It's been a rough day on the market for most S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) shares.
The index has been trading in the red on Thursday. It's currently recording a fall of 1.63%.
But not all has been dire. Two ASX 200 shares managed to leap to long-forgotten heights today.
Let's take a look at what helped these ASX 200 giants dodge Thursday's carnage.
What drove these ASX 200 shares to multi-year highs?
Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX: WHC)
The share price of ASX 200 coal producer, Whitehaven Coal reached its highest point since 2019 on Thursday despite the company's silence.
At its highest point of the day, the stock was trading at $5.11 — 2.6% higher than its previous close. Though, it has since sunk into the red.
While there's been no news from the company, the commodity it deals in is having a good run.
Newcastle coal futures reached their highest point since March today. Of course, it was in March that the price of coal smashed its all-time high amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The Whitehaven share price has gained 78% since the start of 2022. It's also 317% higher than it was this time last year.
Viva Energy Group Ltd (ASX: VEA)
Fellow ASX 200 energy share, Viva Energy also surged to a new multi-year high today. It reached $2.86 at its intraday high, representing a 7.1% gain and its highest point in two-and-a-half years.
Its surge came on the back of an update on the company's refining and financial performance for the four months ended 30 April.
The company noted a "significant and sustained widening of the gap between the international price of refined products and our cost of crude oil".
Of course, that helped bolster its earnings over the period.
Viva Energy's unaudited earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) for the period came to about $308 million – a 65% increase on the same period last year.
Additionally, it achieved an actual Geelong Refining Margin of US$26.4 a barrel in April. That was up from US$11.5 a barrel in March and an average of US$8.3 a barrel over the March quarter.
The Viva share price is currently nearly 15% higher than it was at the start of the year. It's also 28% higher than it was this time last year.
