Following a flat lead from Wall St overnight Aussie shares are lower at midday, a sharp decline in commodity prices weighing down the miners like top miner Rio Tinto.
However CSR rose after forecasting higher earnings for the 2010 financial year.
The S&P/ASX200 index is 4 points lower at 3,764 and on the futures market the SPI 200’s up 5 points.
In economic news: The ABS reports that employment fell by 21,400 in June taking the jobless rate to 5.8 per cent, up from 5.7 per cent in May.
To business news at midday: Infrastructure company Leighton Holdings Ltd (ASX:LEI) subsidiary Thiess has won a $500 million contract to construct the site preparation and temporary facilities for the Gorgon Project on Barrow Island for Chevron Australia. Work is expected to be carried out after all necessary government approvals have been granted and following a final investment decision on the Chevron operated Gorgon Project from the Gorgon Joint Venture participants, expected in the second half of 2009. The Greater Gorgon gas fields contain resources of about 40 trillion cubic feet of gas, Australia’s largest known gas resource. Leighton Holdings shares rose 0.79 per cent to $21.82.
Building products, sugar and aluminium company CSR Ltd (ASX:CSR) told shareholders at the company’s annual general meeting that it expects its earnings before interest and tax to be slightly higher in 2010 than last year. Managing director Jerry Maycock says the first half year remains challenging, particularly for its building products and property divisions. Mr Maycock says assuming no substantial change to current market conditions, he expected similar earnings in the company’s Building Products and Property division. He also says growth in sugar earnings is expected to outweigh slightly lower aluminium earnings. CSR shares gained 4.93 per cent to $1.595.
Turning now to market indices: The best performing sector midday is the Health Care index up 43 points to 7,757. Shares in Sirtex Medical are up 11.2 per cent at $4.07. Shares in Cochlear and Ramsay Health Care are also higher at noon.
The worst performing sector at midday is the Consumer Staples index down 57 points to 6,568. Shares in AWB are down 2.51 per cent to $1.165. Shares in Woolworths and Goodman Fielder are also lower at noon.
Looking to New Zealand and the NZSX50 is 18 points lower. Taking a look at the top five stocks by value on the NZSX50: Telecom of New Zealand tops the list, stock down 3.93 per cent at $2.69, followed by Fletcher Building, ANZ, Lion Nathan and Westpac.
To gold and the dollar: Gold is currently trading at $912.30 US an ounce and the Aussie dollar is trading at 78.14 US cents.
