The Australian share market closed flat today and it was hard to muster up. From the get go, the local bourse had no US leads to follow, as Wall Street was closed for Labor day. Amid escalating North Korea tension we quickly entered selling territory and most of the sectors were in the red.
But thanks to a bout of economic news with Government revenue exceeding expenses by $7.8 billion and interest rates staying on hold as expected, the local bourse was able to recover from the majority of its early losses before.
The biggest weight was the Utilites space while a rise in REITs led the recovery with the likes of Lendlease
(ASX:LLC) gaining almost 2 per cent and Charter Hall Group
(ASX:CHC) also pushing higher.
At the closing bell the S&P/ASX 200 index closed 4 points up or 0.07 per cent higher to finish at 5,706.
The value of trades was $4.1 billion on volume of 580 million shares at the close of trade. The top three stocks by value were Commonwealth Bank of Australia
(ASX:CBA), BHP Billiton Limited
(ASX:BHP), and Macquarie Group
(ASX:MQG).
On the futures market the SPI is 1 point lower.
Asian markets Japan’s Nikkei has lost 0.6 per cent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng added 0.06 per cent and the Shanghai Composite has gained 0.1 per cent.
Local economic newsThe Reserve Bank Board kept interest rates on hold today at historical lows of 1.5 per cent for the 13th consecutive month. The RBA Governor will also deliver a speech this evening after 7pm.
Also, out today, lower export commodity prices tolled on the current account deficit (CAD) in the June quarter with the seasonally adjusted deficit rising to $9.6 billion in the June quarter 2017 according to Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
The seasonally adjusted balance on goods and services surplus in the June quarter 2017 was $3 billion. It comes as exports on goods and services fell 3 per cent (or by $2.7 billion) while imports rose 2 per cent ($1.6 billion).
Company news Telstra Corporation Limited
(ASX:TLS) has appointed Vicki Brady to the post of Group Executive, Consumer and Small Business. Vicky will report direct to CEO Andrew Penn. The experienced telecommunications executive, will have responsibility of Telstra’s consumer, small business, channels to market and product functions. The telco giant says she has a strong track record of improving customer experiences, leading simplification and delivering outstanding results. Shares in Telstra Corporation Limited
(ASX:TLS) closed 0.27 per cent lower to $3.66.
Austal Limited
(ASX:ASB) has been awarded its first commercial contract in Taiwan valued at $44 million for two 550 passenger, 50 metre long, high-speed Catamarans
TPI Enterprises
(ASX:TPI) has entered a new poppy straw supply agreement with the United Kingdom, its second European contract.
And Mitchell Services Limited
(ASX:MSV) has been awarded a contract extension for BHP Billiton’s
(ASX:BHP) Olympic Dam mine in South Australia until April 2019.
Best and worst performers of the dayThe best performing sector was Materials gained 0.5 per cent to 10,652.
The worst performing sector was Utilites shedding 1.4 per cent to 8,234.
The best performing stock in the S&P/ASX 200 was Independence Group Nl
(ASX:IGO), rising 4.21 per cent to close at $3.71. Shares in Beach Energy Limited
(ASX:BPT) and HT&E
(ASX:Ht1) also closed higher.
The worst performing stock in the S&P/ASX 200 was Spark Infrastructure Group
(ASX:SKI), dropping 4.46 per cent to close at $2.57. Shares in Virtus Health Limited
(ASX:VRT) and Galaxy Resources Limited
(ASX:GXY) also closed lower.
CommoditiesGold is trading at $US1,336 an ounce.
Light crude is 8 cents higher at $US47.37 barrel.
One Australian dollar is buying 79.60 US cents.
