ASX200 rallies as Trump moves closer to US election victory

The Australian sharemarket rallied on Wednesday as the US vote count rolled in showing former President Donald Trump on track to secure a remarkable return to power.

The benchmark ASX200 lifted 67.7 points, or 0.83 per cent, to close at 8199.5, while the broader All Ordinaries index jumped 68.2 points, or 0.81 per cent, to 8456.

The All Technology index surged 2.24 per cent to 3609.7.

The rally was widespread, with eight of 11 industry sectors ending in the green, led by IT with a sharp 1.89 per cent lift.

WiseTech Global gained 1.02 per cent to $122.42 a share, while Xero added 2.25 per cent to $153.68 and Technology One rose 3.05 per cent to $25.37.

Financials also surged, gaining 1.61 per cent.

Commonwealth Bank lifted 1.12 per cent to notch a fresh record close of $145.46, while NAB climbed 1.58 per cent to $39.25, Westpac added 1.07 per cent to $32.26 and ANZ added 0.55 per cent to $31.27.

The Trump rally is fuelled by investor speculation a Republican administration will usher in business-friendly policies, including tax cuts and increased spending.

“Trump plans to make the 2017 personal tax cuts permanent and slash the corporate tax rate to 15 per cent for domestic manufacturers,” IG markets analyst Tony Sycamore said.

“This will lead to a ballooning deficit, currently at an enormous 6 per cent of GDP.

“Markets are reacting in textbook fashion to these expectations.

“Meanwhile, the potential for a pro-crypto administration has propelled Bitcoin to a record high of $75,080, up 7.15 per cent, with momentum suggesting a run towards $80,000 is within reach.”

While equities rallied, the Aussie dollar slumped 1.33 per cent on the prospect of looming US tariffs, a key plank of Trump’s economic vision.

The Aussie dollar bought US65.5c at the closing bell.

“Providing the trend in voting viewed during the Asian session today continues in favour of Trump, we would expect many of the moves highlighted above to extend in the sessions ahead,” Mr Sycamore added.

“Aware that if the Democrats were to claw back lost ground, there could still be one final US election sting in the markets tail.”

ASX stocks with dual listings on the US exchanges also performed well.

News Corp jumped 4.04 per cent to $46.10, while Afterpay owner Block surged 4.09 per cent to $114.90.

The rally followed a frothy session on Wall St overnight on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones adding 427 points, or 1.02 per cent, to end at 42,221, while the S and P 500 lifted 1.23 per cent to 5782 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq rose 1.43 per cent to 18,439.

The bourse-heavy materials sector ended the day flat, with big miners giving up intraday gains in the late afternoon.

BHP dipped 3c to $42.60, Rio Tinto lost 4c to $119.38 and Fortescue lost 1.1 per cent to $18.88.

In corporate news, real estate titan Goodman Group slipped 0.22 per cent to $36.22, despite reporting a positive outlook for the 2025 financial year.

The company forecasts operating earnings per share growth of 9 per cent and recorded $12.8bn of development work in progress as of September 30.

The top gainer on the ASX200 was Neuren Pharmaceuticals, leaping 8.15 per cent to $13.27.

The biggest loser was lithium and nickel miner IGO Limited, which slumped 5.6 per cent to $5.06.