The Australian stock market was lower at noon, with weakness among financial and resources stocks dragging the market deep into negative territory.
All Ordinaries index was down 79.7 points, or 1.7 per cent, at 4,612.3 points.
There were 25 stocks down for every 10 that had managed a gain.
The big retail banks were all down at 1217 AEST. In economic news: Consumers spent less than expected in March as interest rate rises forced them to tighten their purse strings. Australian Bureau of Statistics data shows retail sales rose by 0.3% in March following a 1.4% drop in February. They had been expected to rise by 0.7%.
Shares in Centennial Coal Ltd (CEY) have surged on news that 10% of the companys stock has been bought by JP Morgan on behalf of Chinese coal giant Shenhua Energy. A report in the Australian Financial Review reveals that Shenhua may now own 14.9% of the coal power supplier. But the company has released a statement saying it is not aware of the identity of the buyer or buyers of the stock. Centennial Coal shares are up 21.3% at $4.84.
Scrap metal recycler Sims Metal Management Ltd (SGM) has reported a 31% fall in sales for the nine months to March 31 due to a weak North American market. Group sales for the period dropped to $5 billion, but the company is expecting earnings growth in the three months to June 30. The company posted a profit of $70.4 million for the nine months, but earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation were $214 million - down 23% on a year earlier. Sales from North America totalled $3.3 billion, down 40% from a year before. Basic earnings per share for the nine months was 37 cents. The company says the scrap metal intake for the nine month period totalled 9.7 million tonnes, but it is seeing a significant improvement in scrap flows in the fourth quarter. However, its North American scrap intake fell 4% to 7.3 million tonnes. Profit for the three months to March 31 was $30.4 million and revenue for the period was $1.6 billion. Sims Metal Management reported a loss of $150.3 million for the 2009 financial year.
The best performing sector at midday is the Telco Services index, up 13 points at 1,080.
The worst performing sector is the Financials excluding the Real Estate Investment Trust index, down 184 points to 5,415.
Gold is trading at US$1,175.35 an ounce and the Aussie dollar is trading at 90.54 US cents.
