Australian shares flirt with record peak as ANZ powers bank rally

Feb 12, 2026, 13:17 GMT+7
Key points:

• ASX 200 ends at three-month high
• Lender ANZ jumps 9.1%, banks rise 2.6%
• Tech stocks down over 6%
• Healthcare stocks slump 5.5%

By Anjali Singh
Reuters - Australian shares closed higher on Thursday, hovering near record levels, as a rally in financials after strong earnings from ANZ Group offset declines in healthcare and technology stocks.
The S&P/ASX 200rose 0.3% to 9,043.50, its highest close since late October. The index earlier touched 9,105 points, about 10 points shy of its record high of 9,115.20.
The market drew strength from a slew of robust earnings, especially from heavyweight banks. The sub-indexwas up 2.6%, with lender ANZjumping 9.1% to a record high after posting a better-than-expected first-quarter cash profit and signalling early benefits from a cost-cutting overhaul.
The other "Big Four" banks advanced between 1.8% and 5.4%.
"I'll be watching for more earnings surprises from the big players in the markets," said Kyle Rodda, senior financial market analyst at Capital.com.
"The banks have delivered us some good news this week and confirmed we are likely to see half decent earnings growth going forward -- something the market didn't see much of last year."
Limiting gains on the sub-index, AMPplunged 26.7% after its key platforms and superannuation divisions showed weaker momentum. Shares of the 177-year-old money manager dropped as much as 28% to log their worst session since May 2003.
Utilities climbed 2.9%, buoyed by Origin Energy, which raised its full-year earnings guidance for its retail energy business. Shares of the company were up 3.9%.
Gold stocksadded 0.5%, with shares of Northern Star Resourcesclimbing 6.9% to a record high. The gold miner reported a 49% surge in its first-half profit, coupled with a 19% increase in revenue.
Healthcareand technology stocksslipped 5.5% and 6.2% respectively, keeping the benchmark from testing its record peak.
New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 indexrose 0.179% to 13,531.48.

Sumber : Reuters