S&P/ASX 200 ends Wednesday higher: 9 shares you should have been watching

The S&P/ASX 200 (Index:^AXJO)(ASX:XJO) ended higher on Wednesday, lead higher by BHP Billiton Limited (ASX:BHP) share price and Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) share price, as well as gains in the AGL Energy Ltd (ASX:AGL) share price.

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The S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO)(ASX: XJO) ended higher on Wednesday, lead up by the BHP Billiton Limited (ASX:BHP) share price and Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) share price, as well as gains in the AGL Energy Ltd (ASX:AGL) share price.

Here's a recap of overseas markets:

  • FTSE 100 (UK): down 0.13%
  • DAX (Germany): down 0.01%
  • CAC 40 (France): down 0.51%
  • Dow Jones (USA): down 0.21%
  • NASDAQ (USA): down 0.32%

Closer to home:

  • The S&P/ASX 200 — up 0.26%
  • ALL ORDINARIES (Index: ^AXAO) (ASX: XAO) — up 0.27%

Leading the ASX 200 higher today was the materials, utilities and telecommunications sectors. The BHP share price and RIO share price ended 1.5% and 2.2% higher, respectively. The catalyst behind their gains appears to be the 5.5% rally in the iron ore price. Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) ended the day 5.6% higher.

In the utilities sector, AGL Energy and APA Group (ASX: APA) finished the day 1.1% higher.

GPT Group (ASX: GPT) was amongst the best performers while WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC) ended 6.3% higher despite no company-specific news.

At the other end of town, gold miner St Barbara Ltd (ASX: SBM) and hospital operator Ramsay Health Care Ltd (ASX: RHC) ended 4.6% and 1.9% lower, respectively.

Here are Wednesday's top stories:

Motley Fool Contributor Owen Raszkiewicz does not have a financial interest in any company mentioned. Owen welcomes and encourages your feedback. You can follow him on Twitter @OwenRask.  The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of WiseTech Global. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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