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The broad market - the ASX All Ordinaries (XAO) - fell by 7.90 points (-0.18%), finishing at 4317.30 points. The index hit an intraday high of 4325.50 (4325-ish) just before midday, and its low at 4300.7 (4300-ish) was touched just under 3 hours later. It was only a typical index-arb push at the close that enabled a close above 4350 on the ASX200 - that sort fo shenanigans still prevails.
Speaking of shenangians, long-time readers will remember my various fulminations about broker depth in the Australian market. By 'broker depth' I mean the ability to see which broker is behind which order in the market depth for domestic stocks. Information like this has been available for US stocks or five years, and is useful. In Australia, it had been deliberately withheld from individuals, and was only available to brokers (and of course, their institutional fellow-travellers).
In my 'black-letter' reading of the Corporations Law, that meant that anyone who got that information was using 'price-sensitive informaiton which was not publicly available', which was a word-for-word contravention of the 'insider trading' sections of the Corporations Act.
Well (and this is old news now, butt I thought I would mention it), the ASX has finally decided that this information asymmetry should be drawn to a conclusion... but what have they done? Have they permitted 'broker depth' to be transmitted to the simpletons who pay the broker's car-lease payments?
Not on your life. Instead, they are switching off on the entire datastream... in other words, their view is "if our members can't have it as a private plaything, then nobody can have it".
That is a confession that
- broker depth provides useful information about market positioning; and
- to permit its distribution to non-institutional investors would remove a specific informational advantage.
It's just another piece of evidence - as if more was needed - as to how grubby the broker's credo really is: they still view ther equities market as their domain, and will try and retain as many of the old-fashioned informational privileges as possible. They refuse to believe that they are just a trade union of tram conductors; they get to clip your ticket for no reason other than restrictive trade practices which prevent competition.
But back to the markets....
Total volume traded on the ASX was just under 900 million units, 11.5% below its 10-day average. Of the 485 stocks in the All Ords index, 186 fell while 159 managed a gain. Volume was tilted in favour of the losers by a margin of 1.2:1, with 253.28million shares traded in losers while 213.47million 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 (XJO) - fell by 7.10 points (-0.16%), finishing at 4357.20 points; as I said above, only a last-minute push enabled the thing to close above 4350. With the US market trying to keep its head above water (and a 'relief rally' very likely after no large-scale damage over the weekend) it's clear some SPI-punters are betting on a bounce tomorrow.
The "heavy hitters" of the Australian market - the ASX 20 Leaders (XTL) - fell by 4.60 points (-0.20%), finishing at 2339.20 points. Within the index members, there were 8 that rose, and 10 losers. Total volume in rising issues within the ASX20 amounted to 49.22m shares while volume in the losers totalled 63.77m units.
The major winners in the "big guns" were -
- St George Bank (SGB), +$0.280 (1.05%) to $27.000 on volume of 1.96m shares;
- Telstra Corporation (TLS), +$0.040 (0.98%) to $4.140 on volume of 27.07m shares;
- Australia And New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ), +$0.170 (0.72%) to $23.620 on volume of 6.39m shares;
- QBE Insurance Group (QBE), +$0.100 (0.57%) to $17.760 on volume of 2.3m shares; and
- Woolworths (WOW), +$0.070 (0.44%) to $15.930 on volume of 2.53m shares.
The following stocks made up the biggest percentage losers in the big-guns:
- Rio Tinto (RIO), -$1.550 (2.78%) to $54.270 on volume of 3.46m shares;
- Amcor (AMC), -$0.13 (1.97%) to $6.47 on volume of 3.84m shares;
- Wesfarmers (WES), -$0.59 (1.63%) to $35.70 on volume of 1.66m shares;
- BHP Billiton (BHP), -$0.26 (1.3%) to $19.77 on volume of 19.75m shares; and
- Alumina (AWC), -$0.07 (1.24%) to $5.57 on volume of 5.85m shares.
At the smaller end of the market's capitalisation scale, the ASX Small Ordinaries Index (XSO) rose by 3.00 points (0.12%), finishing at 2496.30 points. The major winners in the "pop-guns" were -
- Multiemedia (MUL), +$0.002 (13.33%) to $0.017 on volume of 60.97m shares;
- Croesus Mining (CRS), +$0.020 (5.88%) to $0.360 on volume of 1.42m shares; and
- GRD (GRD), +$0.090 (3.72%) to $2.510 on volume of 335,000 shares; and
- Sirtex Medical (SRX), +$0.070 (3.43%) to $2.110 on volume of 76,000 shares; and
- Record Investments (RCD), +$0.230 (3.31%) to $7.170 on volume of 1.97m shares.
The losingest-little-guys for the session were (in order of decline):
- Norwood Abbey (NAL), -$0.060 (10.34%) to $0.520 on volume of 279,000 shares;
- AAV (AVV), -$0.080 (7.41%) to $1.000 on volume of 57,000 shares; and
- Emperor Mines (EMP), -$0.020 (7.14%) to $0.260 on volume of 20,000 shares; and
- Psivida (PSD), -$0.045 (5.26%) to $0.810 on volume of 224,000 shares; and
- Western Areas (WSA), -$0.090 (4.62%) to $1.860 on volume of 260,000 shares.
Index Changes
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| XAO | All Ordinaries | 4317.3 | -7.9 | -0.18% | 543.18m |
| XTL | S&P/ASX 20 | 2339.2 | -4.6 | -0.2% | 112.99m |
| XFL | S&P/ASX 50 | 4264.7 | -9 | -0.21% | 216.32m |
| XTO | S&P/ASX 100 | 3533 | -7 | -0.2% | 320.16m |
| XJO | S&P/ASX 200 | 4357.2 | -7.1 | -0.16% | 400.79m |
| XKO | S&P/ASX 300 | 4352.8 | -7.4 | -0.17% | 0 |
| XMD | S&P/ASX Mid-Cap 50 | 4344.1 | -5.3 | -0.12% | 0 |
| XSO | S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries | 2496.3 | 3 | 0.12% | 177.62m |
All Ordinaries Market Internals
Market Breadth
| ASX20 | XTO | XJO | XAO | XSO | Market | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Advances | 8 | 34 | 79 | 159 | 73 | 395 |
| Declines | 10 | 54 | 84 | 186 | 70 | 505 |
| Advancing Volume | 49.22m | 114.48m | 137.87m | 213.47 | 90.84 | 317.54 |
| Declining Volume | 63.77m | 173.25m | 211.61m | 253.28 | 59.9 | 390.4 |
S&P/ASX200 GICS Sector Indices
The top sector for the day was XTJ Telecommunications which gained 0.97% to 1511.90 points. Both index components rose, but of course only Tesltra really matters in this 2-stock 'index'.
- Telstra Corporation (TLS), +$0.040 (0.98%) to $4.140 on volume of 27.07m shares; and
- Telecom Corporation Of New Zealand (TEL), +$0.050 (0.93%) to $5.430 on volume of 870,000 shares.
Second in the sector leadership stakes was XXJ ASX200 Financials ex Property Trusts which gained 0.31% to 5375.20 points. The sector leaders were -
- Axa Asia Pacific Holdings (AXA), +$0.160 (3.51%) to $4.720 on volume of 1.9m shares;
- Record Investments (RCD), +$0.230 (3.31%) to $7.170 on volume of 1.97m shares;
- Bank Of Queensland (BOQ), +$0.400 (3%) to $13.750 on volume of 399,000 shares;
- Oamps (OMP), +$0.070 (2.3%) to $3.120 on volume of 256,000 shares; and
- Macquarie Bank (MBL), +$1.280 (2.05%) to $63.680 on volume of 1.64m shares.
The bronze today went to XEJ Energy which gained 0.29% to 9491.20 points - trying to bounce after Friday's little bounce in Crude (which I notice is being given back even now... Crude is back under $60 on the NYMEX ACCESS session). The sector was led by
- Caltex Australia (CTX), +$0.600 (3.14%) to $19.700 on volume of 457,000 shares;
- Arc Energy (ARQ), +$0.050 (2.56%) to $2.000 on volume of 151,000 shares;
- Roc Oil Company (ROC), +$0.040 (1.73%) to $2.350 on volume of 841,000 shares;
- Oil Search (OSH), +$0.020 (0.64%) to $3.150 on volume of 7.37m shares; and
- Woodside Petroleum (WPL), +$0.100 (0.33%) to $29.980 on volume of 2.88m shares.
The worst-performed sector today was XIJ Information Technology which lost 1.23% to 411.10 points. The sector was dragged lower by
- Computershare (CPU), -$0.170 (2.7%) to $6.130 on volume of 1.41m shares;
- Vision Systems (VSL), -$0.000 (0%) to $1.710 on volume of 1.03m shares;
- Infomedia Ltd (IFM), -$0.000 (0%) to $0.460 on volume of 158,000 shares;
- ERG (ERG), -$0.000 (0%) to $0.165 on volume of 809,000 shares; and
- Baycorp Advantage (BCA), +$0.010 (0.28%) to $3.560 on volume of 297,000 shares.
Just in front of last place on the sector table was XMJ Materials which lost 1.04% to 7917.60 points. The sector was pulled down by
- Gunns (GNS), -$0.120 (3.93%) to $2.930 on volume of 2.2m shares;
- Rio Tinto (RIO), -$1.550 (2.78%) to $54.270 on volume of 3.46m shares;
- Newcrest Mining (NCM), -$0.470 (2.69%) to $17.010 on volume of 2.39m shares;
- Zinifex (ZFX), -$0.110 (2.3%) to $4.670 on volume of 4.58m shares; and
- Amcor (AMC), -$0.130 (1.97%) to $6.470 on volume of 3.84m shares.
Sector Indices
| Code | GICS Sector | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| XTJ | Telecommunications | 1511.9 | 14.5 | 0.97% | 27.94m |
| XXJ | ASX200 Financials ex Property Trusts | 5375.2 | 16.7 | 0.31% | 57m |
| XEJ | Energy | 9491.2 | 27.8 | 0.29% | 23.82m |
| XFJ | Financials | 5214.9 | 5 | 0.1% | 103.73m |
| XSJ | Consumer Staples | 5648.4 | -4.2 | -0.07% | 29.93m |
| XDJ | Consumer Discretionary | 2201.8 | -2.4 | -0.11% | 23.86m |
| XNJ | Industrials | 4906 | -8.8 | -0.18% | 59.53m |
| XUJ | Utilities | 5047.1 | -9.3 | -0.18% | 3.32m |
| XHJ | Healthcare | 5678.3 | -15.3 | -0.27% | 15.65m |
| XPJ | Property Trusts | 1784.7 | -12.1 | -0.67% | 54.62m |
| XMJ | Materials | 7917.6 | -83.6 | -1.04% | 100.59m |
| XIJ | Information Technology | 411.1 | -5.1 | -1.23% | 3.99m |
All Ordinaries Major Movers
All Ords Volume Leaders
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TLS | Telstra Corporation | 4.14 | 0.04 | 0.98% | 27.07m |
| MIG | Macquarie Infrastructure Group | 3.3 | -0.04 | -1.2% | 20.67m |
| BHP | BHP Billiton | 19.77 | -0.26 | -1.3% | 19.75m |
| BTA | Biota Holdings | 1.74 | -0.52 | -23.01% | 12.66m |
| SEN | Senetas Corporation | 0.52 | 0.07 | 14.44% | 12.29m |
| GSA | Galileo Shopping America Trust | 1.13 | -0.01 | -0.88% | 10.34m |
All Ords Percentage Gainers
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MUL | Multiemedia | 0.017 | 0.002 | 13.33% | 60.97m |
| CRS | Croesus Mining | 0.36 | 0.02 | 5.88% | 1.42m |
| WFL | Willmott Forests | 2 | 0.1 | 5.26% | 72094 |
| SED | Sedimentary Holdings | 0.22 | 0.01 | 4.76% | 628800 |
| AGG | Anglogold Ashanti | 10.9 | 0.4 | 3.81% | 143420 |
All Ords Percentage Decliners
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OMI | Occupational & Medical Innovations | 1.16 | -0.44 | -27.5% | 114811 |
| CBH | CBH Resources | 0.2 | -0.06 | -23.08% | 8.61m |
| BTA | Biota Holdings | 1.74 | -0.52 | -23.01% | 12.66m |
| NAL | Norwood Abbey | 0.52 | -0.06 | -10.34% | 278847 |
| MST | Metal Storm | 0.21 | -0.02 | -8.89% | 707781 |
Elsewhere in the Region...
Regional Indices
| Country | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Zealand | NZSE50 | 3240.886 | -48.08 | -1.46% | 26.02m |
| Japan | Nikkei 225 | 13106.18 | -93.77 | -0.71% | 0 |
| Korea | KOSPI | 1184.6 | 1.12 | 0.09% | 419675 |
| Singapore | Straits Times | 2229.3 | -10.06 | -0.45% | 0 |
| Hong Kong | Hang Seng | 14362.83 | -125.02 | -0.86% | 198.74m |
| Malaysia | KLSE Comp | 905.62 | -3.96 | -0.44% | 0 |
