The Australian share market looks set to open lower on the back of weak offshore leads and doubts of a European recovery. It finished the day lower yesterday but the month higher, posting the biggest one-month gain in two years.
US economic news
The pace of business activity in the US Midwest slowed modestly in October as new orders eased, but the employment gauge rose to its highest level in six months. The Institute for Supply Management-Chicago business barometer slipped to 58.4 from 60.4 the month before.
Figures
Wall Street started the week lower, The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 276 points to 11,955, the S&P500 lost 32 points to close at 1,253 and the Nasdaq declined 53 points to close at 2,684.
European stocks also fell: London’s FTSE was down 158 points, Paris was down 106 and Frankfurt was down 205 points.
To Asian market, stocks also closed lower: Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was down 154, Tokyo Nikkei was down 62 and China’s Shanghai Composite was down 5.
Yesterday the Australian share market finished the day 1.26 per cent down: The S&P/ASX 200 Index shed 55 points to close at 4,298. On the futures market the SPI is 39 points weaker.
Currencies
The Australian Dollar at 8:15am was buying $1.5.39 US cents, 65.52 Pence Sterling, 82.43 Yen and 76.07 Euro cents.
Economic news
The Reserve Bank of Australia’s going to reveal the outcome of its monetary policy meeting today, with speculation from commentators in the industry of a possible interest rate cut.
And trading volumes might be a little lighter today as Melbourne takes a public holiday for the Melbourne Cup.
Company news
Shares Qantas Airways Limited (ASX:QAN) rose yesterday by 4.33 per cent to $1.61.2. The flying kangaroo was back in the air yesterday afternoon after chief executive Alan Joyce grounded its fleet for two days. It’s now set to cut prices across its international and domestic networks, is offering special deals for grounded passengers, and is even reported by Fairfax to be taking out one of the biggest advertising campaigns in its 90 year history to win back disenchanted customers. Meanwhile, social media monitor Meltwater Group says the Qantas grounding sparked 65,000 mentions on twitter, three times the number of the Melbourne Cup. In the 2011 financial year Qantas Airways Limited (ASX:QAN) booked a net profit of $249 million.
Yesterday shares in Wesfarmers Limited (ASX:WES) fell 0.7 per cent, closing at $32.46. Last night it announced the issue of $500 million of unsecured fixed rate medium term notes, maturing in November 2016. The notes were priced at 150 basis points over the five year swap rate, and settlement of the transaction’s expected on Friday. Finance director Terry Bowen says the issue supports the company’s strategy to pre-fund upcoming maturities, and to lengthen the debt maturity profile. Wesfarmers Limited (ASX:WES) recorded a net profit of $1.9 billion in the year to June.
Commodities
Gold is down $22 to $US1,725 an ounce for the December contract on Comex. Silver is down 93 cents to $34.35. Copper is down 7 cents at $3.63 a pound. Oil is down 13 cents at $93.19 a barrel for November light crude in New York.
