After a dismal trading day yesterday, the local share market has bounced back following a positive lead from Wall Street and is currently tracking 1.1 per cent higher at noon. The energy space is leading the charge, with big gains in Santos and Oil Search in particular after a jump in the price of oil overnight. The materials space has also managed to claw back some of yesterday’s losses with BHP and Rio Tinto both jumping about 5 per cent.
The S&P/ASX 200 index is 52 points higher at 4,929. On the futures market the SPI is 51 points higher.
Company news
Macquarie Group Limited
(ASX:MQG) has today provided an update on business activity for the December 2015 quarter and an updated outlook for the financial year ended 31 March 2016. The company says FY16 combined net profits will be up on FY2015, but market conditions remain challenging, along with the impact of foreign exchange. Shares in Macquarie are trading down 5.87 per cent at $64.25.
AGL Energy Limited
(ASX:AGL) has announced that following a review, it has taken a strategic decision that exploration and production of natural gas assets will no longer be a core business for the company due to the volatility of commodity prices and long development lead times. The company says there will however be no change to AGL’s commercial or retail gas activities. Shares in AGL are trading up 0.32 per cent at $18.57.
Best and worst performers
The best performing sector is Energy, gaining 4.2 per cent to 7,314. Shares in Santos have risen 8.48 per cent and trading at $3.00. Shares in AWE and Oil Search are also stronger.
The worst performing sector is Consumer Discretionaries, falling 0.9 per cent to 1,900. Shares in Tabcorp have fallen 5.31 per cent, trading at $4.28. Shares in Domino’s Pizza and Crown Resorts are also lower.
Gold and the dollar
Gold is trading at $US1,142 an ounce.
The Australian dollar is buying $US0.7174.
