The Australian share market is lower at midday following a weak lead from Wall Street on concerns about European sovereign debt. Concerns over Europe’s debt problem remain even though Ireland formally requested a bailout from the European Union and International Monetary Fund. Fears of weaker demand from China have also lead shares lower. The major miners and banks gave up ground, coming in the red.
The S&P/ASX200 index is points 17 lower at 4,626 and on the futures market the SPI200 is down 24 points.
Qantas Airways Ltd (ASX:QAN) has announced it will resume its Airbus A380s after checking the engines of its superjumbos. The airline says two of its six superjumbos will resume flying on Saturday. Qantas grounded its A380 fleet after a Rolls Royce engine on one of its passenger jets exploded mid-air over Indonesia earlier this month. The first flight on Saturday will be a QF31 from Sydney to London via Singapore. Qantas CEO Alan Joyce says he is comfortable with the operation of the aircraft following an intensive engine inspection program. Shares in Qantas are 0.38 per cent higher at $2.64.
Macquarie Group Ltd’s (ASX:MQG) north American trading arm says it will help Freeport LNG Development build a $2 billion LNG export terminal at its existing Texas import facility. The proposed plant will reportedly take between two to three years to complete if permits are granted. Under the agreement, Freeport LNG will lead the development of the facility and remain the sole owner and operator of the plant. Meanwhile, Macquarie will be responsible for funding construction and arranging gas supply deals and sales. Marketing duties will be shared between both companies. Shares in Macquarie Group are 0.08 per cent lower at $36.67.
Turning to market indices: The best sector is Telco Services, with the index up 12 points to 934. Shares in Amcomm are up 0.03 per cent at $0.34. Shares in Telstra and IINET are also higher. The worst performing sector at midday is Materials with the index down 83 points to 13,461. BHP Billiton is down 0.55 per cent at $43.64. Rio Tinto and Newcrest are also lower at midday.
To New Zealand: the NZSX50 is 6 points lower. Taking a look at the top 4 stocks by turnover: Telecom Corporation of New Zealand is at the top of the list and is steady $2.18; followed by ANZ, Westpac and Fletcher Building Group.
To gold and the dollar: Gold is trading at $US1,364 an ounce and the Aussie dollar is buying 98.78 US cents.
