Australian stocks are set to rebound this morning when the ASX opens for business.
Overnight, Wall Street finished higher, driven by a strong performance from the Energy sector, and the release of mostly positive economic data.
US Economic NewsThe Energy Information Administration said that crude stockpiles fell by 3 million barrels last week, and this is better than what analysts were predicting (which was build-up of 2.6 million barrels).
The US services sector continued to grow last month, with the Institute of Supply Management’s non-manufacturing activity index jumping to a reading of 57.1. Economists were expecting this index to rise to 53.0, so again, this beat expectations.
However, data from ADP, a leading US payrolls processor, showed that private employers added 154,000 jobs in September, which was the slowest pace in six months.
MarketsWall Street finished higher, with the Dow Jones adding 0.6 per cent to 18,281. The S&P 500 was up 0.4 per cent to close at 2,160 and the NASDAQ gained 0.5 per cent to close at 5,316.
European markets finished lower: London’s FTSE was down 0.6 per cent, Paris lost 0.3 per cent and Frankfurt slipped 0.3%.
Asian markets closed higher: the Nikkei gained 0.5 per cent, the Hang Seng added 0.4 per cent, and the Shanghai Composite was closed.
The Australian share market finished lower yesterday: The S&P/ASX 200 Index was down 31 points to close at 5,453. But this morning, on the futures market, the SPI is up 25 points.
CurrenciesThe Australian Dollar at 7:30AM was buying $US76.19 cents, 59.78 Pence, 78.88 Yen and 68 Euro cents.
Company newsSkydive the Beach Group Ltd
(ASX:SKB) has acquired an aircraft and helicopter maintenance business in Wanaka, New Zealand, for NZ$500,000. The NZ business is called Performance Aviation, and it has been servicing all of Skydive Queenstown’s and Skydive Wanaka’s aircraft for the last 10 years. Shares in Skydive the Beach closed 2.94% lower at 66 cents.
Freedom Foods Group Ltd
(ASX:FNP) has entered memorandum of understanding with its partner based in Guangzhou – to establish a new company called Australia’s Own Dairy Company China. The purpose of this is to expand Freedom Foods’ brand called “Australia’s Own” and target the children’s market in China. Shares in Freedom Foods Group closed 0.68% higher at $4.46.
Ex-dividends
CommoditiesGold was steady at $US1,270 an ounce.
Silver has gained 2 cents to $17.79.
Copper is steady at $2.17 a pound.
Oil is up $1.05 to $US49.74 a barrel.
