Miners and energy stocks push ASX higher; Lynas, tech stocks decline

Staff writers

Updated July 22, 2026 — 11:58am,first published July 22, 2026 — 5:13am

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The Australian sharemarket advanced in early trade on Wednesday after Wall Street was pushed higher by gains in makers of computer chips and other winners of the artificial-intelligence boom, shrugging off another jump in oil prices amid the hostilities in the Middle East.

The S\&P/ASX 200 was up 25.3 points, or 0.3 per cent, at 8818.60 as of 11.22am AEST, boosted by the energy and mining sectors. The local bourse closed flat on Tuesday. The Australian dollar was trading at US$70.07.

AI stocks once again were at the centre of the action on Wall Street, and they rose for a second straight day after tumbling the week before.AP

Energy and materials stocks pushed the ASX higher in early trade, thanks to higher prices for oil, copper and gold overnight.

Brent crude oil briefly got near $US92 per barrel for the first time in more than five weeks because of continued attacks between the US and Iran. It later pared its gain to 2 per cent and settled at $US91.01. That’s up from less than $US72 in early July, which is roughly where it was before the war with Iran. US President Donald Trump played down the prospect of immediate talks with Iran as the two sides exchanged strikes near the Strait of Hormuz, while Houthi militants in Yemen threatened shipping in the Red Sea.

Local oil giants Woodside and Santos rose in early trade, up 0.6 and 0.8 per cent, respectively, while local refiners Ampol and Viva Energy both added 1.2 per cent. Coal producer Yancoal gained 1.7 per cent as higher oil prices boost demand for coal as a fossil fuel alternative.

Mining heavyweights BHP, Rio Tinto and Fortescue jumped 3 per cent, 2.4 per cent and 2 per cent, respectively, after copper futures jumped 3.3 per cent. After demand for iron ore peaked, the mining giants have pivoted to the red metal to become their main earnings driver.

Meanwhile, gold prices held their gains as traders monitored the war-induced threats to energy supply routes that risk stoking inflation and putting pressure on the Federal Reserve to hike interest rates. Bullion was trading at about $US4080 an ounce, after gaining almost 2 per cent the previous session. Northern Star Resources rose 2.5 per cent, while Evolution Mining jumped 4.2 per cent. South32 climbed a further 3.7 per cent, adding to its 6.6 per cent rally on Tuesday.

The mining outlier this morning was Lynas Rare Earths, which slumped 6.2 per cent after the company revealed in a trading update a more than 10 per cent slump in its output of NdPR – an important alloy blend of rare earths elements crucial for making the strong magnets that power the traction motors used in electric cars and wind turbines – in the June quarter compared to a year ago, due to issues at its new Mount Weld water recycling plants and ore concentrate quality issues.

While rising oil prices boosted energy stocks, the flip side is threatening a re-acceleration of inflation, which in turn could push the US Federal Reserve and other central banks to raise interest rates, slowing economies and undercutting prices for stocks and other investments.

Real estate investment trusts, which tend to suffer when rising rates boost the returns of bonds, were trading lower, with warehouse and AI data centre owner Goodman Group down 1.2 per cent, Westfield shopping centres landlord Scentre down 0.5 per cent and Vicinity down 1.1 per cent.

Healthcare stocks also declined, with biotech giant CSL down 1.9 per cent and Chemist Warehouse owner Sigma Healthcare slipping 1.42 per cent.

Tech stocks gave back their gains from Tuesday, with software makers bearing the brunt of the losses. Xero, the nation’s biggest tech stock, lost 4 per cent. WiseTech fell 2 per cent after saying it bought a developer of AI-powered supply chain risk and compliance intelligence technology for $10 million and shares. Technology One slid 3 per cent.

Wesfarmers slipped 0.7 per cent after the conglomerate said it would spend between $645 million and $715 million to expand the Mount Holland lithium mine and concentrator with its partner, Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile. It will pay for the investment using existing cash and debt facilities.

The big four banks were slightly higher in early trade. CBA was up 0.3 per cent, Westpac and National Australia Bank both rose 0.4 per cent and ANZ Bank edged up 0.1 per cent.

On Wall Street overnight, the S\&P 500 climbed 0.9 per cent. The Dow Jones added 385 points, or 0.7 per cent, and the Nasdaq composite rose 1.3 per cent.

AI stocks once again were at the centre of the action, and they rose for a second straight day after tumbling the week before.

After rocketing higher because of the boom in investment in AI chips and data centres, they’ve come under pressure in recent weeks on worries that they shot too high. Concerns are also weighing that investment in AI may fall off if it doesn’t produce as much profit as hoped.

Micron Technology jumped 12.2 per cent and added to its 1.9 per cent gain from the day before, coming off its 13.3 per cent drop from last week. Nvidia added 2 per cent; they were the two strongest forces lifting the S\&P 500.

On Wall Street, several stronger-than-expected profit reports from big US companies also helped the market higher. 3M climbed 7.3 per cent after topping analysts’ expectations for both profit and revenue in the latest quarter. It also raised its forecast for profit over the full year of 2026.

Hasbro rallied 8.8 per cent after the toy maker said its Magic: The Gathering game topped $US500 million in revenue for a quarter for the first time. It also raised its revenue forecast for the year.

General Motors cruised 4.9 per cent higher after the automaker’s profit and revenue for the latest quarter beat analysts’ expectations and CEO Mary Barra said demand in North America remains strong.

Alphabet slid 1.5 per cent after Google released a trio of cheaper versions of its Gemini AI model, but shared no timing updates for the flagship Pro model that has already delayed its launch by several weeks.

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