The Australian share market may be in for a flat start this morning following a choppy session on Wall St overnight. Focus today will be on the Reserve Bank’s decision on interest rates due this afternoon. Stronger commodities are likely to boost resource stocks today and may help to support the market.
Australian stocks ended higher on Monday. The S&P/ASX 200 Index closed 129 points stronger at 4,701. Looking at the futures market the SPI200’s up 11 points.
The Aussie Dollar at 8.50AM is buying 91.58 US cents, 79.06 Yen, 61.03 Euro cents and 55.7 Pence Sterling.
In economic news out today: Focus will be on the RBA’s rate decision expected at around 2:30pm Sydney time, the Reserve Bank is also to release its October commodity price index, the Australian Industry/PricewaterhouseCoopers manufacturing index for November is also due out today, and the ABS is to release building approvals data for October and government finance data for the September quarter.
In company news about this morning: Shares in National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX:NAB) rose 5.96 per cent to $28.62 yesterday. The company has responded to the debt woes unfolding in Dubai, confirming its exposure to Dubai World. NAB says it does have a financial exposure to Dubai World but that it does not expect a material loss as a result of the recently announced debt moratorium. The statement follows similar ones from its peers in response to news that the Dubai Government’s holding company Dubai World and Nakheel have asked for at least a six month deferment on $60 billion in debt owed by the two companies. NAB’s 2009 net profit was down on its 2008 result and its lowest in five years.
Shares in fund manager Goodman Group (ASX:GMG) added 2.56 per cent to $0.60 yesterday. The company says it is on track to achieve its forecast $310 million profit for the 2010 financial year. At the company’s annual general meeting the company told shareholders that it is expecting write-downs in the December half of around 5% of total assets but says this will not impact on cash flow and operating income. Goodman Group posted a post-tax loss of $1.12 billion for the 12 months to June 30 after incurring a $1.16 billion write-down on its property assets. Goodman Group’s profit highlight in the last four years was in 2007 recording profit of $622.5 million.
Checking ex-dividends, and the only company going ex-dividend today is HGL with a 5 cent fully franked dividend. Coming up tomorrow we have Newmont Mining and on Thursday Fisher & Paykel Healthcare is going ex-dividend.
Looking at overseas markets. US markets closed higher on Monday - The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 35 points. The S&P500 Index is 4 points higher and the NASDAQ added 6 points.
European markets were lower. London’s FTSE fell 55 points, Paris lost 41 points and Frankfurt slipped 60.
Asian markets were higher: Hong Kong’s Hang Seng is up 687 points. Tokyo’s Nikkei gained 264 and the Shanghai Composite is up 99 points.
Looking at metals: Gold added $7.50 to US$1,183 an ounce for the February contract on Comex. For the March contract Silver up 21 cents to US$18.54 and copper is 5 cents higher at US$3.18.
And the price of oil is $1.23 higher at US$77.28 a barrel for January light crude in New York.
