The S&P/ASX 200 climbed 0.7% to a fresh record close of 8,637 on Wednesday, ending its four-session losing streak, driven by gains in major banks after soft inflation data boosted bets of an RBA rate cut in August. Australia’s headline inflation eased to 2.1% in Q2 from 2.4%, slightly below the 2.2% forecast, while the RBA’s preferred trimmed mean measure slowed to 2.7% from 2.9%, staying within the 2–3% target band. The soft inflation print, alongside recent labor market weakness, led markets to fully price in a 25bps rate cut in August and expect rates to fall to 3.1% by year-end. Meanwhile, caution lingered as US Commerce Secretary Lutnick ruled out any delay to Trump’s Friday tariff deadline, while separate trade talks with China ended without progress. On the corporate side, financials jumped 1.4%, with the Big Four banks up 1% to 1.6%, supported by optimism that lower rates will boost credit demand and profitability. Real estate stocks also advanced 1.2%, led by URW (0.7%).