Note - from June 24th 2009, this blog has migrated from Blogger to a self-hosted version. Click here to go straight there.
I guess I could start out by talking my own book (telling you how just so damn clever declaring Rally.Over in Feb, or telling anyone who would listen about absurdly narrow Corporate spreads way back, or blathering about impending doom due to mortgage-backed securities back in 2004, or advocating buying VIX futures when VIX dipped under 10). But I'm not going to do any of that.
Phew! I hear you say.
No. Although it is tantamount to heresy, there are things that are more important than financial markets (although the very last RantSpy mail before my e-mail got hacked AGAIN... was a medium term short some distance above current levels). I could even discuss how FINALLY the ill-fated (until now) short from 1256 from TWO YEARS AGO (which I never got to revoke... but now I don't need to) is now back in the black.
Oops. I forgot - no TootToots.
So by now you're thinking "Hmmm. Our Beloved GT seems to have the dumbs; what is he on about?"
I am on, Dear Reader, about His Nigness.
I mentioned some time ago that His Very Nigness had very abruptly lost the sight in both eyes. This I declare to be evidence - to the extent that any evidence is necessary - that any Supreme Being that you might postulate, was probably a complete horse's arse. After all, [insert name of invisible friend in the sky] continued to permit Dick 'dick' Cheney to go through live without oozing pus in public, and yet Biggie had to walk around in the dark like a schmuck.
Well, there was obviously a committee meeting in Vanaheim as a result, and they've taken some remedial steps. Dick 'Bob' Cheney is still killing brown babies like there's no tomorrow, sadly. But on the plus side (with a capital 'plus') our new chum Dr Chaudieu has removed the lens from Nig's left eye and declared that the optic nerve and retina are intact and functioning just fine. So The Black Prince has regained some vision - although his near vision is appalling at present and is unlikely to get much better.
It is hard for me to properly relate the effect that Niggie's vision loss had on what passes for the psyche of your beloved correspondent; way back in 2001 I had a brief encounter with Chronic Fatigue which changed my thinking on Alistair Lynch (previously I thought he was a malingerer). Now I delude myself that I understand what it is like for folks with clinical depression. Waking up every day to bad news that feels like it's brand new every morning. Not fun, and not inclined to put a bright start on the day. Add in my tendency to keep annoying Zionists with good DoS skills, and you have a recipe for Absence of Ranting. (Continued issues on that front are the primary reason that none of the links in the Rants will work until next week).
Boy, these are long prefatory remarks - they won't be this long in future. Let the cries ring out down cloister and hall - we are back.
So let's get on with it...
Major Market Indices
Folks who were rushing to get into stocks back above 6000 will be really happy that 5000 is a pretty impressive collection of Pickens (it is two hundred Pickens - converting from jersey numbers to talent, that's an entire team of Daicoses). 5000 it was the only thing that stood in the way of a selling panic this session; not oblivion exactly, but it could have gotten a lot uglier but for 5000 as support. Neither the overall volume, nor the volume internals (market breadth and volume breadth) indicate a cleansing plunge from which a trade-able rally can be constructed... there will be one reasonably soon, and it will be obvious but nobody will want to jump on it. At the moment journalist sentiment is so negative that in the ordinary course of events markets would have rebounded already (journalists are dumber than DavNet investors). When I see it coming I will let folks know...
The broad market - the All Ordinaries (XAO) - dipped reasonably hard, registering a loss of 68.9 points (1.35%), finishing at 5020.5 points. The index hit an intraday high of 5089.4 at 10:00 am (i.e., the previous session's close), while the low for the day was 4999 - set at 12:20 pm Sydney time.
Total volume traded on the ASX was 1.52 billion units, more than 20% below its 10-day average... so tis does not qualify as a selling panic. The ASX's daily listing of all stocks included 1424 different 3-letter FPO's which traded (i.e., had non-zero trade volume). Of these, 340 issues rose, with volume in rising issues totalling 322.6 million units. Conversely (or even contrariwise), 800 stocks were dragged below the Plimsoll line, with aggregate volume traded of 1.06 billion shares.
Of the 495 All Ordinaries components, 117 rose while 320 fell. Volume was tilted in favour of the losers by a margin of 1.8:1, with 295.99 million shares traded in gainers while 533.26 million shares traded in the day's losers.
The Index that forms the cash basis for the SFE's Share Price Index Futures - the S&P/ASX 200 (XJO) - registered a loss of 74.5 points (1.49%), closing out the session at 4937.4 points.
| Name | Close | +/-(%) |
|---|---|---|
| All Ordinaries | 5020.50 | -68.90 (1.4%) |
| ASX 50 | 4838.00 | -79.90 (1.6%) |
| ASX 200 | 4937.40 | -74.50 (1.5%) |
| ASX 300 | 4935.80 | -74.40 (1.5%) |
| ASX Mid-Cap 50 | 4841.50 | -46.80 (1.0%) |
| ASX Small Ordinaries | 2866.00 | -31.10 (1.1%) |
| ASX 20 | 2779.60 | -53.00 (1.9%) |
| ASX 100 | 3997.80 | -62.20 (1.5%) |
The "heavy hitters" of the Australian market - the ASX 20 Leaders (XTL) - registered a loss of 53 points (1.87%), closing out the session at 2779.6 points.
Among the 20 big guns, 4 index components finished to the upside, and of the rest, 16 closed lower for the session. The 20 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 124.67 million units; 4 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 24.38 million shares, while the 16 decliners had volume traded totalling 100.29 million units. The major percentage gainers within the index were
- Qbe Insurance Group Limited (QBE), +$0.41 (1.83%) to $22.76 on volume of 2.4 million shares;
- Foster's Group Limited (FGL), +$0.07 (1.54%) to $4.61 on volume of 8.8 million shares;
- Brambles Limited (BXB), +$0.07 (0.87%) to $8.10 on volume of 4.6 million shares; and
- National Australia Bank Limited (NAB), +$0.09 (0.33%) to $27.69 on volume of 8.6 million shares.
On the less salubrious side of the big-cap fence, the following stocks were the worst-performed within the index:
- Stockland (SGP), -$0.22 (4.47%) to $4.70 on volume of 7.6 million shares;
- Westfield Group (WDC), -$0.6 (3.8%) to $15.18 on volume of 8.2 million shares;
- Wesfarmers Limited (WES), -$1.15 (3.31%) to $33.56 on volume of 1.5 million shares;
- Westpac Banking Corporation (WBC), -$0.61 (3.1%) to $19.08 on volume of 16.9 million shares; and
- BHP Billiton Limited (BHP), -$1.1 (2.75%) to $38.88 on volume of 10.5 million shares.
At the other end of the market-cap spectrum lie the denizens of the ASX Small Ordinaries (XSO) - the place where non-mania excess returns lie. The small end of the market , while still dropping overall, did significantly better than its large-cap counterpart. The Small Ords registered a loss of 31.1 points (1.07%), closing out the session at 2866 points.
Among the stocks that make up the Small Caps index, 46 index components finished to the upside, and of the rest, 139 closed lower for the session.
The 195 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 211.74 million units: volume in the 46 gainers totalling 67.65 million shares, with trade totalling 137.49 million units in the index's 139 declining components. The major percentage gainers within the index were- Macarthur Coal Limited (MCC), +$1.80 (11.76%) to $17.10 on volume of 3.1 million shares;
- Admiralty Resources NL (ADY), +$0.02 (8.11%) to $0.20 on volume of 21.4 million shares;
- GRD Limited (GRD), +$0.06 (7.5%) to $0.86 on volume of 824.3 thousand shares;
- Marion Energy Limited (MAE), +$0.08 (7.31%) to $1.18 on volume of 869.6 thousand shares; and
- Bannerman Resources Limited (BMN), +$0.12 (6.03%) to $2.11 on volume of 271.8 thousand shares.
In the red-zone of the little-stock index, the following list represents the biggest downers (in terms of percentage decline):
- Record Realty (RRT), -$0.01 (18%) to $0.04 on volume of 845 thousand shares;
- Mintails Limited (MLI), -$0.04 (13.73%) to $0.22 on volume of 836.8 thousand shares;
- Jabiru Metals Limited (JML), -$0.06 (11.22%) to $0.44 on volume of 3.2 million shares;
- Resolute Mining Limited (RSG), -$0.17 (10%) to $1.53 on volume of 364.5 thousand shares; and
- Sigma Pharmaceuticals Ltd (SIP), -$0.09 (8.74%) to $0.94 on volume of 3 million shares.
Index Changes
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| XAO | All Ordinaries | 5020.5 | -68.9 | -1.35 | 882.3m |
| XFL | ASX 50 | 4838 | -79.9 | -1.62 | 377.5m |
| XJO | ASX 200 | 4937.4 | -74.5 | -1.49 | 737m |
| XKO | ASX 300 | 4935.8 | -74.4 | -1.48 | 808.5m |
| XMD | ASX Mid-Cap 50 | 4841.5 | -46.8 | -0.96 | 219.3m |
| XSO | ASX Small Ordinaries | 2866 | -31.1 | -1.07 | 211.7m |
| XTL | ASX 20 | 2779.6 | -53 | -1.87 | 124.7m |
| XTO | ASX 100 | 3997.8 | -62.2 | -1.53 | 596.8m |
Market Breadth
| ASX20 | XTO | XJO | XAO | XSO | Market | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Advances | 4 | 28 | 55 | 117 | 46 | 340 |
| Declines | 16 | 69 | 139 | 320 | 139 | 800 |
| Advancing Volume | 24.4m | 219.6m | 259.7m | 296m | 67.7m | 322.6 million |
| Declining Volume | 100.3m | 360.5m | 456.2m | 533.3m | 137.5m | 1.06 billion |
GICS Industry Indices
Among the 11 industry indices, the news was universally negative: not a single sector managed to break into the "Win" column.
Since none of the industry sectors registered a gain for the session, there is no point in burdening ourselves with the internal behaviour of advancing sectors... on to the losers.
The worst-performed index for the session was Information Technology (XIJ), which dipped 16.6 points (3.41%) to 470.4 points. The 2 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 1.97 million units; The 2 decliners had volume traded totalling 1.97 million units, and volume in the lone rising index component was 0 million shares, The major percentage decliners within the index were
- Computershare Limited (CPU), -$0.29 (3.42%) to $8.19 on volume of 1.8 million shares; and
- Iress Market Technology Limited (IRE), -$0.05 (0.82%) to $6.07 on volume of 189.5 thousand shares.
Just missing out on the wooden spoon was Property Trusts (XPJ), which slid 44.1 points (3.34%) to 1277.7 points. The 21 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 170.58 million units; The 17 decliners had volume traded totalling 131.19 million units, and 3 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 35.27 million shares, The major percentage decliners within the index were
- Dexus Property Group (DXS), -$0.11 (8.37%) to $1.21 on volume of 16 million shares;
- Macquarie Countrywide Trust (MCW), -$0.06 (6.55%) to $0.79 on volume of 6.2 million shares;
- Mirvac Group (MGR), -$0.15 (6.28%) to $2.24 on volume of 18.4 million shares;
- GPT Group (GPT), -$0.1 (5.78%) to $1.63 on volume of 40.2 million shares; and
- Macquarie DDR Trust (MDT), -$0.02 (4.69%) to $0.31 on volume of 2.7 million shares.
Third-to-last amongst the sector indices was Consumer Discretionary (XDJ), which slid 35.2 points (2.14%) to 1612.9 points. The 25 stocks which make up the index traded a total of 41.7 million units; The 22 decliners had volume traded totalling 34.93 million units, and 3 index components rose, with rising volume amounting to 6.76 million shares, The major percentage decliners within the index were
- Harvey Norman Holdings Limited (HVN), -$0.15 (4.62%) to $3.10 on volume of 2.7 million shares;
- Billabong International Limited (BBG), -$0.44 (4.09%) to $10.31 on volume of 965.3 thousand shares;
- Tabcorp Holdings Limited (TAH), -$0.4 (3.98%) to $9.66 on volume of 1.4 million shares;
- News Corporation Inc (Voting CDI) (NWS), -$0.55 (3.47%) to $15.32 on volume of 1.6 million shares; and
- APN News & Media Limited (APN), -$0.11 (3.14%) to $3.39 on volume of 1.6 million shares.
Sector Indices
| Code | GICS Sector | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| XUJ | Utilities | 5410.8 | -30 | -0.55 | 22m |
| XNJ | Industrials | 4471.1 | -41.9 | -0.93 | 167m |
| XSJ | Consumer Staples | 6910.9 | -82.3 | -1.18 | 32m |
| XHJ | Healthcare | 8074.1 | -99.2 | -1.21 | 8m |
| XMJ | Materials | 13979 | -183 | -1.29 | 139m |
| XXJ | Financials ex Property Trusts | 4853.3 | -70.9 | -1.44 | 84m |
| XEJ | Energy | 17782.3 | -267.4 | -1.48 | 39m |
| XTJ | Telecommunications | 1503.5 | -22.8 | -1.49 | 31m |
| XDJ | Consumer Discretionary | 1612.9 | -35.2 | -2.14 | 42m |
| XPJ | Property Trusts | 1277.7 | -44.1 | -3.34 | 171m |
| XIJ | Information Technology | 470.4 | -16.6 | -3.41 | 2m |
All Ordinaries Major Movers
All Ords Volume Leaders
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MIG | Macquarie Infrastructure Group | 2.26 | 0.03 | 1.35 | 52.3m |
| GPT | GPT Group | 1.63 | -0.10 | -5.78 | 40.2m |
| OXR | Oxiana Limited | 2.17 | 0.07 | 3.33 | 34.2m |
| CSR | CSR Limited | 1.96 | -0.35 | -15.15 | 29.6m |
| TLS | Telstra Corporation Limited. | 4.41 | -0.04 | -0.9 | 25.2m |
All Ords Percentage Gainers
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MCC | Macarthur Coal Limited | 17.10 | 1.80 | 11.76 | 3.1m |
| MIN | Mineral Resources Limited | 5.96 | 0.48 | 8.76 | 300.9k |
| COU | Count Financial Limited | 1.56 | 0.12 | 8.33 | 119.9k |
| ADY | Admiralty Resources NL | 0.20 | 0.02 | 8.11 | 21.4m |
| CRE | Crescent Gold Limited | 0.14 | 0.01 | 7.69 | 430.5k |
All Ords Percentage Losers
| Code | Name | Close | +/- | % | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RRT | Record Realty | 0.04 | -0.01 | -18 | 845k |
| RNY | Reckson New York Property Trust | 0.27 | -0.05 | -15.62 | 3m |
| CSR | CSR Limited | 1.96 | -0.35 | -15.15 | 29.6m |
| MLI | Mintails Limited | 0.22 | -0.04 | -13.73 | 836.8k |
| MAFCA | Multiplex Prime Property Fund | 0.31 | -0.04 | -11.43 | 103k |
