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Despite a flat start to trade this morning, the Aussie market managed to secure its second straight win, with the ASX 200 rising 16.7 pts or 0.25 per cent, to 6629.3. Seven of 11 sectors finished higher, with the Energy sector lifting most for the second straight day.

The Reserve Bank (RBA) raised the official cash rate by 50 basis points or 0.5 per cent for a second straight month. This takes the cash rate to 1.35 per cent as widely expected by the market. While the Australian sharemarket rose by as much as 0.7 per cent following a lack of surprises from the RBA, the ASX 200 ran out of steam in late trade.

In economic news, according to the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI), new vehicle sales totalled 99,974 units in June, down 9.7 per cent on a year ago. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) retail trade rose 0.9 per cent in May to be up 10.4 per cent on the year. The S&P Global Australia Services Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) eased from 53.2 in May to 52.6 in June. Consumer confidence data was also released by ANZ and Roy Morgan, showing a 1.2 per cent decline over the past week.

In company news, Regis Resources (RRL) climbed 10.7 per cent and was the second best performer today. This comes after it posted a 20 per cent quarterly increase in production, to a record 123.9 koz. This helped RRL secure a cash balance of $227 million by the financial-year end.

 

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Bubs Australia (BUB) entered into a trading halt this morning after announcing a $63 million capital raising, at an offer price of 52 cents-per-share (~18.8 per cent discount to yesterday’s close). BUB said the capital raise ($32.4 million of which is comprised of an institutional placement) will provide ‘additional Balance Sheet flexibility’ to help fund ‘working capital … inventory … US operating expenses”.

West Gold Resources (WGX) also posted a quarterly update, outlining an 11 per cent quarterly increase in its gold production. WGX expects its full-year costs to be within 5 per cent of its fullyear cost guidance. Shares of WGX finished 5.7 per cent higher.

We’ve created an infographic on some of the key events which impacted the Australian sharemarket over the past financial year. You can access the infographic here.

2.9bn shares were traded, worth $5.4bn. 858 stocks rose, 531 fell & 339 finished unchanged.

In the US, factory order data is released with new vehicle sales.

Originally Published by CommSec