The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) closed up a strong 2.3% in July, with all of the big four ASX 200 bank stocks racing head of those gains.
Starting with the weakest outperformer, ANZ Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: ANZ) shares closed on 30 June trading for $35.35. When the closing bell sounded on 31 July, shares were changing hands for $37.31 apiece.
That saw this ASX 200 bank stock up 5.5% over the month just past.
Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) shares also enjoyed a strong July.
CBA shares closed out June trading for $164.62 each and finished off July at $177.53. That put the CBA share price up 7.8% for the month.
Turning to Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC), Westpac shares closed June at $35.21 and closed July trading for $37.87, putting the Westpac share price up 7.6%.
And the best performer among the big four Aussie banks in July was National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB).
On 30 June, NAB shares closed the day trading for $37.86. On 31 July, shares closed at $41.33 apiece. This saw the NAB share price up an impressive 9.2% in July.
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Why did the ASX 200 bank stocks outperform in July?
There was no major price-sensitive news released from any of the big four Aussie banks in the month just gone.
However, ASX 200 bank stocks look to have caught some macroeconomic tailwinds.
First, they enjoyed a collective boost over the month amid ongoing global market uncertainty, which drove a broader investor rotation into quality, defensive shares.
The banks will also have benefited from increased expectations that interest rates may have topped out. That could drive both a revival in loan demand and lower bad debts over the months ahead.
ANZ completes acquisition as CBA narrows gap with BHP
ANZ did catch headlines on 31 July, after the ASX 200 bank stock announced it had completed its acquisition of merchant payments business Worldline Australia Pty Ltd.
The ASX 200 bank stock had previously reported that it had agreed to acquire Worldline S.A's 51% share in the business for an enterprise value of $89 million (on a 51% basis).
Management noted, "The acquisition aligns to the ANZ 2030 strategy, strengthening our direct relationship with our customers and reinforcing the bank's position as the transactional bank of choice."
CBA also caught investor attention in the latter week of July, as the bank's outperformance saw it narrow the gap with BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) for the biggest ASX stock crown.
On 27 July, CBA had a market cap of around $292.9 billion, or just $12.2 billion shy of BHP's $305.1 billion valuation.
