A few minutes before noon AEDT on Tuesday, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index rose as high as 7,632.7 - just one-tenth of a point from its best-ever intraday level of 7,632.8, reached August 13, 2021.
At noon AEDT on Tuesday, the index was still not far from that peak, up 33.1 points, or 0.44 per cent, to 7,623.9, while the broader All Ordinaries was up 32.5 points, or 0.42 per cent, to 7,862.0.
— Karen Wong (@KarenWongAU) $XJO 📈trending strongly into 2024✅ strong buying from short term traders and long term investors✅ broken out above previous high of Feb 2023⚠� February 2023 saw similar strength turn into major downtrend. Approaching ATH. Proceed with caution #ASX pic.twitter.com/OV6NICz9xvJanuary 1, 2024
Wall Street also ended 2023 with the S&P500 just shy of its all-time high.
"With the new year underway, the markets are buoyed by expectations for global rate cuts, with futures pointing to about six in the United States this year," wrote Capital.com market analyst Kyle Rodda.Â
"As always, there are many unanswered questions about the path forward for growth and inflation, especially the recession prospects and subsequent policy responses."
Every ASX sector was in the green at midday except for property, which was flat.
The energy sector was the biggest gainer, climbing 1.2 per cent, with coalminers in particular putting in a strong performance.Â
Whitehaven was up 3.1 per cent to a two-month high of $7.67, while New Hope was up 2.4 per cent and Yancoal had added 3.1 per cent.
All of the Big Four banks were higher, with CBA up 1.3 per cent to a fresh all-time high of $113.20, Westpac adding 0.8 per cent, ANZ rising 0.5 per cent and NAB advancing 0.4 per cent.
But insurance companies - where bottom lines would be dented by lower interest rates - were in the red, with IAG dropping 2.1 per cent, QBE falling 1.0 per cent and Suncorp down 1.3 per cent.
Goldminers were also lower as the yellow metal traded for $US2,068 an ounce, down about $20 from a peak reached last week.
Northern Star was down 0.9 per cent, Newmont had dipped 0.3 per cent and Gold Road Resources had fallen 2.0 per cent.
Elsewhere in the sector, BHP was up 0.1 per cent, Rio Tinto had added 0.2 per cent and Fortescue had gained 0.7 per cent.
The Australian dollar was buying 68.18 US cents, from 68.43 US cents at Friday's ASX close.
Cryptocurrencies were surging, with Bitcoin trading for more than $US45,000 for the first time since April 2022.Â
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