International equities finished higher across the board in August as the global reopening continues and the promise of a vaccine draws nearer. US Equities had another stellar month, with the NASDAQ climbing 9.6% and the S&P 500 up 7%. The NASDAQ is now up 47.9% in the last 12 months as tech stocks have seen relentless price growth on the back of COVID-19. Japanese equities also outperformed (Nikkei +6.6%), while Asian peers Korea (KOSPI +2.6%), China (CSI 300 +2.6%) and Hong Kong (Hang Seng +2.4%) were also higher. Europe (MSCI Europe +3.0%) and the United Kingdom (FTSE +1.1%) round out the pack.

Domestically, the S&P/ASX 200 Accumulation Index was up 2.83% during the period. The best performing sector was Technology (+15.3%), as annual reports from key constituents Afterpay (APT +35.5%), WiseTech Global (WTC +34.1%) and Xero (XRO +8.5%) showed the resilience of their earnings’ profiles during the pandemic.

Consumer Discretionary (+7.8%) also had a strong reporting season, as companies like Super Retail Group (SUL +31.9%) outperformed on the back of stimulus spending, while COVID-19-impacted stocks like IDP Education (IEL +46.4%) and Flight Centre Travel Group (FLT +28.6%) showed signs of a rebound. Utilities (-5.9%) were the worst performers as both AGL Energy (AGL 12.6%) and APA (APA -6.2%) disappointed investors. Communications (-5.2%) fared similarly poorly, largely on the back of Telstra Corporation (TLS -14.5%) who despite reporting largely in-line, spooked markets by reducing its return targets going forward.

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