It’s looking like a flat start to the morning. The aftermath of the devastating Japanese earthquake and tsunami has investors bracing for a volatile week of local trading. The benchmark Australian index slumped to a three-month low last week, falling 4.5 per cent on Middle East tensions.
In US economic news: The Commerce Department reported retail sales rose 1 per cent in January. It was the biggest quarterly increase in four years. But consumer confidence tumbled to a five-month low in early March due to rising gasoline prices. The Reuters/University of Michigan gauge of consumer sentiment dropped to 68.2 from a final February reading of 77.5.
At the end of last week, Dow Jones Industrial Average, closed 60 points higher to 12,044, S&P500 gained 9 points to close 1,304 and the NASDAQ rose 15 points to close 2,716.
European stocks ended lower on Friday: London’s FTSE down 17 points, Paris down 35 and Frankfurt down 82.
To Asian markets and stocks were lower: Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was down 365, Tokyo's Nikkei was down 180 and China’s Shanghai Composite was down 23 points.
The Australian share market finished weaker on Friday. The S&P/ASX 200 Index fell 55 points to close at 4,645. While on the futures market the SPI is currently 8 points higher.
Turning to currencies and the Australian Dollar at 7:40AM was buying $US1.0138 cents, 62.99 Pence Sterling, 83.09 Yen and 72.65 Euro cents.
Company news: At the end of last week shares in National Australia Bank Ltd. (ASX:NAB) fell 0.68 per cent to close at $24.74. NAB is assessing the sale of 600 branches by Lloyds, Britain’s largest bank, according to the Australian Financial Review. The bank will use the opportunity to overhaul its own UK business, either by buying up or getting out of the UK market all together. NAB has 12 per cent of its assets in the UK, but they contributed less than 5 per cent to its profits last year. The National Australia Bank booked a net profit of $4.2 billion in the year to 30 September, 2010.
On Friday shares in ASX Ltd (ASX:ASX) fell 0.31 per cent to close at $35.84. Singapore exchange has lodged a formal application to the Foreign Investment Review Board for approval of its proposed $8.4 billion takeover of ASX Ltd. The bid has already been approved by Australia’s competition regulator. SGX expects the deal to be completed at the end of this year. Last month SGX agreed to let ASX have an equal number of directors in the merged company, seeking to win Australian support. Worldwide, numerous exchanges are in merger talks. In the half year to 31 December 2010, ASX Ltd reported a net profit of $171.98 million.
To ex-dividends: There aren’t any companies going ex-dividend today. But among those going ex-dividend tomorrow we have Billabong International, Devine and Envestra.
To commodities: Gold is up $9.80 to $US1,421 an ounce for the April contract on Comex, silver is up $0.87 to $35.94 for May and copper is up 0.02 at $4.21 a pound. Oil is down $1.54 at $101.16 a barrel for April light crude in New York.
