Amazon and Apple lift Wall Street: Aus shares to rise

Market Reports

by Anna Napoli

Australian stocks are set for a positive open after Wall Street rose as Amazon and Apple outperformed. Gains were kept in check however by falls in both Boeing and Facebook. Boeing fell more than 1.5 percent after media reports the Department of Transportation and federal prosecutors were examining the development of the company’s 737 Max planes. Facebook shares also fell 3.3 percent after an analyst downgraded the company to hold from buy. Meantime, British PM, Theresa May's hopes to hold a third vote on her Brexit plan was dealt a blow by the speaker of the UK parliament who said she couldn't put it forward unless there was a substantive change in it.

Local Economic News

Today the Reserve Bank releases the minutes from its March meeting.

Markets

Wall Street closed higher yesterday: The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 0.3 per cent higher at 25,914, the S&P 500 added 0.4 per cent to close at 2,833 and the NASDAQ gained 0.3 per cent higher at 7714.

European markets closed mixed: London’s FTSE added almost 1 per cent, Paris gained 0.1 per cent and Frankfurt was 0.3 per cent lower.

Asian markets closed higher, Tokyo’s Nikkei added 0.6 per cent,Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 1.4 per cent and China’s Shanghai Composite jumped 2.5 per cent.

Returning home the SPI futures are up 20 points. Yesterday the Australian share market closed 0.3 per cent higher or 15 points up at 6191.


Company news

Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield (ASX:URW) has announced its inked a deal with a subsidiary of the Canadian public pension fund the “Public Sector Pension Investment Board” (PSP Investments) and global real estate company QuadReal Property Group (QuadReal), to form the “Cherry Park Partnership”. The Partnership will deliver the development and management of a €750 Mn (£670 Mn) Private Rented Sector (PRS) residential scheme, adjacent to Westfield Stratford City in London. It will be one of London’s largest single-site Private Rented Sector schemes. PSP Investments and QuadReal will each take a 37.5 per cent share in the Cherry Park Partnership, while Unibail Rodamco-Westfield will retain a 25 per cent share and be appointed as the development and asset manager. Construction work is set to start in Quarter 2 2019, with a phased completion and a delivery expected post 2023. The company says the new residential quarter in the heart of Stratford City is an example of the Group’s strategy to significantly increase the densification of exceptional and highly connected retail destinations. Shares in Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield (ASX:URW) closed 1.89 per cent higher at $11.89 yesterday.

Ex-Div

Apiam Animal Health Ltd (ASX:AHX) is paying 0.8 cents fully franked
Austal Limited (ASX:ASB) is paying 3 cents unfranked
Brisbane Broncos Limited (ASX:BBL) is paying 1 cent fully franked
Blackwall Limited (ASX:BWF) is paying 2 cents fully franked
Carsales.Com Ltd (ASX:CAR) is paying 20.5 cents fully franked
Reece Limited (ASX:REH) is paying 6 cents fully franked
Thorney Opportunities Ltd (ASX:TOP) is paying 0.66 cents fully franked

Currencies

One Australian Dollar at 7:40 AM was buying 71.05US cents, 53.62 Pence Sterling, 79.16 Yen and 62.66 Euro cents.

Commodities

Iron Ore futures suggest a 1.3 per cent gain.
Gold hasa dded$0.60 to US$1304 an ounce.
Silver has gained $0.03 to US$15.35 an ounce.
Oil was $0.42 higher at US $59.24 a barrel.

 

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