Good Morning Fellow Traders,
The share market has closed flat as banks continued their recent declines, Qantas hit new highs and the the major
iron ore companies managed minor gains.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 dropped 0.3 points to 5,651.8 points.
Commsec analyst Steven Daghlian said there were no strong local leads, and a the major banks experienced a third consecutive day of falls.
"No single sector stood out on a day of modest movement, the market is sorely awaiting a catalyst," he said.
The Australian dollar fell after an unexpected fall in retail trade in August of 0.6 per cent, the steepest monthly decline since March 2013.
The local currency was as high as 78.66 US cents before the data was released, and was at 78.27 US cents at 1700 AEDT.
Retail stocks also fell, with JB Hi-Fi down 0.7 per cent at $22.81, Harvey Norman dropped 0.5 per cent to $3.82 and Just Jeans and Portmans owner Premier investments was 1.2 per cent weaker at $12.74.
Among the banks, ANZ was the weakest performer, dropping 0.5 per cent, while Commonwealth Bank recovered as the session went on to close just 0.1 per cent lower.
Qantas gained 3.2 per cent to a record close of $6.12 after Goldman Sachs upgraded its rating on the stock.
Rio Tinto added 0.8 per cent to $67.99, BHP Billiton gained 0.4 cent to $26.09 and Fortescue Metals was steady at $5.15.
ON THE ASX:
* The benchmark S&P/ASX200 was down 0.3 points, or 0.01 per cent, at 5,651.8 points.
* The broader All Ordinaries index was up 0.7 points, or 0.01 per cent, at 5,720.3 points.
* The SPI200 futures contract was up 6 points, or 0.11 per cent, at 5,634 points.
* National turnover was 3 billion securities traded worth $4.5 billion
CURRENCY SNAPSHOT AT 1700 AEDT:
One Australian dollar buys:
* 78.27 US cents, from 78.67 US cents on Wednesday
* 88.26 Japanese yen, from 88.55 yen
* 66.60 euro cents, from 66.83 euro cents
* 59.14 British pence, from 59.26 pence
* 109.41 NZ cents, from 109.47 NZ cents
GOLD:
The spot price of gold in Sydney at 1700 AEDT was $US1,274.24 per fine ounce, from $US1,276.34 per fine ounce on Wednesday.
BOND SNAPSHOT AT 1630 AEDT:
* CGS 4.50 per cent April 2020, 1.9792pct, from 2.0182pct
* CGS 4.75pct April 2027, 2.7319pct, from 2.7562pct
Sydney Futures Exchange prices:
* December 2017 10-year bond futures contract at 97.19 (implying a yield of 2.81pct), from 97.165 (2.835pct) on Wednesday
* December 2017 3-year bond futures contract at 97.88 (2.12pct), from 97.84 (216pct).
(*Bond market closes taken at 1630 AEDT previous local session; currency closes taken from 1700 AEDT previous local session)
In the U. S., all three major indexes rose to record high closes again on Thursday, with optimism over a tax overhaul increasing as Congress moved closer to agreement on a budget resolution and as data added to recent signs of economic strength.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average
.DJI rose 113.75 points, or 0.5 percent, to 22,775.39, the S&P 500
.SPX gained 14.33 points, or 0.56 percent, to 2,552.07 and the Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC added 50.73 points, or 0.78 percent, to 6,585.36.
U.S. investors have begun to warm to the notion that new U.S. fiscal policy will be in place by the first quarter, said Phil Orlando, chief equity strategist at Federated Investors in New York.
Most investors felt that nothing would come of President Donald Trump’s tax reform effort until last week, he said.
“Only 30 percent of us were comfortable that something might happen. That could take up 2019 estimates for GDP growth and earnings per share, which could drive the S&P 500 above our 3,000 target,” Orlando said.
MSCI's all-country world stock index .MIWD00000PUS reached an intraday peak. In Europe, the pan-regional FTSEurofirst 300 index
.FTEU3 rose 0.2 percent to close at 1,536.56.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average
.DJI was up 93.47 points, or 0.41 percent, at 22,755.11. The S&P 500
.SPX gained 12.66 points, or 0.50 percent, to 2,550.4, and the Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC added 42.52 points, or 0.65 percent, to 6,577.15.
A Reuters poll found sentiment that global stocks will continue to climb over the coming year on rising optimism about growth worldwide. However, a slim majority of equity strategists also expect the current eight-year bull run to end in 2018.
“There really is no alternative to being in the equity market,” said Larry Hatheway, chief economist at GAM Investment Management in Zurich.
“There’s no reason for anybody to sell equities at this point in time. There are no threats to an equity bull market that seem to be material,” he said.
The U.S. trade deficit fell in August as exports of goods and services rose to the highest in more than 2-1/2 years. Separately, the number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits fell more than expected last week.
Gold dipped on news of the data as it bolstered the notion U.S. interest rates will be raised in December. Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank President Patrick Harker said he was penciling in one more rate increase this year and three in 2018.
U.S. gold futures GCcv1 for December delivery settled down $3.60 at $1,273.20 per ounce.
The dollar index, tracking the greenback against a basket of key currencies, held under seven-week highs as investors awaited Friday’s U.S. jobless report for September to assess the impact of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. The storms proved a drag on robust business spending that was seen in the trade data.
The dollar index .DXY rose 0.54 percent, with the euro
EUR= down 0.47 percent at $1.1704. The Japanese yen weakened 0.10 percent versus the greenback to 112.88 per dollar.
Oil prices rose as signs Saudi Arabia and Russia will limit production through next year overshadowed record U.S. exports and the return of production at a major Libyan oilfield.
Brent LCOcv1 rose $1.20 to settle at $57.00 per barrel, while U.S. crude CLcv1 settled at $50.79, up 81 cents on the day.
Source: Netwealth Morning Business Roundup
On your bike with a spartan breakfast of Eggs and a bit of Veg with a Skinny Chino - no sugar.
@paddington bear is on a diet. Those not so health conscious are probably going to have a side of crispy bacon and toast with that.
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Happy Trading!!!
