Local shares advanced this morning but pared gains on lacklustre Asian trading and news of government plans to break up Telstra.
At lunchtime the ASX 200 was up 6 points or 0.15% at 4537 and well off its morning high of 4585. Telstra shares slumped nearly 5% on news the Federal Government is going to force telecommunications giant to split its retail and wholesale arms. The news dragged the Telstra-heavy telecoms sector down 3.9% this morning.
The mining and materials sectors advanced 0.7% but the other leading sectors were defensive, suggesting a moderate swing away from cyclical stocks. The consumer discretionary sector advanced 1.3% and health was up 0.7%.
Asian markets were mixed. Japan inched 0.11% higher but Hong Kong Shanghai was down 0.5%. Hong Kong was closed because of a typhoon! Dow futures were mildly negative at -19. The spot gold price crept back to US$1000.
The morning has played out as I feared it might - bright open, slow fade. Tricky conditions for trading. One skinny scalp completed in AOE and a break-even position held in GRR. Saved the morning by grabbing BOW at 1.37. Still a pretty poor morning's work.
Potential overnight holds: BVA and WHN on breakout. Perhaps IOF if it can hold above 60.
