The S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO)(ASX: XJO) ended higher on Wednesday, lead up by the BHP Billiton Limited (ASX:BHP) share price and Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) share price, as well as gains in the AGL Energy Ltd (ASX:AGL) share price.
Here's a recap of overseas markets:
- FTSE 100 (UK): down 0.13%
- DAX (Germany): down 0.01%
- CAC 40 (France): down 0.51%
- Dow Jones (USA): down 0.21%
- NASDAQ (USA): down 0.32%
Closer to home:
- The S&P/ASX 200 — up 0.26%
- ALL ORDINARIES (Index: ^AXAO) (ASX: XAO) — up 0.27%
Leading the ASX 200 higher today was the materials, utilities and telecommunications sectors. The BHP share price and RIO share price ended 1.5% and 2.2% higher, respectively. The catalyst behind their gains appears to be the 5.5% rally in the iron ore price. Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) ended the day 5.6% higher.
In the utilities sector, AGL Energy and APA Group (ASX: APA) finished the day 1.1% higher.
GPT Group (ASX: GPT) was amongst the best performers while WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC) ended 6.3% higher despite no company-specific news.
At the other end of town, gold miner St Barbara Ltd (ASX: SBM) and hospital operator Ramsay Health Care Ltd (ASX: RHC) ended 4.6% and 1.9% lower, respectively.
Here are Wednesday's top stories:
