Thanks Endless. Half-time round-up:A record profit and all-time...

Thanks Endless.

Half-time round-up:

A record profit and all-time share-price high from ANZ failed to keep the stock market in positive territory as remarks from the Reserve Bank Governor pushed the dollar sharply lower.

At lunchtime the ASX 200 was 13 points or 0.2% weaker at 5428 and on track for just its second loss in 11 sessions. Telecoms +0.5%, IT +0.4% and financials +0.4% were the only sectors to trade higher after ANZ announced an 11% lift in earnings and a dividend pay-out that was larger than expected. Energy -1%, industrials -0.9% and metals & mining -0.8% led the declines as Asian markets turned cautious ahead of tomorrow night's US Federal Reserve policy statement.

"Markets will likely take a wait-and-see-approach over the next couple of days," Tracey Warren, stockbroker at CMC Markets, told Bloomberg. "No change in policy is expected, with all the talk of tapering delayed until at least March next year."

The dollar dived as RBA Governor Glenn Stevens told a conference this morning it was "quite likely that at some point in the future the Australian dollar will be materially lower than it is today". Read more here. The dollar was lately buying 95.46 US cents, down around quarter of a cent and trading above its session lows.

US futures were unmoved by Apple's quarterly profit report, released following the close of regular trade this morning. Dow futures were recently down seven points or less than 0.1%. Shares in Apple were off 1.27% in after-market trade.

Asian markets were mixed. China's Shanghai Composite put on 0.52% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 0.57%. Japan's Nikkei slid 0.09%.

Crude oil futures retreated 24 cents this morning to US$98.38 a barrel. Spot gold eased $2.20 to US$1,350.90 an ounce.


I'd almost forgotten stock prices came in this colour, so rare is it that we see red these days. The market looks well overdue for a pullback, as Mitta wisely noted yesterday, but you would have gone bust many times over shorting prematurely over the last four months. Spec sector seemed a bit subdued this morning I squeezed a pip out of PRU and missed a good exit opportunity in BKN despite it hitting my profit target - whack on knuckles. Was a half pip too bearish in my buy orders for BRL and ADJ. Been a problem lately - damn pullbacks too shallow. BNO slowly coming good from yesterday - still holding a few from higher levels.