ASX 200 snaps a three-day slide to 9,020.1 as banks rebound and BHP's dividend hides a gain
ASX 200 close: 9,020.1 (+0.46%) Breadth: 147 advancers / 87 decliners Sentiment: bullish
The S&P/ASX 200 closed at 9,020.1 on Thursday 3 September 2026, up 41.7 points or 0.46%, snapping a three-day slide as the Australian 10-year yield eased 4 basis points to 5.16% off a 15-year high and all four major banks rose. Regis Healthcare REG.AU fell 26.99% to $4.30 on 8.2 million shares, nearly nine times its recent daily average, after Canberra set the aged care funding rate 2.55% higher from 1 October against award wage growth of 4.75%. Gold rose 1.28% to US$4,471 an ounce as the US dollar index slipped 0.36%, lifting all 17 large-cap gold miners.
What moved the index
- Big four banks: median +1.42%, worth about 28 basis points of the 46 basis point index move. NAB.AU rose 1.79% to $39.27, WBC.AU 1.51% to $34.91, ANZ.AU 1.33% to $38.01 and CBA.AU 0.79% to $160.58, its first close above $160.00 in two weeks. The Australian 10-year fell 4 basis points to 5.16% and the policy-sensitive 3-year 5 basis points to 4.77%, the first retreat after last week's breakout.
- Ex-dividend resets: about 17 basis points of drag. BHP.AU, WDS.AU, COL.AU, RHC.AU, AMC.AU and NHF.AU all traded ex-dividend. BHP.AU fell 1.35% to $63.78 against a A$1.38 dividend (US$0.99), so the shares gained roughly 51 cents once the payout is added back. WDS.AU fell 2.60% to $32.22 against a A$0.79 dividend, leaving about 7 cents of genuine selling.
- Gold miners: median +3.44% across 17 large-cap names, all 17 higher, worth about 10 basis points. NST.AU rose 2.61% to $23.17, EVN.AU 2.60% to $15.01 and GMD.AU 3.34% to $8.36 as bullion extended a two-session rebound.
- Goodman Group GMG.AU: +2.85% to $27.41, about 7 basis points on its own, the largest single contribution outside the banks.
Together those drivers account for roughly 36 of the 46 basis points. The residual is breadth: 147 of the 248 largest ASX names rose against 87 that fell, a 1.7 to 1 ratio.
Session highlights
The S&P/ASX 200 traded between 8,970.3 and 9,027.9 on 3 September 2026, opening at 8,974.0 and closing within 8 points of the session high.
- 5.16% on the Australian 10-year, down 4 basis points, ended a run that had carried the yield to a 15-year high on Wednesday's June quarter national accounts. Banks have now added 2.8% since 27 August and still sit 7.5% below their 6 August record.
- US President Trump said the new bombing campaign against Iran would not run long, unwinding Wednesday's risk-off move. Brent fell 0.78% to US$94.88 and all eight large-cap energy names finished lower, with KAR.AU off 3.07%, BPT.AU 2.79% and WDS.AU 2.60%.
- Iron ore gained 1.50% to US$98.75 a tonne on the Singapore exchange, sending FMG.AU up 2.05% to $16.95, MIN.AU 1.92% to $63.33 and RIO.AU 1.28% to $177.11.
- 10.74 on the S&P/ASX 200 VIX, down 5.40%, unwound Wednesday's spike to 11.35 and returned the gauge to where it sat on 27 and 31 August.
- China's RatingDog services PMI rose to 51.4 from 50.4 against a 50.6 forecast, though the official survey still has services contracting for a second month.
Sector scorecard
- Best: gold miners, median +3.44%, all 17 large-cap names higher
- Worst: energy, median -0.80%, none of the 8 large-cap names higher
- Dispersion (gold median minus energy median): 4.2 points
- Uranium carried the widest internal spread: DYL.AU +8.44% and BMN.AU +7.79% against PDN.AU +1.35% and SLX.AU +3.12%
Top movers
| Ticker | Move | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| DYL.AU | +8.44% | Namibian uranium developer, no announcement lodged |
| BMN.AU | +7.79% | Etango developer, tracked DYL.AU with no announcement |
| PYC.AU | +5.76% | Unannounced, likely flow-driven |
| KCN.AU | +5.42% | Gold producer, bullion +1.28% to US$4,471 |
| PNR.AU | +4.87% | Second gold name in the top five, no announcement |
| REG.AU | -26.99% | AN-ACC funding rise of 2.55% lags 4.75% award wages |
| EQR.AU | -7.79% | Unannounced, likely flow-driven |
| ELV.AU | -5.40% | Lithium weakness, LTR.AU also off 4.03% |
| EIQ.AU | -4.67% | Unannounced, likely flow-driven |
| QAL.AU | -4.24% | Property credit manager, nothing lodged with the ASX |
Notable announcements
- The government set the AN-ACC aged care rate at $303.19 per resident per day from 1 October, up 2.55% from $295.64, with the hotelling supplement held at $22.15. REG.AU said the increase lags cost growth of 4.75% for award-based workers, up to 4.4% for nurses and 3.8% CPI, and named pricing and operational efficiency as its response.
- BHP.AU traded ex a A$1.38 dividend (US$0.99), WDS.AU ex A$0.79 (US$0.57) with a record date of 4 September and payment on 25 September.
- The ABS reported the July goods balance narrowed $418 million, exports down 3.3% and imports down 2.5%. Iron ore lump volumes fell 21.5% month on month, hard coking coal 19.5% and thermal coal 15.8%.
At the AU close (16:15 AEST)
| Asset | Level | Change | Context |
|---|---|---|---|
| S&P 500 (Wed cash close) | 7,666.60 | +0.46% | Fed path repriced as the US 10-year eased from 4.818% |
| S&P 500 futures | 7,679.75 | +0.04% | Flat ahead of Friday payrolls |
| Nasdaq 100 futures | 29,205 | +0.06% | Flat ahead of Friday payrolls |
| US VIX | 15.26 | +0.39% | Held near the low end of its August range |
| Gold | US$4,471/oz | +1.28% | Second straight session higher after Tuesday's 2.57% drop |
| Brent | US$94.88 | -0.78% | Trump signalled a short Iran campaign |
| Iron ore 62% (SGX) | US$98.75/t | +1.50% | Still short of US$100 after Wednesday's US$97.72 |
| AUD/USD | 0.7174 | +0.05% | US dollar index off 0.36% to 99.24 |
Next 24h catalysts (AEST)
- Fri 10:00: ASX opens, tracking overnight US futures and the payrolls setup
- Fri 22:30: US August non-farm payrolls, the week's main US release
- Fri: WDS.AU dividend record date, payment 25 September
- Tue 8 Sep: REG.AU trades ex a 9.4 cent fully franked final dividend
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