ASX flat as major miners, banks retreat
AUSTRALIAN shares have closed the week marginally lower after a seesaw day.
The benchmark S&P/ ASX200 index was down 4.4 points, or 0.07 per cent, to 6175.2 points at 1615 AEDT on Friday, while the broader All Ordinaries was down 1.7 points, or 0.03 per cent, at 6265.1.
“It’s lacklustre, jumping in and out of positive and negative territory,” said Evan Lucas, chief market strategist at InvestSMART in Melbourne.
For the week the ASX closed 0.46 per cent lower, after three weeks of gains. The mining sector led decliners, collectively closing 1.03 per cent lower after copper prices dropped overnight when industrial output in top metals consumer China fell to a 17year low.
BHP was down 1.83 per cent, Fortescue Metals down 1.22 per cent and Rio Tinto down 0.13 per cent.
A dip in the gold price overnight left miners of the yellow metal in the dumps, with Newcrest down 1.90 per cent, Northern Star down 3.63 per cent and Evolution Mining down 1.62 per cent.
Elsewhere, the big four banks were mostly down, with only NAB edging up 0.56 per cent. ANZ was down 1.01 per cent, Commonwealth Bank down 0.85 per cent and Westpac down 0.45 per cent.
Industrial stocks were the biggest gainers, up a collective 0.74 per cent.
Earthmoving equipment rental company Emeco Hold- ings was the biggest gainer on the ASX, up 6.4 per cent to $2.16, a two-week high. Retail Food Group was down 13.51 per cent at a fresh all-time low of 16c after a parliamentary inquiry on Thursday recommended it be investigated by a trio of regulators.
Chinese-focused retailer AuMake was up five per cent after it announced it had added four new stores in Australia and New Zealand.
Santos was up one per cent, Woodside Petroleum up 0.86 per cent and Beach Energy up 0.48 per cent after Brent crude hit a four-month peak of $US68.14 a barrel.
Mr Lucas said it was interesting the oil producers hadn’t seen a bigger bump, and it indicated the markets had already priced in higher crude prices.
He also noted that bond yields have been falling even as the ASX200 has been rising, indicating people are buying bonds.
Yesterday, Australian 10year bond bond rates rose 0.25 per cent, while five-year rose 0.71 per cent.
“The bond market is suggesting risk on the horizon,” Mr Lucas said, yet equities are still rising. “Who’s right?”
The Aussie dollar is buying 70.84 US cents, from 70.62 US cents on Thursday.