Afternoon update: ASX gains 0.65%, IDP Education lifts, Santos shares drop, Asian markets rise

The S&P/ASX 200 index has risen by 0.65%, reaching a level of 7,168.

The SPI futures are pointing to a rise of 39 points.

The Consumer Staples sector is the best performing sector, showing a 2.42% increase, while the Information Technology sector is the worst performer thus far, declining by 5.41%.

When shifting to large caps, IDP Education (ASX:IEL) is the top performer, with its stock trading 9.79% higher at $25.57. On the other hand, WiseTech Global (ASX:WTC) is the worst-performing large cap, experiencing a 19.27% drop to $69.90.

And oil and gas bellwether, Santos, has seen its shares drop to a one-month low of $7.66 following a 32% decline in first-half profit attributed to reduced production and lower oil and LNG prices. The company's stock fell by 1.7% on that day, but it has shown a year-to-date increase of 7.4%.

In Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei has risen by 0.23%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng has increased by 0.40%, and China's Shanghai Composite is up by 0.06%.

Turning to commodities, gold is priced at US$1,929.60 per ounce, and light crude oil is slightly down at US$80.25 per barrel.

The exchange rate indicates that one Australian dollar is equivalent to 64.36 US cents.
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Source: Finance News Network