a loss near $113m, against prior guidance of about $110m of profit. The Hanwha offer covers the US operations only.
- Helia HLI.AU reported first-half underlying profit down 16% to $106.3m and gross premiums written down 44% to $61.6m, then declared a 16c interim dividend plus a 27c special and a further $75m buyback.
- Chrysos C79.AU rose 17.21% on FY26 revenue of $88.1m, up 33%, with EBITDA up 68% to $27.2m and margin at 31% against 24%. Core Lithium CXO.AU rose 11.48% after BP33 drilling returned 34.08m at 2.09% Li2O from 578.7m. Neither is an ASX 200 constituent.
- Arena REIT ARF.AU said tenant Edge Early Learning, about 14% of annual rental income, missed rent due on 3 August. Charter Hall Social Infrastructure CQE.AU put its own Edge exposure at about 1% of income and left FY27 guidance unchanged. CQE.AU still fell 3.41%.
- Centuria Industrial CIP.AU lifted FY26 funds from operations 3% to $114.1m and guided FY27 distributions to 17.3 cps against 17.1 cps consensus. It rose 3.30%.
- Life360 360.AU beat on second-quarter revenue and earnings, then guided third-quarter margin near 18% and skewed the rest of the full-year target into the fourth quarter. Monthly active user growth has slowed to 16% against a 20% company target.
At the AU close (17:35 AEST)
| Asset | Level | Change | Context |
|---|---|---|---|
| S&P 500 futures | 7,773.75 | -0.04% | US cash reopens Tuesday night AEST |
| Nasdaq futures | 29,754.25 | +0.06% | Flat after Monday's Nasdaq drop of 0.32% |
| STOXX 600 | 661.17 | +0.11% | Europe 40 minutes into its session |
| Nikkei 225 | 66,970.22 | +2.08% | Closed, the strongest of the Asian session |
| Hang Seng | 25,684.78 | -0.97% | Still trading at the AU close |
| Brent | US$89.36 | +1.87% | Second session of gains after Monday's surge |
| Gold | US$4,424.10/oz | +0.10% | Off a US$4,495 session high |
| AUD/USD | 0.7060 | -0.01% | Unmoved by the RBA hold |
| US VIX | 15.43 | -0.19% |
Next 24h catalysts (AEST)
- Wed 09:00 to 10:00: Commonwealth Bank CBA.AU FY26 result, the largest single earnings figure of the August calendar. Consensus cash profit is near $10.85bn against $10.25bn a year earlier. Net interest margin was 2.04% at the half, down 4 basis points, and Westpac WBC.AU set a soft marker on Monday by falling 5.88% on its own quarterly.
- Wed 22:30: US July CPI. Headline consensus is +0.1% for the month and 3.4% for the year, core +0.32% and 2.5%, the first full month measuring how far the oil move has travelled into US prices.
- Thu 11:30: ABS Average Weekly Earnings for May 2026. The RBA statement named capacity pressures and weak productivity growth as reasons inflation stays high, and this is the next wage reading against both.
- Thu: reporting season continues, with the ASX calendar carrying more than 250 companies through August.
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