the asx ends the week on a positive note 2232452015
RBA Governor Glenn Stevens sounds upbeat in his comments before the House of Representatives
The Australian stock market on Friday was up a marginal half per cent even though globally stock markets were weak due to the Fed’s cautionary note on global growth, particularly the implications from China. However, the local bourse was happy to note RBA Governor Glenn Stevens’ positive outlook for the economy cited in his comments before the House of Representatives. Banks supported the market’s advance, though energy and mining dragged.
Indices and sectors
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 rose 23.7 points, or 0.5 per cent, and closed at 5,170.5, while the broader All Ordinaries index was up 23.1 points, or 0.4 per cent, at 5,194.3.
The top gaining sectors included industrials (+1.19 per cent), telecommunications (+1.07 per cent), consumer discretionary (+0.81 per cent), utilities (+0.67 per cent), information technology (+0.64 per cent) and financials (+0.59 per cent). Energy (-1.58 per cent) was the only sector to end in the red.
Stocks
Energy was the worst performing sector on Friday. Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX:WPL) fell 0.87 per cent to AU$29.69, Santos Ltd (ASX:STO) was down 5 per cent to AU$4.75, Oil Search Limited (ASX:OSH) dipped 1.06 per cent to AU$7.49 and Origin Energy Ltd (ASX:ORG) lost 3.42 per cent to AU$7.06.
The big miners also ended in negative territory. BHP Billiton Limited (ASX:BHP) fell 0.77 per cent to AU$24.46, Rio Tinto Limited (ASX:RIO) declined 1.44 per cent to AU$51.26 and Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX:FMG) slumped 1.44 per cent to AU$2.06. Gold producer Newcrest Mining Limited (ASX:NCM) was the third biggest gainer on the S&P/ASX 200, jumping 6.94 per cent to AU$12.63. On the other hand, uranium miner Paladin Energy Ltd (ASX:PDN) was the top loser on the S&P/ASX 200, falling over 7 per cent to AU$0.195.
The big banks all ended higher by varying amounts. National Australia Bank Ltd. (ASX:NAB) gained 0.42 per cent to AU$31.06, Westpac Banking Corp (ASX:WBC) jumped 1.28 per cent to AU$31.75, Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX:CBA) was up 0.32 per cent to AU$75.83 and Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ASX:ANZ) closed higher by 0.78 per cent at AU$28.40.
The telecom counters did well too. Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX:TLS) gained over 1 per cent to close at AU$5.65, M2 Group Ltd (ASX:MTU) was up 0.58 per cent at AU$8.73 and TPG Telecom Ltd (ASX:TPM) shot up 1.90 per cent to AU$10.18.
Consumer retail ended mixed. Woolworths Limited (ASX:WOW) closed up 0.49 per cent at AU$24.82, Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX:WES), the owner of supermarket chain Coles, was flat at AU$39.20 and Caltex Australia Limited (ASX:CTX) gained 0.31 per cent to close at AU$31.96. However, Myer Holdings Ltd (ASX:MYR) was down 1.69 per cent to AU$0.88 and Metcash Limited (ASX:MTS) plunged 3.33 per cent to AU$1.02.
Both the airlines lost ground. Virgin Australia Holdings Ltd (ASX:VAH) slipped 2.15 per cent to AU$0.46 and Qantas Airways Limited (ASX:QAN) fell over 1 per cent to AU$3.60.
Data analysis and credit risk information company Veda Group Ltd (ASX:VED) shot up a massive 31.33 per cent to close at AU$2.62 after the company announced that it had received a buyout offer from consumer credit reporting agency Equifax Inc. (NYSE:EFX) at AU$2.70 per share, which values Veda at about AU$2.3 billion. The company was the top gainer on the S&P/ASX 200.
Self-storage company National Storage REIT (ASX:NSR) shot up 8.78 per cent to AU$1.61 and was the second-biggest gainer on the S&P/ASX 200.
Economic news, currency and market outlook
According to analysts, the Sydney real estate market is slowing down considering auction clearance rates that have plunged to the lowest in three years, ABC said. The auction clearance rate last Saturday fell to 72.4 per cent from about 90 per cent in May, according to statistics from the Domain Group. "I guess the super energy of the Sydney market has now passed,” said Domain senior economist Dr. Andrew Wilson. “The price growth that was recorded this year and over the last two years was unsustainable given particularly that interest rates have been flat for the last four months."
Glenn Stevens, RBA Governor to the House of Representatives: “The economy is growing, albeit not as fast as we would like, the adjustment to the decline in the terms of trade is well advanced, and non-mining activity is improving rather than deteriorating. If the latter trend continues, it is credible to think that we can achieve better output growth, particularly as we reach the later phases of the decline in mining investment.”
Over the weekend, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull reshuffled his cabinet, replacing Treasurer Joe Hockey with Scott Morrison.
On Wall Street on Friday, stocks plunged after investors took note of the Fed’s warning on the global economic outlook. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 290.16 points (-1.74 per cent) to end at 16,384.58. The S&P 500 gave up 32.17 points (-1.62 per cent) to 1,958.03, and the NASDAQ composite fell 1.36 per cent to 4,827.23.
The Australian dollar is trading weaker following the ‘good news is bad news’ syndrome in the context of the US Fed’s decision not to lift interest rates. At 06:30 am this morning (AEST) the Australian dollar was trading at 71.81 US cents, down from 72.28 US cents on Friday.
The Australian stock market is likely to open lower this morning given that the December ASX SPI200 Index (AP) Future contract last traded lower by 76 points at 5072, reflecting the sizeable losses on Wall Street Friday.
