Australian defence deals, Credit Corp's strong growth power ASX surge

Australian stock market registered a major uptick on Tuesday (August 5) with the Australian Securities Exchange Ltd (ASX 200) futures up 86 points and just 0.2% below its all-time high. The rally was helped by positive developments in the US stocks after Friday's slump. While S&P 500 futures registered a 0.6% rise, Nasdaq 100 futures was up 0.9%, and Dow futures saw a surge of 195 points.

Taking a cue from the US markets and some good news on the domestic front, the ASX futures, too, saw an uptick.

Two major business announcements triggered the surge in Australian stock markets. One was Credit Corp reporting good growth and a strong performance potential in the near future, the second was Prime Minister Anthony Albanese government annoincing a major expansion of its defence forces with aquisitiuon of new navy warships from Austal Limited.


Positive FY25 results by Credit Corp which saw its revenue going up by 5% to $545.6 million also gave a push to ASX. The company's US ledger collections was up 12 per cent which Credit Corp said was a reflection of operational improvement and investment, according to a press release. Thgood show in the US gace Credit Corp the leverage to go for a record FY26 US investment pipeline of A$164 million.

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The company registered a 31 per cent growth in consumer lending segment net profit after tax (NPAT) and 5 per cent growth in the consumer loan book to a record gross closing balance of $466 million.

Australian defence deals

Austral shares received a major boost following the A$20 billion defence deal with the federal government to build and supply multiple landing craft, frigates and autonomous warships.The ships will be constructed at the company's Henderson shipyard, near Perth.

The deal with the Australian government supplements Austal's orders which also include an A$14 billion agreement with the United States Navy at its Mobile, Alabama, shipyards.

In another major defence procurement, Australian Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles confirming his country's A$10 billion ($6.5 billion) deal with Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy Industries for new navy warships.

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According to a Reuters report, the Marles' annopuncement for three frigates for the Australian Navy is the biggest defence deal since 2023 when the government in 2023 entered into an agreement with the United States and Britain to build nuclear-powered submarines in view of growing Chinese naval power in the region. The Mitsubishi Heavy Industries deal is also one of Japan's biggest defence export agreement.

Berkshire Hathaway shares dropped by as much as 3.4%, reaching their lowest point since February. The decline follows the company’s disclosure of a $3.8 billion writedown on its investment in Kraft Heinz, reducing its value to $8.4 billion, down from more than $17 billion in 2017. Additionally, Berkshire has not repurchased any shares for the fourth consecutive quarter. Since Warren Buffett announced his retirement in early May, the stock has fallen by 15%.