The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) enjoyed a very pleasant start to the trading week this Monday, rising by a confident 0.27% and almost touching its current record high.
The ASX 200 ended up closing at 8,121.6 points today after getting as high as 8,145.
This happy start to the trading week for Australian investors follows a bullish finish for the US markets last week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average Index (DJX: .DJI) bounced 0.72% higher during Friday's American session.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ: .IXIC) was right behind that, shooting up 0.65%.
Let's get back to this week and the local markets now and take a look at what the various ASX sectors were doing today.
Winners and losers
Despite today's good market mood, we still saw a few sectors walk back.
Chief amongst those were ASX healthcare shares. The S&P/ASX 200 Healthcare Index (ASX: XHJ) was abandoned by investors, and plunged 1.06% this session.
Utilities stocks also had a rough time, with the S&P/ASX 200 Utilities Index (ASX: XUJ) tanking 1.03%.
It wasn't quite as bad for energy shares. The S&P/ASX 200 Energy Index (ASX: XEJ) still lost 0.46% though.
Mining stocks were the final losers for the day, as you can see from the S&P/ASX 200 Materials Index (ASX: XMJ)'s 0.28% dip.
Turning to the winners now, no sector did better than communications shares. The S&P/ASX 200 Communication Services Index (ASX: XTJ) powered 1.08% higher this Monday.
Financial stocks also had a top time, with the S&P/ASX 200 Financials Index (ASX: XFJ) surging 0.95%.
Consumer discretionary shares came next. The S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Discretionary Index (ASX: XDJ) got a 0.52% bump.
That was followed by real estate investment trusts (REITs), evident from the S&P/ASX 200 A-REIT Index (ASX: XPJ)'s rise of 0.43%.
Tech stocks were right behind that. The S&P/ASX 200 Information Technology Index (ASX: XIJ) increased its value by 0.39%.
Consumer staples shares counted themselves fortunate as well, with the S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Staples Index (ASX: XSJ) vaulting up 0.38%.
Gold stocks continued their recent run today too. The All Ordinaries Gold Index (ASX: XGD) lifted 0.28%.
Finally, industrial shares eked out a win, illustrated by the S&P/ASX 200 Industrials Index (ASX: XNJ)'s 0.03% crawl higher.
Top 10 ASX 200 shares countdown
Today's best share came in as aluminium stock Alcoa Corporation (ASX: AAI). Alcoa shares soared a healthy 5.87% to finish up at $48.89 each.
This comes after news that the company has agreed to a major sale of its stake in a joint venture for US$41.1 billion.
Here's the rest of today's winning stocks:
| ASX-listed company | Share price | Price change |
| Alcoa Corporation (ASX: AAI) | $48.89 | 5.87% |
| Zip Co Ltd (ASX: ZIP) | $2.41 | 4.33% |
| Domain Holdings Australia Ltd (ASX: DHG) | $2.92 | 4.29% |
| Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) | $4.50 | 4.17% |
| Sigma Healthcare Ltd (ASX: SIG) | $1.42 | 3.27% |
| Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) | $32.79 | 2.15% |
| Centuria Capital Group (ASX: CNI) | $1.905 | 2.14% |
| LendLease Group (ASX: LLC) | $7.16 | 2.14% |
| Nine Entertainment Co Holdings Ltd (ASX: NEC) | $1.24 | 2.06% |
| EVT Ltd (ASX: EVT) | $10.59 | 1.92% |
Our top 10 shares countdown is a recurring end-of-day summary that shows which companies made big moves on the day. Check in at Fool.com.au after the weekday market closes to see which stocks make the countdown.
