Thanks @Ravgnome. Hope everyone has recovered from the New Year celebrations. There's likely to be lower volume until next week so I'm happy to go with just the single thread for now when more of the regular openers return from their breaks.
A late dive amid light volumes has seen the Australian share market finish lower on the last day of the year, confirming 2018 as the worst 12 months for the bourse since 2011.
The S&P/ASX200 index closed down 7.9 points, or 0.14 per cent, at 5645.0 at an earlier-than-usual close of 14.10pm (AEDT) on Monday.
The market had been ahead as 33.6 points, at 5693.6, as late as 13.10pm (AEDT).
Meanwhile, the broader All Ordinaries closed 6.6 points, or 0.12 per cent, lower at 5715.0, having also been higher throughout the day.
The ASX has slipped 9.04 per cent since September - the worst quarter since September 2011 - with the benchmark also enduring its worst year in seven, down 6.9 per cent amid wider global volatility.
Pepperstone head of research Chris Weston said a flat end to the year was to be expected given lower volumes at play.
"As you'd expect on a day like today, we're 46 per cent below the 30-day average," he said.
The big Australian banks and miners held onto earlier gains but property stocks, industrials and consumer staples weighed on the market as the final session for 2018 came to a close.
Rio Tinto finished up 0.5 per cent to $78.47 and BHP climbed 0.82 per cent higher to $34.23, while Fortescue Metals gained 1.21 per cent after naming the preferred contractor for the $57 million stage one earthworks for its Eliwana Rail Project.
Gold miner Newcrest rose 3.46 per cent to $21.80 on a near six-month peak for the precious metal.
Commonwealth Bank was the best performer of the big lenders, up 0.67 per cent to $72.39 in a solid day for the financial sector.
Telco stocks pared earlier gains but were still well ahead in the final session before 2019.
Telstra gained 0.71 per cent to $2.85, Seven West Media shares were up 1.85 per cent to 55 cents, Domain Holdings rose 1.36 per cent to $2.23 and Event Hospitality stocks were up 2.72 per cent to $13.60.
The energy sector took a late dive while Wesfarmers fell 0.95 per cent to $32.22.
The Aussie edged higher, buying 70.62 US cents, up from 70.48 on Friday.
Meanwhile, the ASX is closed on New Year's Day and will resume trade at 1000 AEDT on Wednesday.
Wall Street advanced in low-volume trading on Monday as revelers gathered to ring in 2019, marking the end of the worst year for US stocks since 2008, the height of the financial crisis.
Wall Street entered correction territory in late January and was challenged for much of 2018 by tariff jitters, rising interest rates, and fears of diminishing corporate profits.
"Investors got complacent," said Thomas Martin, senior portfolio manager at Globalt Investments in Atlanta. "People were positioned for the lack of volatility, and when that changed because of trade concerns and interest rates, people started repositioning and that started the cascade."
December was a particularly trying month for US equities. The S&P 500 saw its worst December since the Great Depression and the Nasdaq confirmed it was in a bear market, or 20 per cent below its high. All three are down about 9 per cent since the beginning of the month.
In the new year, investors hope for the removal of question marks that acted as significant headwinds in 2018, including US-China trade negotiations, the path of US Federal Reserve interest rate hikes, slowing corporate growth and economic fallout from the upcoming departure of Britain from the European Union, or Brexit, among other concerns.
As 2019 gets underway, "investors will be looking to corporate earnings, what happens with the trade negotiations and the body language of the Fed," Martin added.
On Monday, renewed hopes for a resolution to the US-China trade dispute provided a glimmer of optimism for investors.
US President Donald Trump indicated on Twitter that progress had been made toward a potential settlement of trade tensions between the United States and China which have plagued stock markets for much of the year.
Trading volume was relatively light, owing to the holiday as the US federal government shutdown entered its 10th day.
Healthcare and tariff-sensitive technology stocks, led by Boeing Co and Caterpillar Inc , provided the biggest boost to the S&P 500 on Monday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 265.06 points, or 1.15 per cent, to 23,327.46, the S&P 500 gained 21.11 points, or 0.85 per cent, to 2,506.85 and the Nasdaq Composite added 50.76 points, or 0.77 per cent, to 6,635.28.
All 11 major sectors in the S&P 500 ended the session in positive territory. But for the year, only healthcare and utilities ended 2018 higher.
Energy, materials, communication services , industrials and financials were the biggest per centage losers of 2018, down between 14.7 per cent and 20.5 per cent from the beginning of the year.
The 20.5 per cent drop of energy stocks in 2018 was largely attributable to crude prices plunging 38 per cent since early October.
Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 2.42-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.81-to-1 ratio favored advancers.
The S&P 500 posted no new 52-week highs and no new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded eight new highs and 98 new lows.
Volume on US exchanges was 7.46 billion shares, compared with the 9.22 billion-share average for the full session over the last 20 trading days.
Source: AAP
Please partake of the Breakfast spread. Healthy and not so healthy choices.
In consideration of others, PLEASE include the STOCK CODE in all your posts.
Happy trading, play nicely and make informed decisions.
