The local share market has closed marginally higher in quiet trading, while losing ground for the week despite three straight days of gains.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index on Friday finished up 5.6 points, or 0.07 per cent, while the broader All Ordinaries rose 9.5 points, or 0.12 per cent, at 7,884.7.
For the week the ASX200 lost 0.7 per cent, which AMP chief economist Shane Oliver attributed to resource shares and some disappointment that the Reserve Bank this week retained a tightening bias.
In Canberra on Friday, Reserve Bank of Australia governor Michele Bullock was very cautious in her appearance before the House Economics Committee about when interest rate cuts would start to happen.
"An inflation rate with a '4' in front of it is not good enough and still some way from the midpoint of our target," Ms Bullock said.
Dr Oliver said that AMP remained of the view that shares had run a bit ahead of themselves, were now overbought and at risk of a short-term correction, given the risks around central banks, a possible recession and the escalating Middle East conflict.
On Friday Brent crude prices jumped two per cent to a one-week high of $81.40 a barrel after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected a ceasefire deal and vowed to continue the war until victory.
Dr Oliver added, however, that any AMP sees any pullback or consolidation as a correction in the context of a continuing bull market.
Six of the ASX's 11 sectors finished higher on Friday, industrials were flat and four finished lower.
Energy was the biggest mover, dropping 1.3 per cent amid a selloff in the uranium space after the world's second-largest yellowcake miner, Canada's Cameco, announced it would boost production to take advantage of surging prices.
Boss Energy, Deep Yellow and Bannerman Energy dropped by between 9.9 and 12.7 per cent, with Paladin and Peninsula Energy falling by seven per cent.
Also, Woodside fell 1.5 per cent and Santos dipped 0.3 per cent in the wake of this week's failed merger talks between the two big LNG producers.
In the heavyweight materials sector, Fortescue dropped 0.8 per cent to $28.26 and BHP dipped 0.3 per cent to $46.30, while Rio Tinto added 0.5 per cent to $129.87.
Boral jumped 8.3 per cent to an all-time high of $5.86 after the building products company said its operating cash flow nearly tripled to $348.6 million in the six months to December 31.
Chief executive Vik Bansal said Boral had been able to reduce costs while raising prices, lifting its earning margin to 10.9 per cent, almost double that of a year ago. The company also hiked its full-year guidance, saying it expects to make as much as $350 million, $20 million more than previously forecast.
The Big Four banks were mixed, with CBA up 0.3 per cent to $116.24 and ANZ adding 0.1 per cent to $27.68, while Westpac dipped 0.2 per cent to $24.37 and NAB dropped 0.3 per cent to $32.37.
REA Group and Cochlear both rose 5.9 per cent, to $186.88 and $322.73, respectively, as traders digested Thursday's earnings reports from both companies.
Meanwhile, the Australian dollar was back under 65 US cents after breaching that level for the first time since mid-November earlier in the week.
The Aussie was buying 64.98 US cents, from 65.30 US cents at Thursday's ASX close.
ON THE ASX:
* The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index finished Friday up 5.6 points, or 0.07 per cent, to 7,644.8.
* The broader All Ordinaries added 9.5 points, 0.12 per cent, to 7,884.7
CURRENCY SNAPSHOT:
One Australian dollar buys:
* 64.98 US cents, from 65.30 US cents at Thursday's ASX close
* 97.08 Japanese yen, from 96.90 yen
* 60.32 Euro cents, from 60.44 Euro cents
* 51.50 British pence, from 51.61 pence
* 106.16 NZ cents, from 106.72 NZ cents.
