The SPI is pointing to a slightly higher start for Australian shares, following positive offshore leads. Wall St posted a solid start to the week as the Dow clawed closer to the 12,000 mark and hit an intraday high as investors responded well to US earnings results.
On Monday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, closed 109 points higher to 11,981, S&P500 gained 7 points to close 1,291 and the NASDAQ lifted 28 points to close 2,718.
European stocks were higher: London’s FTSE up 48 points, Paris up 16 and Frankfurt up 5.
To Asian markets, stocks were mixed: Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was down 75 points, Tokyo was up 71 points and China’s Shanghai Composite closed 20 points down.
The Australian share market finished higher on Monday. The S&P/ASX 200 Index added 30 points to close at 4,786 and on the futures market the SPI is up 9 points. Turning to currencies and the Australian Dollar at 8:40AM was buying 99.76 US cents, 62.43 Pence Sterling, 82.34 Yen and 73.2 Euro cents.
In economic news: Expected out today, the Australian Bureau of Statistics consumer price index for the December quarter and also National Australia Bank’s Australian Residential Property Survey for the December quarter.
Company news: On Monday shares in ASX Ltd (ASX:ASX) added 0.59 per cent to close at $37.79. The Singapore exchange is moving in on its takeover target, the operator of the Australian Securities Exchange, ASX, announcing that it has secured almost $3.8 billion of long term funding to advance its merger plans. The Singapore exchange says it has received commitments for $3 billion and $750 million senior-term loan facilities. In October last year the Singapore exchange launched a $8.4 billion merger with ASX which the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission cleared in December, but the proposal still requires the approval of the Foreign Investment Review Board to proceed. ASX posted a net profit of $328 million in the year to 30 June 2010.
Shares in FerrAus Ltd (ASX:FRS) slid 2.59 per cent to close at $0.94 on Monday. A FerrAus and Brockman Resources Ltd (ASX:BRM) merger could be on the cards, as both company’s fend off a joint takeover bid from Chinese group Wah Nam International Holdings Ltd. Yesterday FerrAus shareholders approved a capital raising of up to $35 million to accelerate the development of its Pilbara Project in Western Australia, an area where both FerrAus and Brockman are needing to secure haulage deals with larger miners. Speaking after the extraordinary general meeting, executive director Bryan Oliver told the media that there are always discussions between FerAus and Brockman Resources, though both companies would need to calculate one another’s valuations before a merger could be considered. In the year to 30 June 2010 FerrAus booked a net loss of $8.3 million.
To ex-dividends: There are two companies going ex-dividend today, Ozgrowth with a $0.005 fully franked dividend and Westoz Investment Company with a $0.03 cent fully franked dividend. Coming up this Thursday is Djerriwarrh Investments with a $0.10 cent fully franked dividend.
To commodities: Gold is up $3.50 to $US1,344 an ounce for the February contract on Comex, silver is down $0.11 to $27.32 for March and copper is up $0.04 to $4.35 a pound. Oil is down $1.24 at $87.87 a barrel for February light crude in New York.
