Retail sales rise 0.2pc, below forecast; AVJennings rallies; sharemarket rebounds, tracking Wall Street.

Australian shares lifted at the open, tracking a rebound on Wall Street even as nerves continue to fray before US President Donald Trump’s broad sweep of reciprocal tariffs.

The S&P/ASX 200 rose by 73.4 points, or 0.9 per cent at the open, to 7916.8, partially reversing the prior session’s third-largest loss this year. The All Ordinaries rose 0.9 per cent. All 11 sectors were higher, led by energy and real estate.

The ASX tracked a rebound on Wall Street, where the S&P 500 closed up 0.6 per cent after buyers stepped in. That rebound may be short-lived, with Trump set to detail plans for reciprocal tariffs on Wednesday (Thursday AEDT), though it is still unclear what exactly he has planned.

Risk managers

Some investors are bracing for the worst: Goldman Sachs has lifted its 12-month recession probability and cut its year-end target for the S&P 500 to 5700 from 6200. Pepperstone head of research Chris Weston said traders would be “risk managers above all” this week, with prices fluctuating and short sellers taking bets off the table.

“Very little has changed by way of the risk still set to challenge through the week, but there is some degree of increased hope that the reversal that has played out in US trade may have further to run,” he said.

Real estate stocks posted the biggest gains. Industrial property giant Goodman Group rallied 2.5 per cent, while Scentre added 1.5 per cent and Mirvac 1.7 per cent. Banks and miners pushed higher.

Energy stocks also rallied, buoyed by a jump in oil prices overnight. Oil and gas giant Woodside jumped 1.7 per cent and Santos 1.7 per cent.

Among the major stock winners was AVJennings, which rallied 8.3 per cent. The homebuilder announced US real estate giant Proprium Capital and its local development arm, Avid Property, would acquire 100 per cent in its shares for 65.5¢.

Stocks on the move

Bain Capital has sold some 68,306,802 shares in insurer Tower, the latter confirmed on Tuesday, though Street Talk reported the shares were priced at $NZ1.30 ($1.18) per share – or a 12.5 per cent discount to their last trade price. Tower’s shares dipped 3.7 per cent on Tuesday.

A majority stake in Southern Cross Electrical Engineering was sold by Anacacia Capital for $53.5 million – a price the buyout firm says represents a 20 per cent increase on its last valuation. Southern Cross’ shares leapt 10.3 per cent.

SSR Mining sank 5.5 per cent despite it forecasting a more than 10 per cent increase in year-on-year production.

HMC Capital retreated 2.5 per cent after saying it would receive a $150 million payout from its HMCCP I fund after it took profits on its Sigma Healthcare position and reduced its stake in Ingenia Communities.