Australian equities ended Tuesday's trading session in positive territory, with the S&P/ASX 200 rising 0.50% by the close in Sydney. Gains were concentrated in IT, Metals & Mining and Materials, which collectively drove the index higher through the session.
At the stock level, the top performer on the S&P/ASX 200 was IperionX Limited (ASX:IPX), which climbed 9.59% or 0.42 points to finish at 4.80. Capstone Copper Corp DRC (ASX:CSC) also posted a notable advance, adding 6.72% or 0.80 points to close at 12.70. Paladin Energy Ltd (ASX:PDN) rose 6.52% or 0.81 points to end the day at 13.23.
On the downside, GQG Partners Inc DRC (ASX:GQG) led decliners, slipping 3.53% or 0.06 points to 1.71 at the close. Downer Edi Ltd (ASX:DOW) fell 3.08% or 0.25 points to 7.86, while Westpac Banking Corp (ASX:WBC) dropped 2.75% or 1.17 points to 41.42.
Market breadth in Sydney favored advancing issues: 712 stocks finished higher versus 435 that declined, and 363 were unchanged. The S&P/ASX 200 VIX, which measures the implied volatility of S&P/ASX 200 options, declined 5.78% to 15.10, reflecting an easing in implied volatility through the session.
Commodity markets tracked mixed moves. Gold Futures for June delivery rose 0.48% or 23.00 to $4,790.40 a troy ounce. By contrast, crude oil prices moved lower - the May contract for delivery fell 1.84% or 1.82 to $97.26 a barrel, while the June Brent contract declined 0.91% or 0.90 to $98.46 a barrel.
In foreign exchange trading, AUD/USD was effectively unchanged, moving 0.11% to 0.71, while AUD/JPY eased 0.29% to 112.81. The US Dollar Index Futures ticked down 0.02% to 98.14.
Overall, the session displayed selective strength across resource-related and technology-linked names, offset by drops in several individual large caps. Volatility measures fell modestly and commodity prices diverged, with gold higher and oil lower by the close.
Note: All percentage changes, point moves and closing prices are reported as of the Sydney market close on Tuesday.