Thanks Endless. Half-time round-up:A dive in consumer confidence...

Thanks Endless.

Half-time round-up:

A dive in consumer confidence and falls among the big miners helped push the Australian share market to a three-month low this morning.

At lunchtime the ASX 200 was 13 points or 0.3% in the red at 5129 after earlier hitting 5115, a level last visited in early September. Gains in utilities +0.9%, consumer discretionary +0.4% and the Small Ordinaries +0.3% were swamped by losses in metals & mining -1%, health -0.7% and industrials -0.6%. The gold sector surged 7% despite a 12% plunge in OZL following a production downgrade.

The falls came despite news of a budget deal in the US to avert the threat of another federal government shutdown early next year. US futures rallied after negotiators announced they had an agreement that can now proceed to the Senate and House of Representatives for approval. Read more here. Dow futures were recently up 34 points or 0.2%.

At home, consumer confidence this month deteriorated to its weakest level since July. The WBC index fell to 105 from 110.3 points in November.

China's Shanghai Composite lost 1.05% this morning, Hong Kong's Hang Seng 0.67% and Japan's Nikkei 0.44%.

Crude oil futures rallied five cents this morning to US$98.52 a barrel. Spot gold was $3.20 weaker at US$1,258.80 an ounce. The dollar was buying 91.41 US cents.


Damn, this is a hard market to please. A few weeks ago the XJO would have been ahead 40 points on the US budget news. I had a few solid wins this morning in OZL and SWE twice but in the interests of full disclosure will focus on a losing trade. Let a bounce profit in WOR on its initial meltdown day turn to a paper loss, ended up holding on and have been waiting since then for it to break out of its trading range one way or the other. Got the answer I didn't want this morning when it opened below the old closing low. Worst loss in months, but I'll take something positive out of the trade for having an exit plan, following it and getting out near the top of today's trading range. The kennel looks cleaner than it has for weeks. Upwards and onwards.