ASX 200 rises 0.16% to 8,831.3 as banks offset NextDC's 41.7% fall and an RBA hike warning
ASX 200 close: 8,831.3 (+0.16%) Breadth: 125 advancers / 78 decliners Sentiment: mixed
The S&P/ASX 200 closed at 8,831.3 on 21 October 2026, up 14.4 points or 0.16%, as the banks index gained 1.09% and telecommunications 2.23% while materials fell 1.04%. NXT.AU lost 41.72% to $5.35 on its return from a trading halt after cutting FY27 underlying EBITDA guidance to $245m to $265m from $385m to $410m, and information technology fell 3.32%. RBA deputy governor Andrew Hauser called the inflation outlook "materially worse" at 12:38pm, and market pricing for a November rate rise moved to 41% from 27% (Market Index).
What moved the index
Financials added about 29 bps to the ASX 200 on 21 October 2026 and materials took about 22 bps back.
- Financials: +0.96%, worth about 29 bps. NAB.AU rose 1.86% to $39.93 after Morgan Stanley estimated its 2,500 job cuts save $400m to $450m gross; CBA.AU gained 0.91% to $157.01 and WBC.AU 1.14% to $35.53.
- Communication services and industrials: +2.23% and +0.99%, together worth about 15 bps. TLS.AU rose 1.89% to $4.85; SEK.AU gained 4.37% and CAR.AU 3.45%.
- Materials: -1.04%, worth about 22 bps. BHP.AU fell 1.61% to $58.54, close to the A$58.42 its US listing implied overnight, and RIO.AU lost 1.48% to $152.55.
- Information technology: -3.32%, worth about 9 bps. NXT.AU fell 41.72%, against XRO.AU +5.02% and WTC.AU +2.92%.
Together, these drivers account for about 13 bps of the 16 bps gain; the residual reflects breadth, with advancers ahead of decliners 125 to 78 across the 220-name sweep.
Session highlights
- 8,841.9 was the session high, 10.6 points above the close, after a low of 8,795.9; ASX 200 futures had pointed to 8,866 before the open.
- NXT.AU cut FY27 net revenue guidance to $475m to $500m from $615m to $640m after Jemena suspended grid works at its M3 Melbourne data centre until at least February 2027 (Market Index). SXE.AU fell 7.06% and GNP.AU 3.61%, both contractors to data centre builds (Stockhead).
- 41% was the market-implied chance of a November RBA rise after Hauser's speech, with a rise fully priced by March; updated RBA forecasts land on 3 November (Market Index).
- NST.AU rose 1.79% to $25.06 after keeping FY27 guidance at 1.5 to 1.65 million ounces, while the All Ords Gold index fell 0.72% with December gold -0.23% to US$4,133.20/oz.
- WDS.AU gained 0.41% to $33.96 after third-quarter production rose 12% to 46.2 MMboe; it narrowed 2026 guidance to 174 to 181 MMboe from 174 to 185 MMboe (Market Index).
- 10.655 was the ASX volatility index close, down 2.06%.
Sector scorecard
- Best: Communication Services (+2.23%)
- Worst: Information Technology (-3.32%)
- Dispersion (best minus worst): 5.55 pts
- Information Technology had the widest internal spread, 46.74 pts, from XRO.AU +5.02% to NXT.AU -41.72%.
- Industrials +0.99%, Financials +0.96%, Energy +0.49%, Consumer Discretionary +0.34%, Consumer Staples +0.25%, Utilities +0.18%, Health Care +0.05%, A-REITs -0.50%, Materials -1.04%.
Top movers
| Ticker | Move | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| MLX.AU | +5.94% | Unannounced, likely flow-driven. |
| MSB.AU | +5.68% | Unannounced, likely flow-driven. |
| SSM.AU | +5.63% | AGM flags a step change in FY27 revenue and earnings; work in hand above $8.2bn. |
| BPT.AU | +5.49% | First-quarter report; drilling starts at Canyon North-1. |
| XRO.AU | +5.02% | Unannounced, likely flow-driven. |
| NXT.AU | -41.72% | FY27 EBITDA guidance midpoint cut 36% on the M3 Melbourne power delay. |
| TLX.AU | -7.87% | Third-quarter revenue US$245m, up 19% on the year, down 1% on the quarter. |
| SXE.AU | -7.06% | Data centre contractors fell after NXT.AU's guidance cut. |
| RWC.AU | -4.87% | Unannounced, likely flow-driven. |
| TCG.AU | -4.67% | Unannounced, likely flow-driven. |
Notable announcements
- NXT.AU: FY27 capex guidance cut to $4.5bn to $5.0bn from $5.25bn to $5.75bn, with new developments and land purchases on hold; liquidity of $8.68bn at 30 September.
- TLX.AU: FY26 revenue tracking to the top of its US$950m to US$970m guidance; R&D guidance narrowed to US$240m to US$260m.
- SEK.AU: the SEEK Growth Fund tied its manager's performance fee to an $840m payout, about $700m of it to SEEK, and is weighing sales of more than $1bn of investments.
- PME.AU: a seven-year, $43m Visage 7 cloud contract with New Jersey's Virtua Health; shares rose 2.72% to $184.83.
- SIG.AU: Chemist Warehouse Australian sales rose 12.1% in FY27 to 16 October; shares fell 2.83% to $2.75.
- VSL.AU: first-quarter FY27 revenue rose 39% to NZ$353.7m and EBITDA 51%; shares rose 10.61% to $5.63.
At the AU close (16:15 AEDT)
| Asset | Level | Change | Context |
|---|---|---|---|
| S&P 500 (cash) | 7,712.57 | +0.28% | Tuesday close; futures +0.21% before Meta and Tesla results |
| Nikkei | 64,691.26 | +0.96% | Closed |
| KOSPI | 5,725.89 | +3.12% | Closed; Elice rose 30% a day after its 32% debut fall (Bloomberg) |
| Hang Seng | 23,702.37 | -0.69% | Trading |
| Brent | US$110.36 | +1.44% | December contract; Qatar and Pakistan pushing to revive US-Iran talks |
| Gold | US$4,133.20/oz | -0.23% | December contract |
| AUD/USD | 0.7020 | +0.20% | Above 70 US cents after Hauser's speech |
Next 24h catalysts (AEDT)
- Thu 01:00: US usual weekly earnings of wage and salary workers, third quarter (BLS)
- Thu 07:00 approx: Meta, Tesla, IBM and Lam Research third-quarter results after the US close
- Thu 01:30: US EIA weekly petroleum status report, with Brent at US$110.36
- 3 November: RBA rate decision and updated forecasts
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