Following hefty falls in Europe but a positive lead from Wall Street the Australian share market has fallen more than 1 per cent at noon. Sentiment has been sapped by concerns about Greece’s debt dramas and volatility on China’s stock market. Tumbling commodity prices have pushed the mining sector to the worst performer with iron ore dipping under $US50 per tonne.
Figures
The S&P/ASX 200 index has shed 64 points to 5,517. On the futures market the SPI is 61 points lower.
Company news
AWE Limited
(ASX:AWE) has announced a major upgrade to reserves and resources in the Sugarloaf area of mutual interest in Texas, America. The oil and gas company holds a 10 per cent interest in the area which covers a number of leases totalling about 24,000 acres. Managing Director Bruce Clement says Sugarloaf continues to be a well-managed growth asset. Shares in AWE have risen 0.81 per cent and are trading at $1.25 at noon.
1-Page Limited
(ASX:1PG) has renewed six client contracts in June for its innovation and assessment platforms. The cloud-based human resources company says such a sharp increase in new users demonstrates the platform is operating efficiently. 1-Page believes last month was a pivotal month in the history of the company’s customer relationships. Shares in 1-Page have dipped 1.61 per cent and are trading at $1.83 at noon.
Best and worst performers
Most sectors have moved lower: The only sector trading higher is REITs, adding 0.1 per cent to 1,261. Shares in Stockland Limited
(ASX:SGP) have risen 0.72 per cent and trading at $4.22. Shares in Mirvac Group
(ASX:MGR) and Scentre Group Limited
(ASX:SCG) are also stronger.
The worst performing sector is materials, dropping 2 per cent to 8,414. Shares in Western Areas Limited
(ASX:WSA) have fallen 5.23 per cent, trading at $2.90. Shares in Independence Group NL
(ASX:IGO) and OZ Minerals Limited
(ASX:OZL) are also lower.
IPOs
Genex Power Limited
(ASX:GNX) started trading today. The power generation development company floated with an issue price of $0.20, opened at $0.225 and is currently trading at $0.22.
Gold and the dollar
Gold is buying $US1,154 an ounce.
The Australian dollar is buying $US0.7411.
Thanks for watching the Market at Midday on Wednesday 8 July, I’m Lelde Smits for the Finance News Network.
