ASX up Thursday as Josh Frydenberg reveals massive deficit

Australian stocks ended a rollercoaster day up at the close of trade Thursday.

The All Ordinaries ended the day a handy 0.34 per cent up to reach 6,213.90. The ASX200 index flew 0.32 per cent higher to rest at 6,094.50 points.

Beverage producer Coca-Cola Amatil (up 4.58 per cent) and car seller AP Eagers (up 3.86 per cent) both lost a bit of their spectacular early gains during the afternoon, but both ended Thursday with handsome additions to their share price.

The market’s attention was dominated by treasurer Josh Frydenberg’s economic and fiscal update, which revealed $281 billion deficit forecast for 2021.

What happened at lunchtime?

The Australian stock market turned around its early losses to be higher at lunchtime.

The All Ordinaries was 0.33 per cent up at 12:16pm AEST to hit 6,212.80. The ASX200 index was also 0.33 per cent higher at the same point in time to hit 6,095.10 points.

Car dealership network AP Eagers led the market with a 5.71 per cent gain shortly before midday AEST. Coca-Cola Amatil was also having a good trading day, with its shares up 5.35 per cent.

The morning’s big news for the markets was treasurer Josh Frydenberg’s budget update, which revealed the biggest deficit since World War II.

What happened this morning?

Australian shares were slightly down in early trade Thursday, as the market awaits an economic and fiscal update from the federal treasurer.

The ASX200 index headed down 0.061 per cent in the first 10 minutes of trade to hit 6,071.40 points, while the All Ordinaries was 0.019 per cent lower at the same time to reach 6,191.40.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg will release an update on the nation's finances at 11am AEST. Australia's deficit is expected to be one of the largest in history, after the government spent billions in aid to combat the coronavirus recession.

What happened overnight?

All three major Wall Street indices nudged up overnight, buoyed by expectations that the US government will provide more financial aid.

The market was also optimistic after seeing decent home sales numbers.

The Dow Jones Industrial added 0.62 per cent, the S&P500 headed up 0.57 per cent, and the NASDAQ gained 0.24 per cent.

The accent of US stocks saw Australia's SPI200 futures edging up 0.12 per cent at 8am AEST Thursday.

– with AAP

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