The Australian share market closed marginally higher on Wednesday as investors navigated Middle East tensions and growing expectations of US interest rate hikes. Mining and energy stocks fell on commodity weakness, while defensive sectors like consumer staples and utilities gained ground. Key upcoming catalysts include US inflation data and domestic updates on inflation expectations and retail performance.

Steve Daghlian is a Market Analyst at CommSec. Each episode, he breaks down the day's market movements and explains what the numbers really mean.

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