By Oliver Gray
Investing.com - The ASX 200 dipped 0.11% in early deals on Tuesday, retreating slightly from gains of 1.24% in the previous session and trading below record highs as investors remained cautious on the prospects of economic growth as cases of coronavirus Delta variant continue to accelerate across the country.
Victoria reported 4 cases today, all of which were linked to known outbreaks and were in quarantine for their infectious period, while Queensland added 16 fresh cases amid unlinked community transmission across 7 local schools. Meantime, New South Wales reported near record highs 207 fresh cases yesterday with 50 infectious while amongst the community.
Among stocks Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX:RIO) and FMG lost 0.9% and 1.27% respectively, while Oil Search Ltd (ASX:OSH) dipped 0.63% as commodity prices traded lower. Afterpay Touch Group Ltd (ASX:APT) and Zip Co Ltd (ASX:Z1P) added 12.29% and 2.9% respectively, extending strong gains in the previous session after Square (NYSE:SQ) founder Jack Dorsey moved to acquire Afterpay in a an A$39 billion deal.
Market participants are also looking ahead to the Reserve Bank of Australia’s interest rate decision due later in the session amid increasing speculation that policymakers will delay their planned taper of A$5 billion to A$4 billion in September in response to an economic slowdown caused by recent lockdown restrictions.
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 added 50.47 points or 0.4% to 12753.44.