It was a positive end to the trading week for the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) and many ASX shares this Friday. A third day of gains in a row for the ASX 200 saw it close at 8,231.2 points today. That's after the index recorded a 0.48% rise this session.
This happy end to the week for Australian shares follows a pumping night up on the American markets.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average Index (DJX: .DJI) was in fine form, jumping up 0.62%.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ: .IXIC) did even better, galloping 1.07% higher.
Let's return to the local markets now and assess what was happening with the different ASX sectors this Friday.
Winners and losers
There were far more winners than losers this session.
Losers there still were though, and leading them were gold shares. The All Ordinaries Gold Index (ASX: XGD) was left out in the cold, diving 0.68%.
Broader mining stocks didn't have a great time either, with the S&P/ASX 200 Materials Index (ASX: XMJ) retreating 0.46%.
Our last losers were real estate investment trusts (REITs). The S&P/ASX 200 A-REIT Index (ASX: XPJ) ended up slipping 0.03% lower by the closing bell.
Turning to the winners now, it was tech stocks that stood out. The S&P/ASX 200 Information Technology Index (ASX: XIJ) soared 1.82% higher over today's trading.
Financial shares had a strong session too, evidenced by the S&P/ASX 200 Financials Index (ASX: XFJ)'s 1.1% surge.
Consumer staples stocks were right behind that, with the S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Staples Index (ASX: XSJ) galloping 1.03% upwards.
Energy shares were also in demand. The S&P/ASX 200 Energy Index (ASX: XEJ) rose by 0.79% today.
Utilities stocks weren't too far off that, illustrated by the S&P/ASX 200 Utilities Index (ASX: XUJ)'s 0.64% lift.
Nor were communications stocks. The S&P/ASX 200 Communication Services Index (ASX: XTJ) received a 0.51% bump from investors this Friday.
Healthcare shares joined the pre-weekend party, with the S&P/ASX 200 Healthcare Index (ASX: XHJ) bouncing 0.37% higher.
Consumer discretionary stocks eked out a gain, too. The S&P/ASX 200 Consumer Discretionary Index (ASX: XDJ) increased its value by 0.1%.
Finally, industrial shares were our last winners, as you'll see by the S&P/ASX 200 Industrials Index (ASX: XNJ)'s 0.04% uptick.
Top 10 ASX 200 shares countdown
Today's winner, by a mile, was lithium share Liontown Resources Ltd (ASX: LTR). Liontown shares vaulted 17.59% higher to finish at 62.5 cents each.
Although there was no fresh news out of Liontown today, the company is now up 35% over the past month.
Here are the other shares you wish you owned today:
| ASX-listed company | Share price | Price change |
| Liontown Resources Ltd (ASX: LTR) | $0.635 | 17.59% |
| Nuix Ltd (ASX: NXL) | $2.27 | 10.19% |
| Nine Entertainment Co Holdings Ltd (ASX: NEC) | $1.58 | 6.04% |
| Tabcorp Holdings Ltd (ASX: TAH) | $0.70 | 5.26% |
| News Corporation (ASX: NWS) | $53.13 | 4.83% |
| Super Retail Group Ltd (ASX: SUL) | $14.14 | 4.82% |
| Block Inc (ASX: XYZ) | $77.96 | 4.07% |
| Megaport Ltd (ASX: MP1) | $11.68 | 3.91% |
| Neuren Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX: NEU) | $13.29 | 3.83% |
| Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) | $203.31 | 3.79% |
Enjoy the weekend!
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.
