Australian stocks punched to a fresh 15-month high this morning as commodities rallied and a jump in job ads pointed to a strengthening economy.
At lunchtime the ASX 200 was up 40 points or 0.83% at 4952, and has the 5000 mark in its sights for the first time since September 2008. The mining sectors led the morning's gains: gold rallied 2.2%, metals & mining 1.9% and materials 1.9%. Financial stocks rose 0.7%, while utilities, property trusts and telecoms lost ground.
Job ads last month hit their highest level in more than two and a half years. The total number of jobs advertised rose 6% in December, building on a 5.2% rise in November, according to ANZ's monthly survey.
"This sustained improvement in job advertisements and actual employment has come relatively early in this economic recovery cycle, indicating the 'mildness' of the downturn Australia has experienced over the past 18 months," said ANZ Acting Chief Economist Warren Hogan.
Gold surged to a one-month high this morning as the U.S. dollar continued its slide after Friday's weak jobs report. The spot price was recently trading at $1,153.70 an ounce, up $16 from Friday's close.
Crude oil futures were also up strongly, adding 0.86% this morning to $83.46 a barrel.
Asian markets were stronger. Shanghai surged 1.84% in early trade and Hong Kong's Hang Seng was up 1.02%. Japan's Nikkei was closed for a public holiday. Dow futures were a bullish +34.
Many thanks for the welcome messages this morning, guys - much appreciated. Noo - great work last week, buddy.
Easing my way back into trading today. NOD had my name written all over it - scalped it twice this morning for a couple of points each. Watching for now.
