daytrading oct 18 afternoon

Thanks Endless.

Half-time round-up:

Shares broke to a five-year high ahead of Chinese GDP data as the dollar hit a four-month high and US futures responded to an after-market rally in Google.

At lunchtime the ASX 200 was 35 points or 0.7% higher at 5318 and on track for its best close since June 2008. Gold stocks led the rally, surging 5.5% after the metal staged its biggest rise in four weeks overnight. Spot gold was lately $1.50 weaker for the morning at US$1,317.20 an ounce. Other notable sectors included telecoms +1.2%, the Small Ordinaries +1%, financials +0.8% and metals & mining +0.5%.

"We've got a short-term solution to the US fiscal impasse, which will keep people positive," Mark Lister, head of private wealth research at Craigs Investment Partners in New Zealand, told Bloomberg. "The Federal Reserve will be very wary of pulling back stimulus when you've got this political issue still to come in January and February. We've seen a turnaround in economic data from Europe and China and that's been able to offset concerns about the US."

The dollar touched a four-month peak at 96.41 US cents overnight as traders factored in the likelihood that US economic policy will remain accommodative until after the next Congressional stoush. The Aussie was lately buying 96.15 US cents.

An 8% charge in Google shares in after-market trade following the release of the search engine giant's quarterly profit report helped US futures move higher this morning. Dow futures were recently up 31 points or 0.2%.

Asian markets rallied ahead of the 1pm release of Chinese quarterly GDP and monthly economic figures. The Shanghai Composite edged up 0.06%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng 0.67% and Japan's Nikkei 0.08%.

Crude oil futures rallied 17 cents this morning to US$100.82 a barrel.


Tally-ho. Nothing but blue sky overhead for some distance, so far as I can see. (Unless you're flying Qantas, which appears to be falling from the sky as I type.) I got my week back on track with a couple of wins yesterday and went on with it this morning. That's the great thing about this game - no matter how bleak your balance looks, you're never more than a couple of good trades away from success. Of course, it helps that these are probably the most forgiving trading conditions since 2007. A bull market makes geniuses of us all. Early score for me in NWE this morning. May also have taken a tiny speculator in GCN but can't discuss it in front of Endless. He hits me.