Australian retail trade exceeded market expectations by rising 2% in November, driven by Black Friday sales, with a year-on-year increase of 2.2%. This data holds significance as the central bank monitors economic slowdown signals to address inflation, with a key event being the upcoming quarterly consumer price index report in February after the bank's extended summer break.
At noon, the S&P/ASX 200 is 1.01 per cent higher at 7,527.10.
The SPI futures are pointing to a rise of 75 points.
Best and worst performers
The best-performing sector is Information Technology, up 2.17 per cent. The worst-performing sector is Energy, down 0.29 per cent.
The best-performing large cap is ResMed (ASX:RMD), trading 5.36 per cent higher at $26.34. It is followed by shares in South32 (ASX:S32) and Pilbara Minerals (ASX:PLS).
The worst-performing large cap is Mercury NZ (ASX:MCY), trading 1.60 per cent lower at $6.15. It is followed by shares in Suncorp Group (ASX:SUN) and Infratil (ASX:IFT).
Commodities and the dollar
Gold is trading at US$1782.70 an ounce.
One Australian dollar is buying 67.31 US cents.
