By Oliver Gray
Investing.com - The ASX 200 moved higher in early deals on Wednesday, reversing declines of 0.31% in the previous session as optimistic investors tracked US equities higher amid a strong Q2 corporate earnings season, with data from Refinitiv showing that earnings climbed 89% versus analysts’ forecasts of 65.4% at the start of July, while a rebound in mining stocks also boosted sentiment.
On the coronavirus front, Queensland reported 19 fresh cases today as the coronavirus Delta variant continues to spread across the state, with 16 linked to the current Indooroopilly cluster. Victoria reported zero cases, while New South Wales braces for accelerating infection rates after reporting 199 cases yesterday with 50 infectious while in the community as exposure sites continue to grow across south-west Sydney.
Among stocks, Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX:RIO) , BHP Billiton Ltd (ASX:BHP), and Fortescue Metals Group Ltd (ASX:FMG) gained 2.05%, 2.59% and 1.46% respectively amid speculation of a relaxation in China’s steel output controls.
On the bond markets, local 10-year bond yields were at 1.163% while US 10-year rates were near 6-month lows of 1.177%.
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 lifted 36.56 points or 0.29% to 12737.06.