ASX 200 rises 0.28% to 8,696.5 as energy leads a rebound off Tuesday's three-month low
ASX 200 close: 8,696.5 (+0.28%) Breadth: 137 advancers / 94 decliners (250 largest names) Sentiment: mixed
The S&P/ASX 200 closed at 8,696.5 on 16 September 2026, up 24 points or 0.28%, as Energy rose 2.19% and Materials 1.28% one day after the index posted its lowest close since 12 June. Woodside WDS.AU gained 2.84% as Australian producers repriced to Brent's overnight settle of US$108.75, a 2.91% rise that landed after Tuesday's ASX close. Financials fell 0.37% and took roughly 12 basis points off the index, with all four major banks now forecasting an RBA hike in November.
What moved the index
- Materials (+1.28%): the largest single contributor, worth roughly 27 bps of the 28 bps index move. BHP.AU rose 1.60%, RIO.AU 1.06%, FMG.AU 1.97% and S32.AU 3.09%, reversing Tuesday's 2.21% sector fall. Copper closed at US$6.487/lb, up 0.68%.
- Energy (+2.19%): best of the 11 sectors, and worth roughly 9 bps. WDS.AU +2.84%, STO.AU +2.11%, BPT.AU +3.45% and VEA.AU +3.28%. Brent had already given some of it back, trading at US$107.68 (-0.98%) by 17:30 AEST.
- Financials (-0.37%): the largest drag by weight, taking roughly 12 bps off. CBA.AU fell 0.63%, NAB.AU 0.52% and ANZ.AU 0.30%, against WBC.AU +0.23%. Westpac became the last of the big four to forecast a November RBA hike, to 4.6%.
- Consumer Staples (-1.15%): weakest sector, worth about 5 bps of drag. EDV.AU fell 3.85%, COL.AU 1.10% and WOW.AU 1.05%.
Together those four account for about 19 bps of the 28 bps index move. Width covers the remaining 9 bps: 137 of the 250 largest ASX stocks rose against 94 that fell.
Session highlights
- 8,670 was the session low, below Tuesday's 8,672.5 close, before the index recovered to finish at 8,696.5 against an intraday high of 8,703.2.
- PNR.AU +9.30%, SBM.AU +8.18%, ALK.AU +4.92% and BC8.AU +4.15% left the large gold producers behind, with NST.AU up 0.23%, RMS.AU 0.56% and GMD.AU 0.81%. Spot gold rose 0.97% to US$4,374.8/oz and silver 2.25% to US$65.29/oz.
- IFT.AU gained 3.57% to $11.32 after Infratil lifted full-year earnings guidance.
- SUN.AU fell 3.23% to $19.16 and IAG.AU 2.55% to $8.04, the two largest falls among the general insurers.
- AU VIX fell 4.51% to 13.685, and the ASX 200 Resources index rose 1.55% against 0.63% for the Small Ordinaries.
Sector scorecard
- Best: Energy (+2.19%)
- Worst: Consumer Staples (-1.15%)
- Dispersion (best minus worst): 3.34 pts
- Seven of the 11 sector indices closed higher.
- Materials held the widest internal spread, 9.07 points between PNR.AU at +9.30% and NST.AU at +0.23%. Six of the nine gold names in the sweep rose more than 4%; the four largest producers all finished under 1.1%.
Top movers
| Ticker | Move | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| PNR.AU | +9.30% | Spot gold +0.97% to US$4,374.8/oz lifted the gold juniors |
| SBM.AU | +8.18% | Divesting its New Simberi gold stake for $295m, announced 11 September |
| EQR.AU | +8.14% | US$150m to US$175m Springer tungsten funding, announced 14 September |
| CDA.AU | +7.51% | Unannounced, likely flow-driven. |
| BCI.AU | +7.48% | Unannounced, likely flow-driven. |
| SRL.AU | -6.22% | Unannounced, likely flow-driven. |
| 360.AU | -5.46% | No announcement, and Info Tech still closed up 0.30% |
| 4DX.AU | -5.35% | Sold with the imaging names: TLX.AU -4.96%, CU6.AU -4.57% |
| JHX.AU | -5.23% | US 10-year topped 5.0% overnight; North American housing exposure |
| TLX.AU | -4.96% | Reversed Tuesday's 8.63% rise on FDA approval of Pixclara |
Notable announcements
- Infratil IFT.AU lifted full-year earnings guidance and closed 3.57% higher at $11.32.
- EQ Resources EQR.AU closed at $0.465, up 8.14%, after taking a stake in a US tungsten processing joint venture funded at US$150m to US$175m.
- St Barbara SBM.AU closed at $0.86, up 8.18%, after agreeing to divest its New Simberi gold project stake for $295m.
At the AU close (16:15 AEST)
| Asset | Level | Change | Context |
|---|---|---|---|
| S&P 500 futures | 7,673.75 | +0.23% | Cash closed 0.45% lower on Tuesday at 7,585.73 |
| Nasdaq 100 futures | 29,376.75 | +0.44% | Cash closed 0.78% lower at 25,981.57 |
| Nikkei 225 | 63,923.0 | +0.69% | Tokyo closes 16:00 AEST, alongside the ASX |
| KOSPI | 6,717.97 | +1.37% | Strongest of the regional benchmarks |
| Hang Seng | 24,724.2 | +0.23% | Still trading at the ASX close |
| Brent | US$107.68 | -0.98% | Easing from an overnight settle of US$108.75 |
| Gold | US$4,374.8/oz | +0.97% | Silver outpaced it at +2.25% |
| Copper | US$6.487/lb | +0.68% | Steadied as supply concerns eased |
| AUD/USD | 0.7137 | +0.04% | Flat against a US dollar index at 99.589 |
| US VIX | 16.96 | -1.40% | AU VIX 4.51% lower at 13.685 |
Next 24h catalysts (AEST)
- Wed 22:30: US import and export price indexes, September
- Thu 04:00: Federal Reserve rate decision and Summary of Economic Projections; a 25 bp hike was about 92% priced at the Australian open
- Thu 04:30: Fed chair press conference
- Thu 09:00: SPI open, the first Australian pricing of the Fed decision
- Fri 11:30: ABS Australian Industry, 2024-25 financial year
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