Sydney, Feb 20, 2026, 17:30 AEDT — The market has closed.
- Northern Star (ASX:NST) slipped 0.1% to close at A$28.33, retracing after posting a 1.2% gain the previous session
- Gold held steady, though it remained on track for a weekly decline as the dollar strengthened. U.S. PCE inflation data is still to come later Friday.
- Local gold miners are still watching the Australian dollar—a stronger currency keeps pressure on their margins.
Shares of Northern Star Resources Ltd edged down 0.1% Friday, settling at A$28.33 after giving back some ground from Thursday’s rise. Investors tracked moves in bullion and currency markets as the week wrapped up.
Markets felt a little jumpier. Gold finished flat, yet it’s staring at a roughly 1% loss for the week—pressure mounting as the U.S. dollar looks set for its strongest week in four months. Investors are on hold for U.S. Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE) inflation numbers at 1330 GMT, a big piece in the Fed’s rate puzzle.
Australian gold miners are watching the currency just as closely. The Australian dollar hovered near $0.7056. UniSuper’s Chief Investment Officer John Pearce told Reuters the fund had “tweaked” its hedging, anticipating “upward pressure” on the local currency as the rate gap shifts to favor Australia. Reuters
There wasn’t much action across the wider local market, with the S&P/ASX 200 slipping just 0.05%. Late in the day, individual names saw more movement than the benchmark itself, which stayed fairly flat.
Northern Star sits in a lull between key updates, so for now the stock tracks bullion prices and the Australian dollar. Looking ahead, investors will be watching how well it manages costs and output over the next few quarters.
The company last week said it’s working to bolster operations and push ahead with growth projects, following earlier cuts to its full-year output targets and an increase in its all-in sustaining cost (AISC) range. For reference, AISC rolls together mine operating expenses and sustaining capital. “Notwithstanding recent challenges, we reaffirm our commitment to operational excellence,” Managing Director Stuart Tonkin said. NSR Limited
The dividend’s timeline is coming up fast. Northern Star, in its half-year release, announced a fully franked interim dividend of 25 Australian cents per share. The crucial record date lands on March 5, with payment set for March 26.
Still, a clear risk looms this week: a higher U.S. inflation reading could send the dollar up, push gold further down, and quickly squeeze miners’ multiples. Throw in a firmer Australian dollar, and there’s more pain—local-currency revenue drops when sales are locked in U.S. dollars.
First up: gold and the dollar. Investors are set to gauge their moves as soon as U.S. inflation numbers drop. After that, attention turns to Asia, with markets there reopening post-weekend—dealers will be watching for any extended reaction. Company-wise, the next big scheduled event is Northern Star’s March-quarter update, set for April 22.
