The Australian share market looks set to open higher and extend the weekly gain after hitting a fresh 20-month high yesterday. Overnight European markets rose while Wall Street finished mixed as US investors weighed up corporate earnings with economic figures.
US economic news
Jobless claims have dropped for the second straight week: The Labor Department reported first-time claims for unemployment benefits declined by 5,000 to 330,000 last week.
The Conference Board’s index of leading economic indicators increased 0.5 per cent in December 2012, maintaining a positive uptrend and coming in higher than expected.
Figures
Wall Street ended mixed on Thursday: The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 46 points to close at 13,825 the S&P500 closed steady at 1,495 and the Nasdaq lost 23 points to close at 3,130.
European markets closed higher on Thursday: London’s FTSE added 67 points, Paris added 26 points and Frankfurt added 41 points.
Asian markets closed mixed on Thursday: Hong Kong’s Hang Seng lost 36 points, Tokyo’s Nikkei gained 134 and China’s Shanghai Composite lost 18 points.
The Australian share market broke through 4,800 yesterday, finishing 0.5 per cent higher: The S&P/ASX 200 Index gained 22 points to close at 4,810. On the futures market the SPI is 16 points higher.
Currencies
The Australian Dollar at 8:20AM was buying $US1.046 cents, 66.26 Pence Sterling, 94.54 Yen and 78.21 Euro cents.
Company news Shares in Linc Energy Limited
(ASX:LNC) surged yesterday amid reports the company has discovered $20 trillion worth of oil.
The speculation came after Linc confirmed the potential of shale oil at its Arckarings Basin site in South Australia on Wednesday. The company has not however at this stage put a valuation on the asset. Shares in Linc Energy surged 23.61 per cent yesterday to end at $2.67.
Sandfire Resources NL’s
(ASX:SFR) latest quarterly report has revealed the gold and copper producer expects to deliver steady-state nameplate production rates by mid this year.
Sandfire produced almost 16,400 tonnes of copper and 14,700 ounces of gold at its wholly owned Degrussa Copper-Gold mine in Western Australia in the December quarter. Shares in Sandfire Resources dipped 0.48 per cent yesterday to end at $8.31.
Commodities
Gold is down $16.80 to $US1,669 an ounce for the February contract on Comex.
Silver is down $0.72 to $31.72 for March.
Copper is $0.01 lower at $3.68 a pound.
Oil is up $0.72 at US$95.95 a barrel for March light crude in New York.
