Thanks @Quantum Torus, @Ravgnome and AM Loungers. Spring has sprung, the grass is riz. Read up on the market biz.
The Australian share market has closed lower on the last major day of the profit reporting season, dragged down by the telecommunications sector as well as the miners after a dip in iron ore prices.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was 32.3 points, or 0.51 per cent, lower at 6,319.5 points on Friday, while the broader All Ordinaries index was down 32.7 points, or 0.51 per cent, at 6,427.8 points.
CommSec chief market analyst Steven Daghlian said the telco stocks are coming back down to earth after the sector was boosted by the announcement of the $15 billion merger between TPG Telecom and Vodafone Australia on Thursday.
"There's a bit of profit taking partly because they were very strong yesterday on the back of the merger," he said.
"That caused a bit of excitement in that sector because it reduced the number of major players."
The sector closed 3.9 per cent lower, with TPG leading the losses down 7.2 per cent and Telstra, which benefited initially from the decrease in competition, down four per cent.
The price of iron ore fell 2.2 per cent overnight to $US65.87 per tonne, pulling BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and South32 shares lower.
Fortescue Metals share were down 3.8 per cent but the mining company began paying out dividends on Friday.
Of the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank was hit hardest, down 1.3 per cent to $71.24, while ANZ led the gains closing 0.4 per cent higher at $29.50.
In company news, shares in Retail Food Group fell 8.8 per cent after the Gloria Jean's and Donut King operator said it's expanding its store closure program and slumped to a $306.7 million full-year loss.
Harvey Norman's full-year profit has also slumped 16.4 per cent due to property revaluations and the furniture and electrical goods retailer's failed dairy farming investment.
Its shares were down 4.5 per cent to $3.60.
Toll road operator Transurban halted trading after the consortium it leads agreed to pay the NSW government $9.3 billion for a 51 per cent stake in the new WestConnex motorway.
The Australian dollar was buying 72.55 US cents at 1630 AEST, down from 72.88 US cents on Thursday.
ON THE ASX:
* The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was 32.3 points, or 0.51 per cent, lower at 6,319.5 points
* The All Ordinaries index was down 32.7 points, or 0.51 per cent, at 6,427.8 points
* In futures trading the SPI200 futures index was down 23 points, or 0.36 per cent, at 6,301 points at 1630 AEST
The S&P 500 ended flat while the Dow edged down and the Nasdaq closed higher in light trading on Friday as Canada and the United States concluded trade talks without resolution ahead of the Labor Day weekend.
Capping a low-volume, late-summer week marked by tariff-related volatility, all three major U.S. indexes posted net gains for the period. The indexes were also up for the month of August, with the Nasdaq posting its largest monthly gain since January.
Talks between Canada the United States to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) ended on a sour note as the two sides were unable to reach a deal, according to the Wall Street Journal.
In recent days trade jitters abated as Mexico and the United States reached a bilateral deal, but re-emerged later in the week following a report that U.S. President Donald Trump is prepared to impose tariffs on an additional $200 billion of Chinese imports as soon as next week.
“We may not have a replacement for NAFTA as quickly as we thought,” said John Toohey, head of equities at USAA in San Antonio. “That initial optimism that existed at the beginning of the week, that good news scenario is off the table.”
The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI fell 22.1 points, or 0.09 percent, to 25,964.82, the S&P 500 .SPX gained 0.39 points, or 0.01 percent, to 2,901.52 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC added 21.17 points, or 0.26 percent, to 8,109.54.
Of the 11 major sectors in the S&P 500, five closed lower.
Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 1.16-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.60-to-1 ratio favored advancers.
The S&P 500 posted 34 new 52-week highs and 3 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 121 new highs and 29 new lows.
Volume on U.S. exchanges was 5.77 billion shares, compared with the 6.08 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days.
The Australian share market is tipped to correct itself and open higher after faltering at the close in anticipation of a Wall Street dip that never eventuated.
Threats of US imposed tariffs on China spooked the Australian market to close 32 points lower on Friday.
However, Wall Street weathered the uncertainty, which should mean a bump in the local market at the open, according to AMP Capital's chief economist Shane Oliver.
"We'll have a bit of a bounce to make up for that," Dr Oliver told AAP on Sunday.
"It looks like we'll recover a big chunk of the losses we saw on Friday."
Dr Oliver said the futures index was pointing to a 25 point climb on Monday
Positive economic data helped steady the US market amid the political uncertainty borne out of President Donald Trump's ongoing trade threats, Dr Oliver said.
"It's just weathering it, it's sort of something that causes nervousness in the markets when the headlines hit, but then the market goes back to focus on the fact that underlying economic conditions are pretty strong," he said.
A new free trade deal with Indonesia, struck over the weekend by new Prime Minister Scott Morrison and President Joko Widodo, is good news according to Dr Oliver, but unlikely to influence much on the ASX.
"It's all very positive, but probably not enough to move the market at this point in time," he said.
Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank is expected to keep interest rates on hold at a meeting on Tuesday, despite toying with the idea of a rise for several months.
"I don't even think it's going to come next year, I think it's a 2020 story," Dr Oliver said of when Australians could expect to see a rate rise from the RBA.
Dr Oliver said the market would take leads from a host of economic data due to be released through the week, including GDP figures.
He anticipates economic growth will be 0.7 of a per cent in the June quarter, "which is sort of OK growth, but probably not quite as strong as the Reserve Bank would like it to be".
Official retail sales figures, to be released on Monday, and Friday's Australian Bureau of Statistics housing finance data, are both expected to be soft, Dr Oliver said.
"People don't feel so happy to dip into their wallets when their house (value) is declining," he said.
A much needed win from Man Utd this morning with a brace by Lukaku followed by a volatile finish.
Source: Netwealth Morning Business Roundup
Enjoy a firey spring breakfast of Mexican Chilaquiles and Coffee.
In consideration of others, PLEASE include the STOCK CODE in all your posts.
Happy trading, play nicely and make informed decisions.
