There has been no relief for the Australian share market on its first trading day this week, continuing on with last week’s losses and tracking 0.43 per cent lower at noon. The energy space is leading the losses this session, followed on by weakness in the materials space with the big miners BHP and Rio Tinto continuing to be sold off. Consumer discretionaries are leading the charge so far, followed by the REIT and Healthcare sectors.
The S&P/ASX 200 index is 21 points down at 5,718. On the futures market the SPI is 29 points lower.
Company newsMacmahon Holdings Limited
(ASX:MAH) has recommended that all of its shareholders reject a $174 million takeover bid for the company by engineering giant CIMIC Group
(ASX:CIM). MAH has described the bid as opportunistic, inadequate and neither fair nor reasonable. For the 6 months to 31 December 2016, MAH reported an underlying loss of $5 million, compared to a $14.3 million profit for the same time last year. Shares in Macmahon Holdings are trading flat at $0.15.
Spark Infrastructure Group
(ASX:SKI) has reported a 32.3 per cent decline in net profit to $81.1 million for the full year to 31 December 2016. Total underlying income came in at $243.9 million, versus $280.6 million for the same time last year. A final distribution of 7.25 cents per share was declared, in line with 2016 guidance. Shares in Spark Infrastructure are trading down 0.21 per cent at $2.35.
Best and worst performersThe best performing sector is Discretionaries, gaining 1.22 per cent to 2,091. Shares in Corporate Travel Management
(ASX:CTD) have risen 7.41 per cent and trading at $19. Shares in Automotive Holdings
(ASX:AHG) and Aristocrat Leisure
(ASX:ALL) are also stronger.
The worst performing sector is Energy, falling 1.97 per cent to 8,817. Shares in Santos Limited
(ASX:STO) have fallen 3.71 per cent, trading at $3.77. Shares in Oil Search
(ASX:OSH) and Woodside Petroleum
(ASX:WPL) are also lower.
Gold and the dollarGold is trading at $US1,256 an ounce and the Australian dollar is buying $US0.7671.
