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Fridays are renowned for a late-afternoon fade, but today all the damage was done within spitting distance of the starting gate. In fact between 11 a.m. and the close, the Australian market actually gained a point: almost all of the intraday point move in the headline index was achieved in the first hour. In the afternoon there were a couple of attempts for control by the bears, but they amounted to absolutely squat. Again, there was the odd "uptick" right at the close...
Major Market Indices
The broad market - the ASX All Ordinaries - fell by 32.20 points (-0.81%), finishing at 3943.10 points. The index opened at its high for the day (3975.30) and its low of 3930.4 was set at 2:30 p.m. Sydney time.
Total volume traded on the ASX was finally respectable after almost two weeks of tawdry volume. Today it added up to 1.03 billion units, 14.7% above its 10-day average. Of the 483 stocks in the index, 279 fell while 97 managed a gain. Volume was tilted in favour of the losers by a margin of about 6:1, with 528.34 million shares traded in losers while 88.68 million shares traded in the day's gainers.
The Index that forms the cash basis for the SFE's Share Price Index Futures - the S&P/ASX 200 - fell by 28.40 points (-0.71%), finishing at 3983.20 points.
The "heavy hitters" of the Australian market - the ASX 20 Leaders - fell by 19.70 points (-0.91%), finishing at 2153.00 points. Within the index members, there was just one single Top Twenty stock that rose - the other 19 were all losers. Total volume in rising issues within the ASX20 amounted to 4.65 million units, which was swamped by the 196.11 million units that were exchanged in the loser.
The sole winners in the "big guns" was St George Bank (SGB), up +$0.29 (1.18%) to $24.80 on volume of 4.65m shares.
New Corpse was the big drag on the leaders, dropping a couple of percent in the eternal struggle between fair value ($10 in the new figures) and its acutal trading price. Even so, today it had plenty of company in the "Naughty Corner"...
- News Corporation (NWSLV), -$0.45 (2.27%) to $19.35 on volume of 5.53m shares;
- News Corporation (NWS), -$0.43 (2.09%) to $20.11 on volume of 6.93m shares;
- Woodside Petroleum (WPL), -$0.44 (1.85%) to $23.31 on volume of 4.51m shares;
- Telstra Corporation. (TLS), -$0.09 (1.83%) to $4.84 on volume of 22.79m shares; and
- Commonwealth Bank Of Australia. (CBA), -$0.61 (1.66%) to $36.24 on volume of 5.94m shares.
At the smaller end of the market's capitalisation scale, the ASX Small Ordinaries Index fell by 18.60 points (-0.84%), finishing at 2182.60 points. Of the 194 stocks in the index, 119 fell while 43 managed a gain. Volume was tilted in favour of the losers by a margin of 4.0:1, with 117.53 million shares traded in losers while 29.6 million shares traded in gainers. The major winners in the "pop-guns" were -
- Sirtex Medical (SRX), +$0.16 (12.9%) to $1.40 on volume of 19,000 shares;
- Pacific Hydro (PHY), +$0.40 (8.57%) to $5.07 on volume of 1.7m shares;
- Sunland Group (SDG), +$0.09 (5.44%) to $1.75 on volume of 2.28m shares;
- Thakral Holdings Group (THG), +$0.03 (3.9%) to $0.80 on volume of 1.43m shares; and
- Sino Gold (SGX), +$0.06 (3.56%) to $1.60 on volume of 210,000 shares.
The losingest-little-guys for the session were (in order of decline):
- Kresta Holdings (KRS), -$0.05 (16.67%) to $0.25 on volume of 3.81m shares;
- Centennial Coal Company (CEY), -$0.43 (8.83%) to $4.44 on volume of 3.73m shares; and
- Ventracor (VCR), -$0.07 (7.65%) to $0.79 on volume of 1.33m shares;
- Giants Reef Mining (GTM), -$0.00 (7.14%) to $0.03 on volume of 19.75m shares; and
- Capral Aluminium (CAA), -$0.13 (7.1%) to $1.70 on volume of 124,000 shares.
| Index Changes | |||||
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
| XAO | All Ordinaries | 3943.1 | -32.2 | -0.81% | 2125.358 |
| XTL | S&P/ASX 20 | 2153 | -19.7 | -0.91% | 200.76m |
| XFL | S&P/ASX 50 | 3941.5 | -25.1 | -0.63% | 0 |
| XTO | S&P/ASX 100 | 3244.1 | -22.7 | -0.69% | 0 |
| XJO | S&P/ASX 200 | 3983.2 | -28.4 | -0.71% | 585.07m |
| XKO | S&P/ASX 300 | 3979.4 | -28.4 | -0.71% | 0 |
| XMD | S&P/ASX Mid-Cap 50 | 3843.7 | -41.6 | -1.07% | 0 |
| XSO | S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries | 2182.6 | -18.6 | -0.84% | 184.52m |
All Ordinaries Market Internals
[]
| Market Breadth | |||||
| XAO | XJO | XSO | ASX20 | Market | |
| Advances | 97 | 47 | 43 | 1 | 305 |
| Declines | 279 | 133 | 119 | 19 | 614 |
| Advancing Volume | 88.68m | 77.75m | 29.6m | 4.65 | 280.79 |
| Declining Volume | 528.34m | 448.28m | 117.53m | 196.11 | 622.62 |
S&P/ASX200 GICS Sector Indices
The top sector for the day - in fact the only sector to eke out a gain - was Utilities. It posted a gain of 1.49% to 4875.30 points - which is pretty respectable given the general malaise. Of the 8 stocks in the sector, 4 rose while 3 fell (Australian Pipeline Trust was unchanged). Volume was tilted in favour of the gainers by a margin of 2.8:1, with 3.84 million shares traded in gainers compared to 1.35 million shares traded in losers. The sector was helped by
- Pacific Hydro (PHY), +$0.40 (8.57%) to $5.07 on volume of 1.7m shares;
- Alinta (ALN), +$0.18 (1.98%) to $9.25 on volume of 544,000 shares;
- Australian Gas Light Company (AGL), +$0.22 (1.56%) to $14.32 on volume of 1.37m shares; and
- Energy Developments (ENE), +$0.02 (0.54%) to $3.71 on volume of 228,000 shares.
As I mentioned, no other sector got above the gain line; as such I am spared from preparing bullet lists for second and third places, which were Energy (which lost -0.49% to 7950.70 points) and ASX200 Financials ex Property Trusts (which lost -0.52% to 4931.70 points).
The worst-performed sector today was Information Technology which took a 2.10% dump, closing at 344.90 points. There are only 7 stocks in the sector, and of these 5 fell while 2 managed a gain (the gainers were MYOB up 2c to $1.07 and Infomedia up a cent to $0.52). Volume was tilted in favour of the losers by a margin of just over 12:1, with 11.32 million shares traded in losers while 940 thousand shares were traded in the aforementioned gainers. The sector was dragged lower by
- Computershare (CPU), -$0.20 (3.85%) to $5.00 on volume of 7.79m shares;
- ERG (ERG), -$0.01 (1.96%) to $0.25 on volume of 3.07m shares;
- IRESS Market Technology (IRE), -$0.05 (1.25%) to $3.95 on volume of 96,000 shares;
- Baycorp Advantage (BCA), -$0.03 (1.03%) to $2.88 on volume of 189,000 shares; and
- Vision Systems (VSL), -$0.01 (0.45%) to $1.11 on volume of 169,000 shares.
Just in front of last place on the sector table was the 2-stock Telecommunications which lost 1.46% to 1733.50 points. In other words, Telstra fell. The entire sector in its full glorious display looked like this:
- Telstra Corporation. (TLS), -$0.09 (1.83%) to $4.84 on volume of 22.79m shares; and
- Telecom Corporation Of New Zealand (TEL), +$0.05 (0.89%) to $5.67 on volume of 513,000 shares.
| Sector Indices | |||||
| Code | GICS Sector | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
| XUJ | Utilities | 4875.3 | 71.7 | 1.49% | 5.28m |
| XEJ | Energy | 7950.7 | -39.4 | -0.49% | 25.12m |
| XXJ | ASX200 Financials ex Property Trusts | 4931.7 | -26 | -0.52% | 104.83m |
| XFJ | Financials | 4856.3 | -26.4 | -0.54% | 182.37m |
| XSJ | Consumer Staples | 5317.5 | -31.1 | -0.58% | 43.74m |
| XPJ | Property Trusts | 1752.5 | -10.4 | -0.59% | 87.75m |
| XHJ | Healthcare | 4659.6 | -30.6 | -0.65% | 7.15m |
| XNJ | Industrials | 4790 | -39.2 | -0.81% | 48.62m |
| XDJ | Consumer Discretionary | 2056.5 | -18.7 | -0.9% | 46.56m |
| XMJ | Materials | 6547.7 | -68.6 | -1.04% | 173.56m |
| XTJ | Telecommunications | 1733.5 | -25.7 | -1.46% | 23.3m |
| XIJ | Information Technology | 344.9 | -7.4 | -2.1% | 12.25m |
All Ordinaries Major Movers
| All Ords Volume Leaders | |||||
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
| BHP | BHP Billiton | 16.04 | -0.1 | -0.62% | 42.24m |
| PPX | Paperlinx | 2.8 | -1.02 | -26.7% | 29.87m |
| TLS | Telstra Corporation. | 4.84 | -0.09 | -1.83% | 22.79m |
| ANZ | Australia And New Zealand Banking Group | 21.6 | -0.2 | -0.92% | 16.92m |
| NAB | National Australia Bank | 29.09 | -0.39 | -1.32% | 13.74m |
| WMR | WMC Resources | 7.92 | -0.04 | -0.5% | 13.02m |
| All Ords Percentage Gainers | |||||
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
| PHY | Pacific Hydro | 5.07 | 0.4 | 8.57% | 1.7m |
| OMI | Occupational & Medical Innovations | 0.64 | 0.04 | 6.67% | 108235 |
| SDG | Sunland Group | 1.75 | 0.09 | 5.44% | 2.28m |
| THG | Thakral Holdings Group | 0.8 | 0.03 | 3.9% | 1.43m |
| SGX | Sino Gold | 1.6 | 0.06 | 3.56% | 209730 |
| All Ords Percentage Decliners | |||||
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
| SSS | Sam's Seafood Holdings | 0.51 | -0.43 | -45.74% | 113331 |
| PPX | Paperlinx | 2.8 | -1.02 | -26.7% | 29.87m |
| KRS | Kresta Holdings | 0.25 | -0.05 | -16.67% | 3.81m |
| BOC | Bougainville Copper | 0.79 | -0.16 | -16.4% | 102412 |
| UNW | Unwired Group | 0.32 | -0.06 | -15.79% | 1.28m |
Elsewhere in the Region...
Japan's Nikkei 225 was closed for Greenery Day - and is also closed for Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday of next week for Golden Week. It's open on Monday though.
The Kiwi Market advanced 14.32 points (0.48%) at 2982.646 points. After dipping to 2966.294 during a squishy opening hour, the Kiwi market found its feet and rallied for most of the remainder of the session, setting its session high at 2986.469 with a half-hour left in the day.
A total of 15 stocks within the NZSE50 rose, with volume in advancers totalling 14.2 million units. Decliners numbered 25, and total volume traded in losers was 6.3 million shares. So despite a headline gain, the internals of the Kiwi market looked less-than-salubrious. Individual stocks that led the percentage gainers list:
- Feltex Carpets (FTX), +NZ$0.04 (6.15%) to NZ$0.69 on volume of 610,000 shares;
- Sky Network Television (SKY), +NZ$0.20 (3.13%) to NZ$6.60 on volume of 58,000 shares;
- NGC Holdings (NGC), +NZ$0.08 (2.45%) to NZ$3.34 on volume of 1.21m shares;
- Contact Energy (CEN), +NZ$0.17 (2.45%) to NZ$7.12 on volume of 304,000 shares;
- Promina Group (PMN), +NZ$0.10 (1.89%) to NZ$5.40 on volume of 53,000 shares; and
- Fletcher Building (FBU), +NZ$0.08 (1.31%) to NZ$6.20 on volume of 842,000 shares.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng index is down a sharpish 99.71 points (-0.72%) at lunchtime. The index opened promisingly, rallying about 40 points in the first ten minutes of the session, eventually hitting its session high of 13868.6 after less than 20 minutes of trade. From there it went all sour, and before midday the index had tested 13800: the low of 13801.18 was registered at about 11:55 a.m. - and closed for the luncheon interval at 13809.71 points.
Within the Hang Seng, 5 index components rose, while 23 stocks fell. Volume in the gainers in Hong Kong's big-cap index totalled 25.4 million units, which was swamped by total volume traded in losers which was 104 million shares. Individual stocks that contributed to the decline included...
- CNOOC (0883), -HK$0.13 (2.89%) to HK$4.20 on volume of 38.28m shares;
- Cosco Pacific (1199), -HK$0.35 (2.03%) to HK$16.85 on volume of 8.43m shares;
- Denway Motors (0203), -HK$0.05 (1.85%) to HK$2.65 on volume of 8.52m shares;
- PCCW (0008), -HK$0.08 (1.62%) to HK$4.55 on volume of 6.58m shares;
- China Unicom (0762), -HK$0.10 (1.57%) to HK$6.25 on volume of 3.26m shares; and
- Li & Fung (0494), -HK$0.20 (1.32%) to HK$14.95 on volume of 2.14m shares.
| Regional Indices | |||||
| Country | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
| New Zealand | NZSE50 | 2982.646 | 14.32 | 0.48% | 23.59m |
| Japan | Nikkei 225 | 11008.9 | 3.48 | 0.03% | 105619 |
| Korea | KOSPI | 911.3 | -6.43 | -0.7% | 321404 |
| Singapore | Straits Times | 2129.62 | -10.62 | -0.5% | 0 |
| Hong Kong | Hang Seng | 13809.71 | -99.71 | -0.72% | 139.93m |
| Malaysia | KLSE Comp | 877.58 | 3.73 | 0.43% | 0 |
