ASX 200 Live Today - Wednesday, 10th September
S&P/ASX 200 futures are flat despite the S&P 500, Dow and Nasdaq all hitting fresh all-time highs overnight. Here are today's top stories.
Today’s ASX 200 Updates
Welcome to our live ASX coverage for Wednesday, September 10. We’re excited to trial this new format. Expect a high volume of posts pre-market and more periodic updates throughout the day. Today's live blog will wrap up around 2:00 pm AEST. Be sure to refresh manually for the latest updates — and let us know how we can make it even better.
Little changed, nothing to see here
[3:05 pm] A pretty quiet Wednesday, markets have managed to chug a little higher. Every sector is higher except Materials (-1.7%).
Financials (+1.40%) bouncing strongly, recouping losses from the previous two sessions.
China's CPI print was too cool (headline CPI down 0.4% year-on-year vs. estimates for a 0.2% fall), which may be placing downward pressure on the resource sector.
The Index continues to chug between the 20-day and 50-day moving average. Not bearish, not bullish, just trying to figure things out/awaiting more meaningful catalysts. That's all for Wednesday.
ASX 200 daily chart (Source: TradingView)
ASX 200 higher, financials bounce
[2:00 pm] S&P/ASX 200 trending higher after a flat start, currently up 0.22%.
Financials leading the pack, led by the Big Four Banks (ANZ +1.7%, CBA +1.6%, NAB +1.4% and WBC +1.4%).
Materials tanking, with BHP, Fortescue and Rio Tinto all down around 1.5%. Lithium stocks smashed on China mine reopening news, with MinRes down 6.1% and Pilbara Minerals tanking 15%.
Overall, the ASX 200 continues to chop sideways, down 1.7% month-to-date.
Lithium prices tank
[1:56 pm] Chinese lithium carbonate futures currently down 4.7% to 70,840 yuan a tonne. This follows a 2.6% fall on Tuesday.
"Should Jianxiawo reopen, we would expect prices may move to below Jianxiawo's break-even of 80-85k RMB/t to 70-75k RMB/t, which may push spodumene prices to US$800-850/t (or lower)," Macquarie analysts said in a note this morning.
China's deflation problem
[1:53 pm] China's consumer price index fell 0.4% year-on-year in August, the first negative print in three months.
The median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg was for a 0.2% drop.
Producer prices also fell 2.9% year-on-year following a 3.6% decline in July.
Gold miners struggle for more upside
[11:46 am] Gold prices briefly rallied 1.07% overnight (US$3,674/oz) but faded early gains to close 0.33% lower (US$3,623/oz).
Local gold names are trading broadly lower on Wednesday. Notable decliners include: Alkane Resources (-6.9%), Bellevue Gold (-4.1%), Westgold (-2.0%), Perseus Mining (-1.7%), Northern Star (-1.0%) and Newmont (-0.2%).
Here's something interesting: The All Ords Gold Index (GDX) is currently trading at its most expensive level relative to the underlying gold price since April 2022. This premium suggests that gold mining stocks are significantly outpacing the performance of the metal itself. This may be driven by factors such as i) expectations of higher gold prices, ii) solid production guidances from major miners and/or iii: ongoing sector consolidation.
All Ords Gold Index (XGD) relative to gold price (Source: TradingView)
Morgan Stanley's take on ANZ
[11:33 am] ANZ announced a brutal restructure on Tuesday, with simplification changes set to cut its workforce by 3,500 (~8% of total).
Despite no disclosure on potential cost savings, organ Stanley estimates a ~$700-800 million figure, which equates to 5.5-6.5% of the bank's FY26 cost base.
"All else equal, potential cost savings could add ~7-8% to ANZ's earnings, assuming no impact on revenue from these changes," the analysts said in a note this morning.
"Despite the materiality of this announcement, there is no news on other issues such as management appointments, the retail bank strategy or dividends."
Morgan Stanley retained an Equal-weight rating, with a $29.30 target price.
The outlook for banks is improving, says Citi
[11:28 am] "While not exactly cheap and despite minimal growth, the outlook for the banks is improving. This is largely a function of a shifting macro environment that continues to favour the banks," Citi analysts said in a note this morning.
With a slight upgrade to the sector's earnings outlook and revised target prices:
Bank of Queensland upgraded to Neutral from Sell; target up to $6.60 from $6.00
Judo Capital upgraded to Buy from Neutral; target up to $2.00 from $1.85
Westpac upgraded to Neutral from Sell; target up to $36.50 from $29.75
Dalrymple Bay dips 7%
[11:15 am] Shares in Dalrymple Bay Infrastructure are down 6.6% to $4.07 in early trade, falling in line with Brookfield's $527 million block trade that was priced at $4.05 per share.
I've written about DBI a lot (latest piece here) as the company has clear earnings visibility and a reliable dividend.
With DBI guiding to an FY25-26 distribution of 24.5 cents per share, today's selloff has pushed the yield higher from around 5.5% to 6.0%.
The last time Brookfield offloaded a massive stake, DBI shares initially dipped 6.1% on 13 June, but it took just seven days for the stock to fully recover those losses.
However, there's a key difference this time around. Brookfield is reportedly looking to exit its remaining 26% stake entirely, which could mean additional selling pressure and further substantial discounts ahead.
ASX 200 flat
[10:23 am] S&P/ASX 200 is trading flat (-0.01%) after a mixed lead from Wall Street (S&P 500, Dow and Nasdaq all edged into record territory, though breadth was negative and equal-weight S&P 500 finished lower).
Strength from Financials (QBE +1.9%, CBA +1.1%) offset by weakness in Materials (Fortescue, BHP and Rio Tinto down around 1%, lithium stocks smashed, gold miners pulling back).
S&P/ASX 200 sector performance (Source: Market Index)
Lithium stocks smashed
[10:10 am] Its a sea of red for lithium stocks on Wednesday, with notable decliners including Pilbara Minerals (-14.7%), Liontown (-11.0%) and Patriot Battery Metals (-10.0%).
The stocks experienced a sizeable pull forward after CATL shut its Jianxiawo lithium mine in China. With the mine now set to open sooner-than-expected, stocks are now giving back their gains.
Yancoal mulls Anglo's coal assets
[9:41 am] Yancoal is interested in Anglo American's Queensland coal assets, according to The Australian.
The article notes Yancoal eyes the assets involved in the disputed deal with Peabody.
Yancoal suffered a one-day selloff of 14.5% after the company announced an interim dividend of just 6.2 cents per share (approximately 1.0% yield), despite sitting on $1.8 billion cash as at 30 June 2025.
The board stated that "retained cash providing flexibility for potential corporate initiatives and may be distributed in the future if not."
Source: The Australian
Lithium stocks set to tumble
[9:28 am] Lithium stocks suffered a sharp pullback overnight, with the VanEck Rare Earth/Strategic Metals ETF (REMX) down 3.3%.
On Tuesday night, CATL was in discussions to resume operations at its Jianxiawo lithium mine. Sources say applications for the mining and extraction licenses are progressing faster than expected. Chinese lithium carbonate futures tanked 2.6% on Tuesday.
US-listed lithium names like Lithium Americas and Albemarle dipped 4.3% and 11.4% respectively.
Iluka Resources suspends mineral sands production
[9:24 am] Iluka Resources is suspending production activities at its Cataby mine and SR2 in Western Australia, effective 1 December, 2025. The decision reflects subdued demand and prices for mineral sands, and associated downstream products.
Iluka says it holds sufficient inventories to satisfy customer requirements, and may restart the projects when market conditions warrant.
Brookfield offloads more Dalrymple Bay
[9:19 am] Brookfield sold $527 million shares in Dalrymple Bay Infrastructure, at $4.05 per share or a 6.8% discount to last close. This will likely see DBI shares dip this morning.
The article notes that Brookfield is looking to sell its remaining 26% stake.
On 13 June, Brookfield sold $428 million worth of stock at $3.72 per share or a 7.9% discount to its previous close. What's fascinating is that DBI shares bounced back very strong over the next couple of days/weeks (up 12% to $4.25 by 30 June).
Source: AFR
Catalyst Metals to join the S&P/ASX 200
[8:57 am] Catalyst Metals will replace Brickworks in the S&P/ASX 200, effective prior to open on 16 September. This remains subject to the scheme meeting and final court approval, where Brickworks will be acquired by Washington H Soul Pattinson.
US payrolls revised down by 911,00
[8:51 am] The US Bureau of Labour Statistics says job growth was less robust than prior estimates, with the number of workers on payrolls revised down by 911,000 or 0.6% for the year through to March 2025.
The figure was more negative than expected, though unsurprising given recent data accuracy concerns.
So the S&P 500 gained 0.27% overnight because job numbers turned out to be fake ... yet it’s been rallying for two years on those same fake numbers?”
Oracle rips 20% after hours
[8:47 am] Oracle shares surged more than 20% after hours, making it one of the top ten largest companies on the S&P 500 (up from #12) and its founder Larry Ellison the world's second richest man.
The Q1 result was relatively in-line with market expectations, with revenue up 12% to $14.90 billion and adjusted EPS up 6% to $1.47.
However, the outlook was incredibly bullish. Management said they expect Oracle cloud infrastructure revenue to grow 77% to $18 billion this fiscal year, rising to $32 billion, $73 billion, $114 billion and $144 billion over the next four years.
Some interesting comments from management include:
“We signed four multi-billion-dollar contracts in Q1… RPO backlog increased 359% to $455bn. Demand for Oracle Cloud Infrastructure continues to build.”
“We expect several additional multi-billion-dollar customers… RPO likely to exceed half-a-trillion dollars soon.”
“Multi Cloud database revenue from Amazon, Google, and Microsoft grew 1,529% in Q1.”
Good morning!
[8:37 am] ASX 200 futures are down 4pts (-0.03%) after a fairly mixed overnight session. The S&P 500, Nasdaq and Dow all hit fresh all-time highs. However, breadth was negative and the Equal-weight S&P 500 finished lower (-0.31%).
If you’re new to the blog – catch up quick via today’s Morning Wrap.
