Thanks Endless. Half-time round-up:Shares bounced off a...

Thanks Endless.

Half-time round-up:

Shares bounced off a seven-week low this morning as traders digested a heavy diet of conflicting economic signals from home and abroad.

At lunchtime the ASX 200 was one point or less than 0.1% weaker at 4925 after earlier touching 4895, its weakest level since early April. Gains in gold stocks +3.8%, financials +1.4% and consumer staples +0.3% helped cushion the index against falls across the rest of the sectors. Metals & mining fell 1.1%, energy 1% and the Small Ordinaries 1.1%.

The market faced a head-spinning volume of economic data from China and Australia this morning. Highlights included:

- China's services sector continued to expand last month but at a fractionally slower pace. The non-manufacturing purchasing managers' index eased to 54.3 last month from 54.5 in April.

- A private measure of Chinese factory activity last month contracted further than first indicated. HSBC's final manufacturing PMI dropped to 49.2 from an initial reading of 49.6. The result contrasted sharply with an improvement in the official Chinese government report released on Saturday, which indicated manufacturing activity continued to expand last month.

- Australian retail sales increased by 0.2% in April, just below expectations.

- Company operating profits surged 3% over the first three months of the year, growing at twice the rate economists anticipated.

- The recent deterioration in the number of vacancies advertised accelerated last month. Job ads declined 2.4%, following a 1.7% drop in April.

- Home values slipped for a second month, down 1.2% last month but still ahead roughly 1% for the year.

- Australian manufacturing activity contracted for a 23rd month, albeit at a slower pace. The AiG index rose 7.1 points last month to 43.8.

The dollar dropped briefly below 96 US cents this morning but was lately little changed from the end of last week, buying 96.22 US cents.

Chinese shares edged higher in choppy trade. The Shanghai Composite was lately up 0.44%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng ahead 0.52% and Japan's Nikkei down 2.21%. Dow futures were recently up 54 points or nearly 0.4%.

Crude oil futures rallied 10 cents this morning to US$91.71 a barrel. Spot gold firmed $5.90 to US$1,394.20 an ounce.


US futures imply traders reckon a lot of Friday's weakness on equity markets was just end-of-month book-squaring. Certainly the late sell-offs appeared remarkably similar in Australia, Europe and the US, with all major markets jagging lower in last-minute or auction trade. The XJO has done pretty well to get where it is today, considering the headwinds this morning. The economic data appeared broadly negative but I guess the reaction is what matters. Hope none here were badly burned by CTR - that's what happens when too many traders crowd the only likely-looking trade of the day. I caught bounces in HVN and CCV, plus a less profitable rebound in BSL. Had hoped for more but the weekend Chinese data cruelled the chance of a big red open.