ASX 200 ends flat at 8,795.2 as CBA gains 4.35% and materials fall 3.85%; Zip drops 29.5%
ASX 200 close: 8,795.2 (+0.02%) Breadth: 89 advancers / 130 decliners Sentiment: mixed
The S&P/ASX 200 closed at 8,795.2 on 23 October 2026, up 2.0 points or 0.02%, as financials gained 2.21% and materials lost 3.85%, with CBA.AU up 4.35% and BHP.AU down 3.64%. ZIP.AU fell 29.47% to $1.46 after a US fraud event cut September quarter cash EBTDA to $65.0m, against a $76.9m UBS estimate (Market Index). Overnight, gold fell 2.8% and copper 2.7% (Market Index), and the US 10-year yield dropped 19 bps to 4.95%.
What moved the index
The big four banks added about 81 bps to the ASX 200 on 23 October 2026, and materials took about 81 bps away.
- Big four banks: CBA.AU +4.35% to $164.00, NAB.AU +3.25% to $41.31, WBC.AU +3.11% to $36.79 and ANZ.AU +0.88%, worth about 81 bps. No bank released price-sensitive news; Market Index called it a rotation from miners into banks.
- Materials: -3.85%, worth about -81 bps. BHP.AU fell 3.64% to $55.05, RIO.AU 2.68% to $146.27 and NEM.AU 4.93%; the All Ords Gold index lost 5.56%. Market Index put the materials index at its lowest since 30 March at 11:58am.
- Consumer discretionary: +2.57%, worth about 19 bps. WES.AU rose 3.76% to $80.29, a day after the sector fell 1.72%.
- A-REITs and tech: -0.54% and -0.92%, together about -7 bps, with GMG.AU down 3.62% to $25.27.
Together, these drivers account for about 12 bps of the 2 bps rise; the residual of about 10 bps reflects MQG.AU -0.80% and breadth, with decliners ahead of advancers 130 to 89 across the 229-name sweep and 10 names unchanged.
Session highlights
- 8,753.7 was the session low on hourly Yahoo data, and the index closed at its high of 8,795.2; Market Index had it 27 points lower, or 0.31%, at 2:04pm.
- 47.7 was the S&P Global flash composite PMI for October, down from 51.3 and the first contraction in five months. The services PMI fell to 47.8 from 51.9, and input cost inflation ran at its fastest pace since May.
- TPW.AU, outside the ASX 200, rose 33.42% to $5.43 after run-rate revenue growth improved to -4% from -13% and FY27 EBITDA guidance of $33m to $40m was reaffirmed.
- 0.13% was the ASX 200's weekly loss, from 8,806.7 on 16 October. Lithium names fell with metals: PLS.AU -8.07%, ELV.AU -9.33% and MIN.AU -4.27%.
- KOSPI fell as much as 4.1% on chipmaker selling and closed down 0.03% at 5,531.92; Taiwan's exchange shut for Typhoon Champi (Bloomberg via Market Index).
Sector scorecard
- Best: Consumer Discretionary (+2.57%)
- Worst: Materials (-3.85%)
- Dispersion (best minus worst): 6.42 pts
- Materials had the widest internal spread, 18.41 pts, from JHX.AU +1.87% to OBM.AU -16.54%.
- Financials +2.21%, Communication Services +1.15%, Utilities +0.82%, Health Care +0.69%, Industrials +0.10%, Consumer Staples +0.10%, Energy -0.40%, A-REITs -0.54%, Information Technology -0.92%.
Top movers
| Ticker | Move | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| NCK.AU | +5.15% | Partial rebound from Thursday's 15.34% fall on first-half profit guidance. |
| CBA.AU | +4.35% | No company news; rotation from miners into banks (Market Index). |
| PMV.AU | +4.19% | Unannounced, likely flow-driven. |
| WES.AU | +3.76% | Unannounced, likely flow-driven. |
| WHC.AU | +3.40% | September quarter ROM output up 22% to 11.0 Mt; price $226/t. |
| ZIP.AU | -29.47% | US fraud event; cash EBTDA $65.0m vs $76.9m estimate. |
| OBM.AU | -16.54% | September quarter AISC of A$4,214/oz after an extended mill shutdown. |
| WIA.AU | -14.13% | Unannounced, likely flow-driven. |
| SRL.AU | -13.68% | September quarter report; US$400m OSC loan still conditional. |
| ALK.AU | -10.88% | Fell with gold despite AISC of A$2,805/oz, below guidance. |
Notable announcements
- ZIP.AU: net bad debts rose to 1.97% of transaction volume against a 1.80% UBS estimate; total transaction volume rose 18% to $4.6bn and FY27 cash EBTDA guidance of $340m was held. The stock opened 49% lower at $1.06 (Market Index).
- OBM.AU: 33,939 oz of gold sold in the September quarter; closing cash of $207.0m and an undrawn credit facility lifted to $300m; FY27 guidance maintained.
- WHC.AU: equity coal sales fell 5% on the quarter to 6.0 Mt after disruptions at the Gladstone and Newcastle terminals; unit costs at the low end of $132 to $147/t guidance.
- ALK.AU: maiden fully franked dividend of 2 cents per share and mine operating cash flow of $102m in the September quarter.
- BPT.AU: agreed to take half of Elixir Energy's Taroom Trough interests for $205m, $25m in cash and $180m in carried costs; shares rose 1.08% to $0.94.
- FMG.AU: Macquarie cut its target to $18 from $19 after the miner warned of output cuts without a China Mineral Resources Group deal by year-end; shares fell 2.06% to $14.27.
At the AU close (16:15 AEDT)
| Asset | Level | Change | Context |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nikkei | 62,715.58 | -0.31% | Closed |
| KOSPI | 5,531.92 | -0.03% | Closed; fell as much as 4.1% on chipmakers |
| Hang Seng | 23,206.93 | +1.19% | Trading |
| Brent | US$114.47 | +1.15% | Front-month futures; Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia |
| Gold | US$4,035.10/oz | -0.62% | Front-month futures, after a 2.8% overnight fall |
| AUD/USD | 0.7022 | +0.05% | US 10-year yield at 4.95% |
S&P 500 futures were unchanged and Nasdaq futures rose 0.26% at the AU close.
Next 24h catalysts (AEDT)
- Sat 00:45: US S&P Global flash October PMIs (prior manufacturing 55.9 and services 58.8, TD Economics)
- Wed 28 October, 11:30: Australia September CPI
- Thu 29 October, 05:00: FOMC decision
- Tue 3 November: RBA rate decision and updated forecasts
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