Note - from June 24th 2009, this blog has migrated from Blogger to a self-hosted version. Click here to go straight there.
What do you mean "Why is the OzRant up yet, and it's after 6 p.m."... I've been busy doing annoying sums (little affine transformations from price, date space to X,Y space where [0,0] is the top right hand corner). It's been ANNOYING. Still, it's working and as soon as I fix the fonts and write a tidy wrapper, it will be more fun than a NeoTrot getting sacked. I still think psycho hose-beast and possessor of the world's gayest moustache - John Bolton - will be confirmed: all that's required is for sufficient bribes to be offered to the wavering Senators... after all they are up for re-election next year and will require all the money they can muster.
Major Market Indices
The broad market - the ASX All Ordinaries - fell by 10.50 points (-0.26%), finishing at 3999.10 points (let's call it 4000, just to be nice). The index hit an intraday high of 4020.90 20 minutes after the open, and its low of 3988.6 occurred at 2:30 p.m. precisely.
Total volume traded on the ASX was an anaemic 750 million units,
17.2% below its 10-day average (which is dropping again). Of the 483 stocks
in the index, 227 fell while 138 managed a gain. Oddly enough, Volume
was tilted in favour of the gainers by a margin of 1.2:1, with
216.12million shares traded in gainers while 187.19million shares traded in
losers .
The Index that forms the cash basis for the SFE's Share Price Index Futures - the S&P/ASX 200 - fell by 6.30 points (-0.16%), finishing at 4027.80 points.
The "heavy hitters" of the Australian market - the ASX 20 Leaders - fell by 6.70 points (-0.31%), finishing at 2170.60 points. The weakness is New Corpse was the biggest drag on the big-caps. Within the index members, there were 8 that rose, and 11 losers. Total volume in rising issues within the ASX20 amounted to 39.43 while volume in the losers totalled 65.82m units.
The major winners in the "big guns" were -
- Woodside Petroleum (WPL), +$0.40 (1.63%) to $24.90 on volume of 1.52m shares;
- Foster's Group (FGL), +$0.04 (0.76%) to $5.33 on volume of 8.7m shares;
- St George Bank (SGB), +$0.14 (0.58%) to $24.24 on volume of 1.13m shares;
- Westfield Group (WDC), +$0.08 (0.5%) to $16.14 on volume of 5.87m shares; and
- AMP Limited (AMP), +$0.03 (0.44%) to $6.91 on volume of 9.26m shares.
The following stocks made up the biggest percentage losers in the big-guns:
- News Corporation (NWSLV), -$0.52 (2.5%) to $20.25 on volume of 3.01m shares;
- News Corporation (NWS), -$0.49 (2.27%) to $21.11 on volume of 3.51m shares;
- Wesfarmers (WES), -$0.50 (1.32%) to $37.30 on volume of 999,000 shares;
- Coles Myer Ltd. (CML), -$0.09 (1.03%) to $8.65 on volume of 4.94m shares; and
- BHP Billiton (BHP), -$0.16 (0.94%) to $16.89 on volume of 14.59m shares.
At the smaller end of the market's capitalisation scale, the ASX Small Ordinaries Index - the only place where underexploited value exists with any regularity - fell by 11.50 points (-0.51%), finishing at 2224.50 points. The major winners in the "pop-guns" were -
- Mosaic Oil (MOS), +$0.02 (8.11%) to $0.20 on volume of 2.88m shares;
- Perilya (PEM), +$0.06 (7.14%) to $0.90 on volume of 522,000 shares;
- Multiemedia (MUL), +$0.00 (5%) to $0.02 on volume of 8.25m shares;
- Virotec International (VTI), +$0.03 (5%) to $0.63 on volume of 210,000 shares; and
- SP Telemedia (SOT), +$0.08 (4.49%) to $1.86 on volume of 66,000 shares.
The losingest-little-guys for the session were (in order of decline):
- Agenix (AGX), -$0.04 (11.43%) to $0.31 on volume of 594,000 shares;
- Sirtex Medical (SRX), -$0.18 (11.25%) to $1.42 on volume of 7,000 shares; and
- SDI (SDI), -$0.09 (9%) to $0.91 on volume of 128,000 shares;
- Croesus Mining (CRS), -$0.03 (7.06%) to $0.40 on volume of 1.13m shares; and
- Vision Systems (VSL), -$0.08 (6.96%) to $1.07 on volume of 785,000 shares.
| Index Changes | |||||
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
| XAO | All Ordinaries | 3999.1 | -10.5 | -0.26% | 2174.333 |
| XTL | S&P/ASX 20 | 2170.6 | -6.7 | -0.31% | 108.06m |
| XFL | S&P/ASX 50 | 3975.6 | -7.9 | -0.2% | 0 |
| XTO | S&P/ASX 100 | 3278.7 | -4.3 | -0.13% | 0 |
| XJO | S&P/ASX 200 | 4027.8 | -6.3 | -0.16% | 438.33m |
| XKO | S&P/ASX 300 | 4024.9 | -6.8 | -0.17% | 0 |
| XMD | S&P/ASX Mid-Cap 50 | 3930.2 | 9.9 | 0.25% | 0 |
| XSO | S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries | 2224.5 | -11.5 | -0.51% | 134.2m |
All Ordinaries Market Internals
| Market Breadth | |||||
| XAO | XJO | XSO | ASX20 | Market | |
| Advances | 138 | 71 | 56 | 8 | 332 |
| Declines | 227 | 99 | 101 | 11 | 555 |
| Advancing Volume | 216.12m | 188.67m | 46.78m | 39.43 | 353.68 |
| Declining Volume | 187.19m | 163.12m | 50.63m | 65.82 | 290.63 |
S&P/ASX200 GICS Sector Indices
The top sector for the day was Energy which gained 1.19% to 8167.00 points, thanks to the renewed strength in Crude Oil. Eight of the 11 stocks in the sector rose today, and the other 3 fell. Volume was tilted in favour of the gainers by a margin of 3.5:1, with 16.95million shares traded in gainers while 4.81million shares traded in losers. The sector's biggest percentage gainers were -
- Oil Search (OSH), +$0.08 (3.4%) to $2.43 on volume of 8.33m shares;
- Tap Oil (TAP), +$0.05 (2.65%) to $1.94 on volume of 613,000 shares;
- Australian Worldwide Exploration (AWE), +$0.04 (2.41%) to $1.70 on volume of 2.21m shares;
- Roc Oil Company (ROC), +$0.04 (2.25%) to $1.82 on volume of 503,000 shares; and
- Santos (STO), +$0.18 (1.97%) to $9.33 on volume of 2.43m shares.
Second in the sector leadership stakes was Property Trusts which gained 0.64% to 1757.60 points. BORING. The sector leaders were -
- Multiplex Group (MXG), +$0.09 (2.18%) to $4.22 on volume of 4.21m shares;
- DB Rreef Trust (DRT), +$0.02 (1.55%) to $1.31 on volume of 4.84m shares;
- Thakral Holdings Group (THG), +$0.01 (1.3%) to $0.78 on volume of 525,000 shares;
- Commonwealth Property Office Fund (CPA), +$0.02 (1.2%) to $1.27 on volume of 4.01m shares; and
- Mirvac Group (MGR), +$0.05 (1.17%) to $4.33 on volume of 3.25m shares.
The bronze today went to Financials which gained 0.15% to 4822.80 points. The sector was led by
- Multiplex Group (MXG), +$0.09 (2.18%) to $4.22 on volume of 4.21m shares;
- Bank Of Queensland (BOQ), +$0.21 (1.92%) to $11.15 on volume of 345,000 shares;
- DB Rreef Trust (DRT), +$0.02 (1.55%) to $1.31 on volume of 4.84m shares;
- AXA Asia Pacific Holdings (AXA), +$0.06 (1.38%) to $4.41 on volume of 2.24m shares; and
- Thakral Holdings Group (THG), +$0.01 (1.3%) to $0.78 on volume of 525,000 shares.
The worst-performed sector today was Consumer Discretionary which lost 1.43% to 2105.60 points. Of the 29 stocks in the sector, 23 fell while 4 managed a gain. Volume was tilted in favour of the losers by a margin of 8.5:1, with 31.41million shares traded in losers while 3.70million shares traded in gainers. The sector was dragged lower by the fact that New Corpse dropped; it dwarfs everything else in the sector and it dropped a couple of percent.
- G.U.D. Holdings (GUD), -$0.24 (4.11%) to $5.60 on volume of 324,000 shares;
- Fleetwood Corporation (FWD), -$0.25 (3.34%) to $7.24 on volume of 492,000 shares; and
- Repco Corporation (RCL), -$0.08 (3.04%) to $2.55 on volume of 752,000 shares;
- Ten Network Holdings (TEN), -$0.09 (2.63%) to $3.33 on volume of 1.61m shares; and
- News Corporation (NWSLV), -$0.52 (2.5%) to $20.25 on volume of 3.01m shares.
Just in front of last place on the sector table was Information Technology which lost 0.61% to 360.80 points. Of the 7 stocks in the sector, 4 fell while 1 managed a gain (ERG added 1c). Volume was tilted in favour of the losers by a margin of 1.4:1, with 2.73 million shares traded in losers while 1.95 million shares traded in ERG. The sector was pulled down by
- Vision Systems (VSL), -$0.08 (6.96%) to $1.07 on volume of 785,000 shares;
- Infomedia Ltd (IFM), -$0.02 (2.83%) to $0.52 on volume of 489,000 shares;
- Baycorp Advantage (BCA), -$0.07 (2.33%) to $2.93 on volume of 380,000 shares; and
- MYOB (MYO), -$0.01 (0.93%) to $1.07 on volume of 1.08m shares.
| Sector Indices | |||||
| Code | GICS Sector | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
| XEJ | Energy | 8167 | 95.9 | 1.19% | 21.77m |
| XPJ | Property Trusts | 1757.6 | 11.2 | 0.64% | 73.8m |
| XFJ | Financials | 4822.8 | 7.2 | 0.15% | 131.12m |
| XXJ | ASX200 Financials ex Property Trusts | 4883.9 | 0.5 | 0.01% | 63.19m |
| XSJ | Consumer Staples | 5375.8 | -6.8 | -0.13% | 46.82m |
| XHJ | Healthcare | 4751.9 | -7.4 | -0.16% | 8.37m |
| XUJ | Utilities | 4760.9 | -11.5 | -0.24% | 5.26m |
| XNJ | Industrials | 4899.4 | -16.2 | -0.33% | 40.95m |
| XMJ | Materials | 6836.9 | -26.9 | -0.39% | 114.2m |
| XTJ | Telecommunications | 1729 | -10.5 | -0.6% | 19.3m |
| XIJ | Information Technology | 360.8 | -2.2 | -0.61% | 7.04m |
| XDJ | Consumer Discretionary | 2105.6 | -30.5 | -1.43% | 37.68m |
All Ordinaries Major Movers
| All Ords Volume Leaders | |||||
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
| WMR | WMC Resources | 8.13 | 0.16 | 2.01% | 26.25m |
| TLS | Telstra Corporation. | 4.83 | -0.03 | -0.62% | 17.09m |
| BHP | BHP Billiton | 16.89 | -0.16 | -0.94% | 14.59m |
| AMP | AMP Limited | 6.91 | 0.03 | 0.44% | 9.26m |
| FGL | Foster's Group | 5.33 | 0.04 | 0.76% | 8.7m |
| OSH | Oil Search | 2.43 | 0.08 | 3.4% | 8.33m |
| All Ords Percentage Gainers | |||||
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
| BOC | Bougainville Copper | 1.1 | 0.1 | 10% | 92700 |
| MOS | Mosaic Oil | 0.2 | 0.02 | 8.11% | 2.88m |
| PEM | Perilya | 0.9 | 0.06 | 7.14% | 522022 |
| CBH | CBH Resources | 0.31 | 0.02 | 5.17% | 1.74m |
| HTA | Hutchison Telecommunications (Australia) | 0.31 | 0.02 | 5.17% | 663657 |
| All Ords Percentage Decliners | |||||
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
| PBT | Prana Biotechnology | 0.15 | -0.02 | -12.12% | 631200 |
| AGX | Agenix | 0.31 | -0.04 | -11.43% | 593553 |
| MXL | MXL | 0.13 | -0.02 | -10.34% | 574827 |
| CNT | Centamin Egypt | 0.36 | -0.04 | -10% | 221600 |
| SDI | SDI | 0.91 | -0.09 | -9% | 128280 |
Elsewhere in the Region...
Japan's Nikkei 225 lost 37.94 points (-0.34%) to close at 11035.83 points. The index hit a high of 11085.75 in the first 5 minutes of trade, and fell as low as 11019.94 points just before 2 p.m. Tokyo time
The Kiwi Market advanced 4.22 points (0.14%). The index traded in an extremely tight range, with the high of 2954.535 hit at 11 a.m., hot on the heels of the low (2948.366 points) hit at 10 a.m.; a 6 point range is just tedium-on-a-stick.
A total of 26 stocks within the NZSE50 rose, with volume in advancers totalling 19.2million units. Decliners numbered 18, and total volume traded in losers was 8.8million shares. Individual stocks that performed well included...
- Port Of Tauranga (POT), +NZ$0.24 (4.99%) to NZ$5.05 on volume of 30,000 shares;
- AXA Asia Pacific (AXA), +NZ$0.15 (3.26%) to NZ$4.75 on volume of 23,000 shares;
- Mainfreight (MFT), +NZ$0.05 (2.08%) to NZ$2.45 on volume of 31,000 shares;
- Hallenstein Glass (HLG), +NZ$0.07 (1.92%) to NZ$3.72 on volume of 18,000 shares;
- Capital Properties (CNZ), +NZ$0.02 (1.61%) to NZ$1.26 on volume of 146,000 shares; and
- Air New Zealand (AIR), +NZ$0.02 (1.42%) to NZ$1.43 on volume of 485,000 shares.
In contrast to the Australian market, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index opened mildly weaker, dropping to 13719.81 points in the first fifteen minutes of the session. From there, the index marched up almost exactly 200 points in under 2 hours, setting its intraday high at 13919.52 just before they banged the gong and fired off the noonday gun (...to reprimand each inmate, who's in-late). In the post lunch session the Hongkers market hasn't continued its upwards burst, but is holding on to a gain of 115.45 points (0.84%) at 13865 and change.
Within the Hang Seng, all 31 index components rose. Volume in the gainers in Hong Kong's big-cap index totalled 279.4million units, and of course all of it was traded in the winners because there weren't any losers). Individual stocks that contributed to the advance included...
- Li & Fung (0494), +HK$0.35 (2.41%) to HK$14.85 on volume of 7.09m shares;
- CKI Holdings (1038), +HK$0.45 (1.91%) to HK$24.05 on volume of 1.89m shares;
- Henderson Land (0012), +HK$0.60 (1.7%) to HK$35.80 on volume of 5.01m shares;
- China Unicom (0762), +HK$0.10 (1.61%) to HK$6.30 on volume of 10.49m shares;
- SHK Properties (0016), +HK$1.00 (1.37%) to HK$74.00 on volume of 8.67m shares; and
- Wheelock (0020), +HK$0.15 (1.31%) to HK$11.60 on volume of 2.05m shares.
| Regional Indices | |||||
| Country | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
| New Zealand | NZSE50 | 2952.625 | 4.22 | 0.14% | 28.54m |
| Japan | Nikkei 225 | 11035.83 | -37.94 | -0.34% | 65278 |
| Korea | KOSPI | 944.46 | -1.71 | -0.18% | 429942 |
| Singapore | Straits Times | 2146.86 | 9.47 | 0.44% | 0 |
| Hong Kong | Hang Seng | 13865.68 | 115.45 | 0.84% | 287.49m |
| Malaysia | KLSE Comp | 872.51 | 0.53 | 0.06% | 0 |
