Australia Stocks Close Higher

Australia stocks were higher after the close on Friday, led by gains in the IT, Healthcare, and Metals & Mining sectors.

At the close in Sydney, the S&P/ASX 200 added 0.06%.

Best Performers

The top performers of the session on the S&P/ASX 200 were:
– Wisetech Global Ltd (ASX:WTC): rose 12.71% (12.63 points) to trade at 112.00.
– Insignia Financial Ltd (ASX:IFL): added 7.28% (0.22 points) to end at 3.24.
– Resmed Inc DRC (ASX:RMD): up 5.92% (2.11 points) to 37.73.

Worst Performers

The worst performers of the session included:
– Mineral Resources Ltd (ASX:MIN): fell 4.98% (1.79 points) to trade at 34.12.
– Reliance Worldwide Corporation Ltd (ASX:RWC): declined 4.66% (0.26 points) to end at 5.32.
– Super Retail Group Ltd (ASX:SUL): down 4.35% (0.69 points) to 15.18.

Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the Sydney Stock Exchange by 563 to 535, with 464 ending unchanged.

Shares in Insignia Financial Ltd (ASX:IFL) reached 52-week highs, up 7.28% (0.22) to 3.24.

Market Indices

The S&P/ASX 200 VIX, which measures the implied volatility of S&P/ASX 200 options, decreased 0.44% to 12.49.

Commodities

• Gold Futures (December delivery): down 0.25% (6.85) to $2,742.05 a troy ounce.
• Crude Oil (December): rose 0.26% (0.18) to $70.37 a barrel.
• Brent Oil (December contract): increased 0.30% (0.22) to $74.60 a barrel.

Currency Movements

• AUD/USD: unchanged 0.20% at 0.66.

• AUD/JPY: fell 0.35% to 100.47.

• US Dollar Index Futures: down 0.03% at 103.89.