Shares overcame disappointing building approvals data this morning to rally for the third time in four sessions after Wall Street hit record levels overnight.
At lunchtime the ASX 200 was trading six points or 0.1% higher at 5395 as gains in cyclical sectors offset mild falls among defensives. Gains in metals & mining +0.9%, materials +0.7% and industrials +0.2% outweighed declines in utilities -0.4%, consumer staples -0.2% and telecoms -0.1%. The advance followed gains in the US after upbeat manufacturing data quelled concerns about a winter economic slowdown.
"Economic data was constructive for market bulls as it painted a picture of a gradually improving US manufacturing sector," Matthew Sherwood, head of investment markets research at Perpetual, told Bloomberg. "There were solid rises in forward orders and production, which suggests that the weather slowdown could be clearing in March."
Domestic data proved less supportive. Building approvals slumped as seasonally-adjusted 5% in February, more than expected. Economists had predicted a drop of around 2% for the month.
China's Shanghai Composite climbed 0.29%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng 0.1% and Japan's Nikkei 1.49%. Dow futures were recently up 30 points or 0.2%.
Crude oil futures bounced 31 cents this morning to US$99.71 a barrel. Spot gold was $2.60 stronger at US$1,283.20 an ounce. The dollar was buying 92.38 US cents.
Pretty disappointing morning, considering the leads. Fundies still unwinding their end-of-quarter buys? Been a low-key session for me. Some days you start with a clean sheet and a clear mind, other days it's like tidying up after a great party - throwing out the empties and washing the dishes. Today was about protecting yesterday's profits by tidying up the loose ends. Exited TEN for brokerage, dropped the last of my ANP for a small profit and closed IPP near the early highs. Still holding MOY and IBY. Picked up a few NXR below 4c, intraday only.
