Bargain hunters pushing ASX higher

THE Australian sharemarket climbed higher despite Wall Street and commodity price falls as bargain hunters bought up resources stocks.

After tumbling 2.1 per cent on Monday – the worst fall in seven months – the benchmark ASX200 index firmed 0.35 per cent to 7273.8 points on Tuesday. On Wall Street, the S&P500 fell 1.7 per cent overnight on Monday.

CommSec analyst Steve Daghlian said the local bourse performed “nowhere near” what futures were suggesting, despite concerns Chinese property giant Evergrande could collapse. “Some bargain hunters perhaps (were) jumping in and taking advantage of the recent selloff,” he said.

OMG chief executive Ivan Tchourilov said another “bloodbath” had been expected on the local market. Among resource stocks, Rio Tinto rose 0.49 per cent to $95.71, BHP added 0.59 per cent to $37.75 and Fortescue Metals lifted 0.34 per cent to $14.75.