We might close our business blog for another week.

And it was a profitable few days for investors, even if the gains were modest.

The ASX was up 0.7 per cent on the week ... it's at a 4-week high, but still 4.6 per cent off its best-ever numbers.

And the Aussie dollar is stronger than it has been for a while, as it pushes toward 67 cents to the greenback. Once it passes 66.8, it will set a 12-month high.

That will make things a little less expensive for those overseas holidays over the festive period, spending foreign currency.

We'll catch you on Monday. Until then, enjoy the second weekend of summer.

• ASX 200: +1.2% at 8,697 points
• Australian dollar: +0.1% at 66.67 US cents
• Wall Street: Dow Jones (+1.3%), S&P 500 (+0.2%), Nasdaq (-0.4%)
• Europe: DAX (+0.7%), FTSE (+0.5%), Stoxx 600 (+0.6%)
• Spot gold: -0.3% to $US4,268/ounce
• Oil (Brent crude): +0.7% to $US61.69/barrel
• Iron ore: +0.6% to $US104.81/tonne
• Bitcoin: -0.5% at $US92,371
  

Prices current around 16:15pm AEDT

Live updates on the major ASX indices:

Government approval for South Korea's Hanwha to increase its stake in Australian shipbuilder Austal is "a positive development" that highlights how sector activity is extending beyond Europe, according to one of Australia’s largest ETF providers, Betashares.

Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers on Friday gave the green light for the South Korean defence company to double its stake in Austal after months of protracted deliberations.

Betashares investment strategist Tom Wickenden said the move showed the expansion of defence activity.

"For both companies, we believe this is a positive development that could unlock synergies, enhance information sharing, and improve production capabilities," Mr Wickenden said in a media statement.

"With defence spending targets often tied to rising GDP, we see global defence expenditure as a multi-decade trend that remains under-represented in many Australian portfolios. 

"The growing activity in the sector presents a long-term growth opportunity, and we expect M&A to continue in various forms as spending expands."

The statement said that Australian-traded defence ETFs had received over $500 million in inflow this year, adding that the Betashares Global Defence ETF had returned 43% in the same period.

Hi Jonathan,

Australia's participation rate isn't too bad — in fact, we're about middle of the pack for the OCED when you look at the percentage of 25-64-year-olds in work or looking for it, which is 82.8% here versus an OECD average of 79.7%.

So, actually, only around 13% of Australians who would be considered prime working age are out of work and not actively looking for a job.

The 66.7% ABS figure is the participation rate of all permanent and long-term residents aged over 15.

So that includes a lot of people who are retired, studying, off work to look after other people (kids, elderly parents, etc.), on long-term vacation, unable to work due to ill health or disability, in an institution (such as prison), or otherwise out of the workforce by necessity or choice.

When you know that it includes a lot of school kids and university students, and an even bigger and growing number of retirees, then the 33% of people not in the labour force isn't so surprising.

By the way, Australia's labour force participation rate is only just off a record high of 67.2% set at the beginning of this year.

So, at least as far as the labour force survey, which goes back to the late 1970s, there has never been a higher proportion of Australians in work or looking for it than there has been recently.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 50,610.04, up 461.22 points or 0.92%, after touching a high of 51,127.69 earlier. 

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is surging more than 5% and Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is gaining more than 3%. 

Among the major exporters, Sony is gaining almost 2%, Canon is adding more than 1%, Mitsubishi Electric is advancing almost 3% and Panasonic is up more than 2%.

In the currency market, the US dollar is trading in the higher 155 yen-range on Friday.

Elsewhere in Asia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, Malaysia and Taiwan are higher by between 0.2 and 1.3% each, while China and Indonesia are down 0.4 and 0.1%, respectively.

Reporting with RTTNews

The Australian Aluminium Council describes the federal government decision to extend the life of the nation's largest aluminium smelter as "a welcome development".

The prime minister announced on Friday that a deal was being finalised to keep the Tomago Aluminium smelter in the NSW Hunter Valley open beyond 2028.

The company had previously announced it was weighing up its future due to rising energy prices. 

"Importantly, we see a plan which involves both federal and state governments working together with Australian industry," Australian Aluminium Council CEO, Marghanita Johnson, said.

"[It's] committing to the hard work needed to pursue the best outcome Tomago Aluminium and its workforce, the broader Hunter community, and the people of NSW who rely on the vital role Tomago plays in maintaining grid stability and reliability."

Today's announcement represents a step in the right direction in creating the conditions needed to help restore Australia's industrial competitiveness, Ms Johnson said.

"Australia must ensure we retain our value-added industrial capability — to maintain our role in global supply chains with significant economic and geostrategic benefits," she said.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Tomago workers had been told talks are ongoing between the company, state and the Commonwealth to find an energy solution, with details to be finalised in the new year.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index just touched 6,700 points around 3pm AEDT.

The share market today is being supported by gold stocks.

The materials sector overall is up 2.5%, while the financials have gained 1.6%.

Energy is up 0.3%.

Former CEO Shayne Elliott says he wants to resolve his dispute with ANZ as quickly as possible after suing the bank for stripping him of $13.5 million in bonuses.

ANZ said it would defend a case brought by Mr Elliott in the NSW Supreme Court against the bank relating to his remuneration outcomes in the 2025 financial year.

"I will be seeking the earliest possible hearing of my claim before the court and am fully committed to see this process through," he told Reuters.

The ANZ board cut the bonuses of Mr Elliott and other executives after the bank agreed to pay a $240 million civil penalty to regulators for systemic failures ranging from acting "unconscionably" in a government bond deal to charging dead customers.

Mr Elliott served as the bank's CEO for almost a decade until May 2025.

"The bank and I had a clear, unambiguous agreement about the terms of my departure," Mr Elliott said.

"As you would expect, having entered into a contract, my expectation is that those terms would be honoured."

Mr Elliott said he had offered to forgo his 2024 bonus and incentive payments.

He said he would seek a NSW Supreme Court declaration that ANZ had breached the contract he had with the bank over his leaving terms.

Reporting by Reuters 

US oil may end its bounce around resistance at $US58.42 per barrel and retest support at $58.12.

The contract is riding on a wave C from $60.52, which is capable of travelling to $55.02, its 100% projection level.

Given that the market has climbed above resistance at $57.77, it is likely to test the next resistance at $58.42, a break above which may lead to a gain to $59.22.

On the daily chart, the downtrend remains steady within a falling channel. The contract is falling toward key support at $56.18, the 100% projection level of a wave C from $70.48.

Only a break above $59.56 could the bearish outlook be revised.

It's looking like a pretty positive afternoon for each of the ASX 200 major sectors, all of which are up. Take a look at the snapshot below:

Overall, 49 stocks are in the red, four unchanged, and 147 stocks gaining.

Boss Energy takes top spot for the afternoon, up +7.2%, while Metcash is down the bottom (-3.1%). 

Here are all the top movers:

And all of the bottom movers: