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Banks lift ASX to a new high
The local sharemarket extended Tuesday's strong gains to hit another near two-year high, with banks once again at the vanguard of the rally.
Jens is the markets and breaking news editor, based in Sydney.
The local sharemarket extended Tuesday's strong gains to hit another near two-year high, with banks once again at the vanguard of the rally.
The ASX hits a fresh 2017 closing high thanks to a surprisingly strong performance of the big banks.
Cyclicals were heralded as the stocks to hold in 2017, but despite a disappointing underperformance in the first quarter it's too early to write them off.
A record number of global fund managers reckon that stocks are overvalued, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch's monthly survey.
The commodities mini-boom moves beyond share prices and macro data and is starting to be felt at ground level, NAB says.
Shares dip led down by Harvey Norman's biggest slide in more than five years, while the Aussie dollar nudges higher.
The sharemarket nudged close to 2017 highs in a week marked by a rebound in mining stocks and an equities-friendly Fed decision.
Central bank policy dominated sharemarket trade: while a Fed hike was initially greeted with strong gains, a surprise follow-up move by China dampened the mood.
Markets are tipping a one-in-three chance the RBA will start lifting rates this year, while Goldman Sachs says a move in 2017 is now more likely than not.
Market exuberance is still driven more by monetary stimulus than fundamentals, and now may be a good time to reduce risk positions, Citi warns.
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