What happened today on the ASX?

The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) closed higher today, with the ASX banks pushing higher.

The ASX 200 keeps going higher despite an initial wobble this morning. The Australian dollar keeps rising as well.

Here are some ASX highlights from today:

ASX banks pull the index higher

The ASX may have finished in the red if it weren’t for the continued positive movements by the major ASX 200 banks. It has been a huge week for them.

Today we saw the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) share price rise 1.9%, the Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) share price rose by 3.4%, the Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ASX: ANZ) share price went up 2.9% and the National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB) share price went up nearly 3%.

Kogan.com Ltd (ASX: KGN) shoots the lights out

The online retailer is seeing an astonishing amount of growth in the final quarter of FY20. The Kogan.com share price rose 8.6%, so it’s well on its way to entering the ASX 200 this year. 

Today it said it added another 126,000 active customers in May 2020, bringing the total to 2.074 million at the end of last month.

So far in the fourth quarter of FY20, gross sales and gross profit have grown by more than 100% and 130% respectively. Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) has risen more than 200%.

The company finished with $58.6 million of cash and $26 million of debt at the end of May 2020.

New Hope Corporation Limited (ASX: NHC) delayed again

The ASX 200 coal miner announced today that the High Court of Australia has granted Oakey Coal Action Alliance Inc (OCAA) special leave to appeal the orders of the Queensland Court of Appeal which were made on 1 November 2019.

New Hope said that OCAA isn’t challenging findings on groundwater or any other environmental issue that is relevant to any decision being made by the government. This is why the company thinks the Queensland state government should immediately approve the New Acland Stage 3.

More reading

• What the 10 largest companies in the world have in common
• Why is it so hard to outperform the ASX 200 index?
• These quality ASX dividend shares have very juicy yields
• Here’s why I think CBA shares are a good buy today
• 3 tips for surviving an ASX recession

Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia owns shares of and has recommended Kogan.com ltd. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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June and winter are upon us and that means tax time is, too. If you currently own ASX shares, you’re likely looking for tax tips for investors. Doing our taxes each year can be time-consuming and expensive, depending on how you choose to have your tax affairs managed. But it’s an important time, nonetheless, and one that can have some serious impacts on your finances.

Successful investing normally comes with a bittersweet reality – we have to share our success with the taxman. It’s the price we all pay for a civilised society, as they say.

But that doesn’t mean there’s not a right way and a wrong way to doing our taxes. So below I’ve listed 3 tax tips for investors! Remember, this is all just general advice, make sure to check with a licensed tax professional regarding your own situation.

Tip 1) Claim all the deductions you are entitled to

Investing can take up a lot of time and money. Staying on top of things in the investing world can often cost you some serious coin. Newspaper subscriptions, investing memberships or accounting software fees are some of the many costs one can occur in managing an investment portfolio. Luckily, most costs that are directly applicable to running your investments are usually tax-deductible. So make sure you’re claiming all relevant costs that you might incur as part of your investing activities, including any capital losses.

Tip 2) Detail all of your income

There are many different ways you can make money in the course of an investment. There’s buying and selling shares and receiving dividends for one. But there are also managed fund distributions and foreign currency gains as well. Not to mention trading cryptocurrencies or options.

To the chagrin of some, no matter where or how you get the money in the course of your investing activities, it’s probably taxable. So don’t get yourself into a sticky situation with our friends at the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and make sure you report any and all income you earn from your investments.

Tip 3) Earmark your return for ASX shares

Many of us will be entitled to a refund of some tax when we eventually receive our tax returns. Whilst it’s very easy to go out and splash this money on some new clothes, a fancy dinner or a holiday (domestic this year), it’s an even better idea to earmark the cash as ‘investing money’ before you even get it.  That way, you can give your ASX shares portfolio a major boost without blinking an eye.

Of course, if you would rather top up your savings for a rainy day then that’s completely fine. But think twice about how best to use a windfall this tax time. You might find that a new outfit or a night out on the town can wait.

More reading

• EML Payments and thse ASX mid cap shares could be destined for big things
• What the 10 largest companies in the world have in common
• Why is it so hard to outperform the ASX 200 index?
• These quality ASX dividend shares have very juicy yields
• Why the Appen share price fell nearly 5% today

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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