Thanks Brit and morning crew. Also Trees, Jimbo and all the...

Thanks Brit and morning crew. Also Trees, Jimbo and all the others who keep the joint ticking over 24/7.


Half-time round-up:

Australian shares joined a global retreat as crude oil extended overnight losses and investors revised their view of BHP's earnings outlook.

At 1pm EST the ASX 200 was 63 points or 1.3% lower at 4917 after earlier breaking below 4900 for the first time in a week. The metals & mining sector led the slump with a loss of 3.7% as BHP was hammered almost 7% and Rio Tinto traded without its dividend. Consumer staples dived 3.3% following a poorly-received earnings update from WES. Bucking the trend were the gold sector +3.2%, industrials +0.8% and utilities +0.7%.

The mood on global markets deteriorated overnight after spokesmen from Iran and Saudi Arabia dashed hopes that oil producers might be moving towards an agreement to reduce output. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures eased another 47 cents this morning to US$31.40 a barrel.

“Oil prices are back in the spotlight,” Jason Wong, currency strategist at Bank of New Zealand, told Bloomberg. “We think that it’s inevitable that oil prices move back below the $30 market soon as supply continues to outstrip demand and inventory levels are very high.”

Asian markets were mixed. While China's Shanghai Composite gained 0.66%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 0.3% and Japan's Nikkei 0.31%. Dow futures were recently up 11 points or 0.07%.

Spot gold benefitted from a 'retreat to safety', firming $2.80 this morning to US$1,225.40 an ounce. The dollar was buying 71.95 US cents.


Down-trend reasserting itself? If so, we're heading back towards 4800, perhaps even 4700. Trends change, but this one is pretty well established now. Trading: hoped NWH would come lower this morning before taking off - missed it. Stuck in a couple of slow-burners in OSL and ISD, both at/near support. Watching AVL.