Staff reportersUpdated August 13, 2026 — 11:08am,first published August 13, 2026 — 5:15amThe Australian sharemarket finished lower on Thursday after some mixed company results, even as Wall Street edged near its record after several AI companies reported more growth than expected.The S&P/ASX 200 lost 20.90 points, or 0.2 per cent, to 9188.50, with six of its 11 industry sectors in the red, having trimmed some heavier declines earlier in the session. The ASX lost 0.5 per cent on Wednesday. The Australian dollar dropped 0.2 per cent to US70.48¢.Wall Street jumped as the AI trade reignited, but the mood on the ASX was more sombre.BloombergThe local bourse was weighed down by falls in market heavyweights CBA, down 2.2 per cent as investors cashed out after its $11 cash profit reported on Wednesday, and Rio Tinto, which slumped after securing a $2.5 billion government bailout to keep its Tomago aluminium plant operating as it grapples with high-energy costs.The bailout for Australia’s biggest aluminium smelter, majority-owned by Rio Tinto, ends months of crisis talks with federal and NSW officials over ways to keep the plant viable and safeguard more than 1000 jobs. Under the deal announced on Thursday, Tomago Aluminium will invest $1.1 billion into the future of the smelter. Rio Tinto shares lost 3.6 per cent, while BHP was flat and Fortescue dropped 0.5 per cent.Meanwhile, earnings season is in full swing now, with Telstra, ANZ Bank, Origin and Treasury Wine Estates among the major names who reported their results before start of trading.Telstra fell 3.2 per cent, despite sweetening its full-year result with a 10.5 per cent bigger dividend and a fresh $1 billion share buyback. Net profit edged up 2.7 per cent to $2.4 billion while its revenue dipped 0.8 per cent to $22.9 billion. The telco handed chief executive Vicki Brady an 11 per cent pay rise to $6.8 million, a bumper payday delivered against a backdrop of 1200 job cuts, and just weeks before a catastrophic network outage cut off Triple Zero calls.ANZ Bank jumped 4.5 per cent after reporting $1.9 billion in cash profits for the June quarter, up 2 per cent from a year ago, even as it said home loan applications have fallen 12 per cent since the May budget, excluding applications it received via a government deposit guarantee scheme.Its trading update came a day after the Commonwealth Bank said it saw its home loan applications fall 15 per cent since the budget, which included moves to rein in negative gearing and capital gains tax concessions. Westpac added 0.9 per cent and National Australia Bank rose 1.2 per cent.Treasury Wine Estates rallied 4.9 per cent as signs of growth in its China market outweighed a steep drop in full-year earnings. The winemaker ran up a $1.08 billion loss as it grapples with weakening consumer demand for alcohol and headaches in its US business. But strong demand in China helped push its shares higher amid signs the company is making headway in cracking down on third-party sales that threaten the reputation of its key Penfolds brand.Origin Energy gained 5.3 per cent after its full-year profit beat analyst estimates. Net income rose 6.3 per cent to $1.57 billion, while underlying profit fell 22 per cent to $1.16 billion, slightly ahead of forecasts. Australia’s energy transition is increasingly being driven by households embracing rooftop solar, batteries and electric vehicles. Meanwhile, the large-scale build-out of renewables and grid infrastructure faces rising costs, lengthy approvals and regulatory uncertainty, Origin said.Cleanaway Waste Management shares surged 15.2 per cent to $2.73 after the garbage giant said it received a takeover bid from Swedish private equity firm EQT Infrastructure, and will give the suitor exclusive access to its books for due diligence. The board flagged it’s likely to support the $3.13-a-share offer, which is 32 per cent above the stock’s closing price on Wednesday.Energy stocks were mixed, with Woodside down 0.7 per cent, Santos inching up 0.1 per cent and refiner Ampol adding 1 per cent, even as oil held the bulk of a six-session gain as the stand-off continues over the Strait of Hormuz. Brent traded just below $US89 a barrel, after rising 12 per cent over previous six sessions.Talks between the US and Iran appear deadlocked as both sides harden their positions, with Washington pressing on with a blockade of the Islamic Republic’s ports to raise the economic pressure against Tehran.Tech stocks benefited from their peers’ gains on Wall Street, which helped WiseTech Global and data centre operator NextDC both rise 1.7 per cent.On Wall Street, the S&P 500 added 0.3 per cent and marked its first gain since setting its all-time high on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped less than 0.1 per cent, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 0.5 per cent. Stocks in the artificial-intelligence technology business helped lead the way after strong profit reports bolstered hopes they can continue to deliver big-enough growth to justify the huge gains their prices have made.Super Micro Computer, which sells servers and other equipment, jumped 19.6 per cent after reporting earnings per share for the latest quarter that were 84 per cent higher than analysts expected. It also gave forecasts for upcoming profit and revenue that topped analysts’ expectations.CoreWeave, which offers AI computing power to customers over the cloud, leaped 19 per cent after reporting better revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected, along with a milder loss. CEO Michael Intrator said demand is accelerating from customers as big businesses adopt AI.CoreWeave gives its customers access to AI chips from Nvidia, and Nvidia climbed 3 per cent. It was the single strongest force lifting the S&P 500.It’s a return to strength for AI stocks, which have been veering on a roller-coaster ride. After surging to records, AI stocks came under pressure on worries that they shot too high. Investors wanted to see big spenders on AI prove that their investments are yielding enough in profits and productivity to make them worth it. That in turn could lead to continued demand for chips and other AI infrastructure.Wall Street also got some support from easing yields in the bond market. Treasury yields fell after a report showed that US consumers paid prices for gasoline, groceries and other costs of living last month that were 3.4 per cent higher than a year earlier.That’s higher than anyone would like, but it’s not as bad as June’s 3.5 per cent inflation rate.The deceleration could give the Federal Reserve more leeway to hold off on hikes to interest rates. Higher rates would help keep a lid on inflation, but it would do so by making it more expensive for US households and companies to borrow and forcing a slowdown in the economy. Higher interest rates also would undercut prices for stocks and other investments.with AP, BloombergThe Market Recap newsletter is a wrap of the day’s trading. Get it each weekday afternoon.From our partners