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Major Market Indices
The broad market - the ASX All Ordinaries - rose by 6.20 points (0.15%), finishing at 4112.40 points. The index hit an intraday high of 4119.50 ten minutes after the open, and its low was posted at 4103 points, at as near to 11:30 a.m. as makes no odds; another little test of 4100, another (manufactured, if you ask me) successful bounce.
As days go, this one was as boring as a beige safari suit, and more infuriating than listening to a NeoTrot for more than five seconds at a time.
Frankly, I don't give a rat's bum whether the market goes up hard or down hard, but it would be nice if the bloody thing went somewhere. My best guess is "down" because the market's priced in "fairly floss and free tickets on the Ferris Wheel" from now until Doomsday (which, thinking back to the NeoTrots, might be coming soon).
Total volume traded on the ASX was 0.98 billion units, 1.8% below its 10-day average; the 10-day average is deader than most Popes (and since there aren't any living Popes, that's pretty dead, n'est-ce pas?).
179 All Ords index members rose, while 167 fell for the day; call that a draw. Volume in losers was 271.10 units which was greater than the 159.53 units traded in advancing stocks.
The Index that forms the cash basis for the SFE's Share Price Index Futures - the S&P/ASX 200 - rose by 8.90 points (0.22%), finishing at 4127.80 points.
The "heavy hitters" of the Australian market - the ASX 20 Leaders - rose by 6.40 points (0.29%), finishing at 2228.90 points. Within the index members, there were 10 that rose, and 10 losers. Total volume in rising issues within the ASX20 amounted to 48.36 while volume in the losers totalled 29.2m units.
The major winners in the "big guns" were -
- Westpac Banking Corporation (WBC), +$0.20 (1.05%) to $19.20 on volume of 3.75m shares;
- Commonwealth Bank Of Australia. (CBA), +$0.35 (0.99%) to $35.66 on volume of 2m shares;
- BHP Billiton (BHP), +$0.16 (0.9%) to $18.00 on volume of 12.42m shares;
- Alumina (AWC), +$0.03 (0.5%) to $6.00 on volume of 3.35m shares; and
- Wesfarmers (WES), +$0.20 (0.49%) to $41.31 on volume of 736,000 shares.
The following stocks made up the biggest percentage losers in the big-guns:
- Woolworths (WOW), -$0.26 (1.59%) to $16.07 on volume of 2.5m shares;
- Amcor (AMC), -$0.07 (0.97%) to $7.18 on volume of 3.41m shares;
- QBE Insurance Group (QBE), -$0.11 (0.74%) to $14.77 on volume of 2.17m shares;
- Woodside Petroleum (WPL), -$0.14 (0.55%) to $25.46 on volume of 1.34m shares; and
- AMP Limited (AMP), -$0.03 (0.43%) to $6.89 on volume of 4.71m shares.
At the smaller end of the market's capitalisation scale, the ASX Small Ordinaries Index rose by a tedious 2.00 points (0.09%), finishing at 2328.50 points. The major winners in the "pop-guns" were -
- Multiemedia (MUL), +$0.002 (9.52%) to $0.023 on volume of 60.46m shares;
- Great Southern Plantations (GTP), +$0.32 (9.36%) to $3.74 on volume of 3.25m shares;
- Norwood Abbey (NAL), +$0.04 (7.95%) to $0.48 on volume of 46,000 shares;
- Genetic Technologies (GTG), +$0.03 (7.79%) to $0.42 on volume of 101,000 shares; and
- Mosaic Oil (MOS), +$0.02 (7.69%) to $0.21 on volume of 8.05m shares.
The losingest-little-guys for the session were (in order of decline):
- Psivida (PSD), -$0.05 (5.56%) to $0.85 on volume of 558,000 shares;
- Ventracor (VCR), -$0.05 (5.43%) to $0.87 on volume of 875,000 shares; and
- Platinum Capital (PMC), -$0.11 (5.26%) to $1.98 on volume of 79,000 shares;
- Consolidated Minerals (CSM), -$0.18 (5.16%) to $3.31 on volume of 1.28m shares; and
- Kresta Holdings (KRS), -$0.02 (5.13%) to $0.37 on volume of 391,000 shares.
| Index Changes | |||||
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
| XAO | All Ordinaries | 4112.4 | 6.2 | 0.15% | 2249.541 |
| XTL | S&P/ASX 20 | 2228.9 | 6.4 | 0.29% | 77.56m |
| XFL | S&P/ASX 50 | 4076.7 | 10 | 0.25% | 0 |
| XTO | S&P/ASX 100 | 3355.6 | 7.1 | 0.21% | 0 |
| XJO | S&P/ASX 200 | 4127.8 | 8.9 | 0.22% | 355.95m |
| XKO | S&P/ASX 300 | 4128.1 | 8.2 | 0.2% | 0 |
| XMD | S&P/ASX Mid-Cap 50 | 3978.1 | 0.8 | 0.02% | 0 |
| XSO | S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries | 2328.5 | 2 | 0.09% | 181.05m |
All Ordinaries Market Internals
| Market Breadth | |||||
| XAO | XJO | XSO | ASX20 | Market | |
| Advances | 179 | 90 | 78 | 10 | 415 |
| Declines | 167 | 82 | 70 | 10 | 449 |
| Advancing Volume | 271.1m | 169.41m | 119.23m | 48.36 | 582.87 |
| Declining Volume | 159.53m | 150.11m | 44.21m | 29.2 | 244.99 |
S&P/ASX200 GICS Sector Indices
The top sector for the day was Utilities which gained 1.07% to 4768.50 points. Of the 8 stocks in the sector, 5 rose while 1 fell. Volume was tilted in favour of the gainers by a margin of 13:10, with 3.04m shares traded in gainers and 2.36m shares traded in losers. The sector was helped by
- Diversified Utility And Energy Trusts (DUE), +$0.11 (4.82%) to $2.39 on volume of 1.49m shares;
- Energy Developments (ENE), +$0.09 (2.27%) to $4.05 on volume of 221,000 shares;
- Alinta (ALN), +$0.05 (0.56%) to $8.92 on volume of 129,000 shares;
- Australian Pipeline Trust (APA), +$0.01 (0.27%) to $3.75 on volume of 168,000 shares; and
- Pacific Hydro (PHY), +$0.01 (0.22%) to $4.48 on volume of 1.03m shares.
Second in the sector leadership stakes was Materials which gained 0.52% to 7131.50 points. Of the 37 stocks in the sector, 20 rose while 13 fell. Volume was tilted in favour of the gainers by a margin of 18:10, with 44.68m shares traded in gainers as compared with 24.31million shares traded in the day's duds. The sector leaders were -
- Great Southern Plantations (GTP), +$0.32 (9.36%) to $3.74 on volume of 3.25m shares;
- Centennial Coal Company (CEY), +$0.24 (5.03%) to $5.01 on volume of 2.01m shares;
- Excel Coal (EXL), +$0.20 (2.7%) to $7.60 on volume of 344,000 shares;
- Capral Aluminium (CAA), +$0.05 (2.54%) to $2.02 on volume of 95,000 shares; and
- Kingsgate Consolidated. (KCN), +$0.05 (2.24%) to $2.28 on volume of 330,000 shares.
The bronze today went to ASX200 Financials ex Property Trusts which gained 0.39% to 4903.10 points. Of the 27 stocks in the sector, 14 rose while 9 fell. Volume was tilted in favour of the losers by a margin of 11:10, with 23.48million shares traded in losers while 22.04million shares traded in gainers. The sector was led by
- Bank Of Queensland. (BOQ), +$0.41 (3.98%) to $10.71 on volume of 448,000 shares;
- Bendigo Bank (BEN), +$0.31 (3.34%) to $9.59 on volume of 156,000 shares;
- HHG Plc (HHG), +$0.03 (1.69%) to $1.51 on volume of 5.88m shares;
- Suncorp-Metway. (SUN), +$0.29 (1.47%) to $20.02 on volume of 1.36m shares; and
- IOOF Holdings (IFL), +$0.10 (1.45%) to $6.99 on volume of 49,000 shares.
The worst-performed sector today was Consumer Discretionary which lost 0.45% to 2258.20 points. Of the 29 stocks in the sector, 16 fell while 10 managed a gain. Volume was tilted in favour of the losers by a margin of 17:10, with 13.46million shares traded in losers while 8.00million shares traded in gainers. Reality is that the sector seldom rises unless New Corpse rises, and today New Corpse didn't rise (both gobbets of NWS fell by 7c a pop). Apart from the Murdoch MiniTru NeoTrot echo-chamber, the sector got negative contributions from
- Repco Corporation (RCL), -$0.08 (2.52%) to $3.10 on volume of 545,000 shares;
- JB Hi-Fi (JBH), -$0.09 (2.44%) to $3.60 on volume of 1.01m shares; and
- APN News & Media (APN), -$0.12 (2.43%) to $4.81 on volume of 320,000 shares;
- Pacifica Group (PBB), -$0.06 (2.41%) to $2.43 on volume of 1.03m shares; and
- Southern Cross Broadcasting (Australia) (SBC), -$0.28 (2.1%) to $13.06 on volume of 116,000 shares.
Just in front of last place on the sector table was Property Trusts which lost 0.34% to 1733.60 points. Boring... Property Trusts (NTA and div... but boring as bat-squit). The sector was pulled down by
- Thakral Holdings Group (THG), -$0.02 (2.65%) to $0.74 on volume of 180,000 shares;
- Investa Property Group (IPG), -$0.03 (1.46%) to $2.03 on volume of 3.3m shares; and
- Multiplex Group (MXG), -$0.06 (1.4%) to $4.24 on volume of 6.38m shares;
- ING Office Fund (IOF), -$0.02 (1.23%) to $1.20 on volume of 533,000 shares; and
- ING Industrial Fund (IIF), -$0.02 (0.99%) to $2.00 on volume of 968,000 shares.
| Sector Indices | |||||
| Code | GICS Sector | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
| XUJ | Utilities | 4768.5 | 50.5 | 1.07% | 6.21m |
| XMJ | Materials | 7131.5 | 36.8 | 0.52% | 81.3m |
| XXJ | ASX200 Financials ex Property Trusts | 4903.1 | 18.9 | 0.39% | 47.51m |
| XNJ | Industrials | 5098.2 | 18.7 | 0.37% | 37.66m |
| XTJ | Telecommunications | 1792.8 | 5.1 | 0.29% | 16.82m |
| XHJ | Healthcare | 4926.1 | 14 | 0.29% | 9.84m |
| XFJ | Financials | 4822.9 | 10.9 | 0.23% | 114.96m |
| XIJ | Information Technology | 369.2 | 0.8 | 0.22% | 3.49m |
| XEJ | Energy | 8403.4 | -11.1 | -0.13% | 15.51m |
| XSJ | Consumer Staples | 5621.1 | -8.9 | -0.16% | 45.59m |
| XPJ | Property Trusts | 1733.6 | -5.9 | -0.34% | 71.32m |
| XDJ | Consumer Discretionary | 2258.2 | -10.2 | -0.45% | 23.89m |
All Ordinaries Major Movers
| All Ords Volume Leaders | |||||
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
| HRR | Heron Resources | 0.42 | 0.05 | 12.16% | 16.88m |
| TLS | Telstra Corporation. | 5.04 | 0.02 | 0.4% | 15.18m |
| BHP | BHP Billiton | 18 | 0.16 | 0.9% | 12.42m |
| MTT | Metcash Trading | 3.27 | 0.1 | 3.15% | 11.39m |
| MIG | Macquarie Infrastructure Group | 3.79 | 0.07 | 1.88% | 9.64m |
| BJT | Babcock & Brown Japan Property Trust | 1.15 | -0.04 | -2.97% | 9.31m |
| All Ords Percentage Gainers | |||||
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
| MXL | MXL | 0.13 | 0.02 | 18.18% | 3.61m |
| AAT | Autron Corporation | 0.19 | 0.03 | 15.15% | 271575 |
| CBH | CBH Resources | 0.32 | 0.03 | 10.34% | 5.25m |
| MUL | Multiemedia | 0.023 | 0.002 | 9.52% | 60.46m |
| BTA | Biota Holdings | 0.52 | 0.05 | 9.47% | 847359 |
| All Ords Percentage Decliners | |||||
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
| PLT | Polartechnics | 0.27 | -0.04 | -11.67% | 287739 |
| ABI | Ambri | 0.15 | -0.01 | -6.25% | 395633 |
| PSD | Psivida | 0.85 | -0.05 | -5.56% | 557974 |
| TMO | Tomato Technologies | 0.69 | -0.04 | -5.48% | 129837 |
| VCR | Ventracor | 0.87 | -0.05 | -5.43% | 874931 |
Elsewhere in the Region...
Japan's Nikkei 225 was down a modest 16.17 points (-0.14%) at 11810.99 points as this Rant was being prepared. The index hit a high of 11848.49 right at the open, and dipped below 11800 just before lunch before getting back above that level going into the break. After lunch it dropped hard again, and fell to its low of 11757.87 points before a little rebound back above 11800.
The Kiwi Market declined 8.33 points (-0.27%) to close at 3055.42 points. The index hit a high of 3073.077 just before 9:30 Auckland time, and from there it fell consistently throughout the session, setting its low at 3050.45 points a little over twenty minutes before the close.
A total of 11 stocks within the NZSE50 rose, with volume in advancers totalling 3.5million units. Decliners numbered 24, and total volume traded in losers was 22.9million shares. Individual stocks that were a but suck included...
- Feltex Carpets (FTX), -NZ$0.05 (5.43%) to NZ$0.87 on volume of 994,000 shares;
- Axa Asia Pacific (AXA), -NZ$0.18 (3.91%) to NZ$4.42 on volume of 12,000 shares;
- Rubicon Limited O (RBC), -NZ$0.03 (2.97%) to NZ$0.98 on volume of 254,000 shares;
- Baycorp Advantage (BCA), -NZ$0.09 (2.85%) to NZ$3.07 on volume of 44,000 shares; and
- Tourism Holdings (THL), -NZ$0.05 (2.75%) to NZ$1.77 on volume of 212,000 shares.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng index declined 1.11 points (-0.01%). The index hit a high of 13619.87 (repeat after me... 30 minutes after the open... notice any patterns in today's markets???), then actually did something interesting - it dropped 80 points to 13538.4 points (its session low) in a little over 20 minutes. Wheeeeeee!!! Someone must've moved that blasted pot plant and screwed up the Feng Shui...
Within the Hang Seng, 14 index components rose, while 8 stocks fell. Volume in the gainers in Hong Kong's big-cap index totalled 52.1million units, and total volume traded in losers was 41.6million shares. Individual stocks that contributed to the decline included...
- CNOOC (0883), -HK$0.05 (1.14%) to HK$4.35 on volume of 22.45m shares;
- China Resources (0291), -HK$0.10 (0.91%) to HK$10.85 on volume of 1.05m shares;
- MTR Corporation (0066), -HK$0.10 (0.82%) to HK$12.05 on volume of 562,000 shares;
- Henderson Investments (0097), -HK$0.05 (0.46%) to HK$10.75 on volume of 156,000 shares;
- China Mobile (0941), -HK$0.10 (0.39%) to HK$25.65 on volume of 11.26m shares; and
- SHK Properties (0016), -HK$0.25 (0.35%) to HK$70.50 on volume of 3.36m shares.
| Regional Indices | |||||
| Country | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
| New Zealand | NZSE50 | 3055.415 | -8.33 | -0.27% | 30.59m |
| Japan | Nikkei 225 | 11810.99 | -16.17 | -0.14% | 83005 |
| Korea | KOSPI | 988.9 | 0.9 | 0.09% | 556602 |
| Singapore | Straits Times | 2171.8 | 6.02 | 0.28% | 0 |
| Hong Kong | Hang Seng | 13561.15 | -1.11 | -0.01% | 140.51m |
| Malaysia | KLSE Comp | 861.18 | -0.57 | -0.07% | 0 |
