Finally, a positive day for the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO)! After falling in both Monday and Tuesday's sessions, this week was turning out to be a rather depressing one. Thankfully, the ASX 200 turned a corner this Wednesday and delivered a happy day of gains for ASX investors.
By the end of the session, the index had notched a solid rise of 0.55%, leaving the ASX 200 at back over 7,300 points at 7,323.7.
This may have been helped by an enthusiastic night of trading on Wall Street last night (our time).
The Dow Jones Industrial Average Index (DJX: .DJI) delighted investors with an impressive gain of 1.06%. The Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ: .IXIC) wasn't quite as euphoric, but still banged out a respectable 0.76% lift.
But time now for a deeper dig into where today's ASX performance came from with a look at the performances of different ASX sectors.
Winners and losers
There were definitely more winners than losers across the different sectors of the ASX this Wednesday. But let's discuss the losers first.
Leading today's down movers were ASX gold shares. The All Ordinaries Gold Index (ASX: XGD) dropped by a painful 1.03%.
Also underperforming were ASX mining shares, exemplified by the fall of the S&P/ASX 200 Materials Index (ASX: XMJ) by 0.56%. Communication shares were another sore spot, with the S&P/ASX 200 Communication Services Index (ASX: XTJ) losing 0.33% of its value.
But that pretty much sums up the losers. So which ASX sectors were leading the markets higher this session?
Well, the standout winner was ASX energy shares, with the S&P/ASX 200 Energy Index (ASX: XEJ) rising by a pleasing 1.7%.
ASX financials shares weren't far behind. The S&P/ASX 200 Financials Index (ASX: XFJ) put on a rosy 1.49% over today's trading.
This goodwill spilled over into real estate investment trusts (REITs), with the S&P/SX 200 A-REIT Index (ASX: XPJ) recovering by 1.01%.
ASX tech shares were another hot spot. The S&P/ASX 200 Information Technology Index (ASX: XIJ) added a decent 0.79%.
More muted, but still positive, performances came from consumer staples and discretionary shares. The S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Staples Index (ASX: XSJ) rose by 0.24%, while the S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Discretionary Index (ASX: XDJ) went up 0.63%.
Top 10 ASX 200 shares countdown
The crown winner of today's market was ASX coal share Coronado Global Resources Inc (ASX: CRN). Coronado shares ended up finishing a pleasing 5.5% higher at $1.63 each, despite no fresh news out of the company itself.
Here are the other winning shares from today's session:
| ASX-listed company | Share price | Price change |
| Coronado Global Resources Inc (ASX: CRN) | $1.63 | 5.5% |
| Ampol Ltd (ASX: ALD) | $31.14 | 4.36% |
| New Hope Corporation Limited (ASX: NHC) | $5.10 | 4.08% |
| Credit Corp Group Ltd (ASX: CCP) | $22.54 | 3.73% |
| Endeavour Group Ltd (ASX: EDV) | $5.89 | 3.51% |
| Virgin Money UK plc (ASX: VUK) | $3.38 | 3.05% |
| HUB24 Ltd (ASX: HUB) | $26.44 | 3% |
| Polynovo Ltd(ASX: PNV) | $1.61 | 2.88% |
| Sayona Mining Ltd (ASX: SYA) | $0.18 | 2.86% |
| Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX: WHC) | $7 | 2.79% |
Our top 10 shares countdown is a recurring end-of-day summary to let you know which companies were making big moves on the day. Check in at Fool.com.au after the weekday market closes to see which stocks make the countdown.
