Shrugging off mostly lower leads from offshore markets overnight, Aussie stocks have risen at midday, as investors respond positively to elements of the federal government 2010/2011 budget, including corporate tax cuts, forecasts of budget surplus in 2013, and banks benefiting from changes to make deposits more attractive.
The S&P/ASX200 index is 48 points higher at 4,596 and on the futures market, the SPI200’s up 40.
In economic news: The ABS says housing finance for March fell 3.4% from February. Data showed that just 48,260 home loans were granted in March the smallest monthly amount in nine years.
In company news: Electricity and gas distributor SP AusNet (ASX:SPN) has reported an 18% increase in full year profit to $209 million today on the back of a 14% increase in revenue. In its full year results the company made mention of the Victorian bushfires, saying it will vigorously defend claims that faulty power lines caused damage during the fires. The company also says it is the subject of a large audit by the Australian Taxation Office, and has been informed that the ATO intends to disallow previous deductions it claimed. SP AusNet declared a final dividend of 4 cents a share. Shares in SP AusNet gained 1.7% to $0.895.
Window furnishings company Kresta Holdings Ltd (ASX:KRS) has bucked the trend reporting strong sales for the third quarter. Sales for the third quarter rose 5% to $29.5 million, the company saying the result gives it confidence that it is on track to achieve record profit for the full year. Kresta says that while last year’s sales were boosted by the federal government’s stimulus package, it believes the introduction of a range of innovative product ranges and recent acquisitions are helping to lift sales this year. Kresta shares rose 5.56% to $0.38.
Turning now to indices: The best performing sector at midday is the Energy index, up 234 points at 14,875. Shares in WorleyParsons are up 4.15% at $26.10. Shares in Whitehaven Coal and Tap Oil are also higher at noon.
The worst performing sector is the Telco Services index, down 3 points to 1,033. Shares in Enerji have lost 4% to just under $0.05, while shares in Telstra and Telecom of New Zealand are also lower.
Looking to New Zealand and the NZSX50 is up a point. Taking a look at the top 4 stocks by turnover: Telecom of New Zealand heads the list, stock down 0.48% at $2.09, followed by Fletcher Building, Guinness Peat Group and ANZ.
To gold and the dollar: Gold is trading at US$1,228.80 an ounce and the Aussie dollar is trading at 89.54 US cents.
