The Australian share market is this morning poised to recover some of the losses incurred over the Easter holiday shortened week following action from global central banks. While European markets dipped, Wall Street gained after Japan’s central bank expanded its stimulus program and the Bank of England and European Central Bank kept rates on hold.
US economic news
Ahead of the US government’s monthly jobs report due for release this evening, the Labor Department has reported initial jobless claims defied expectations for a fall and increased more than expected, climbing by 28,000 to 385,000 last week.
Figures
Wall Street rose on Thursday: The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 56 points to close at 14,606, the S&P 500 added 6 points to close at 1,560 and the NASDAQ added 6 points to close at 3,225.
European markets fell on Thursday: London’s FTSE lost 76 points, Paris lost 29 points and Frankfurt lost 57 points.
Across Asian markets: Tokyo’s Nikkei added 272 points on Thursday, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng and China’s Shanghai Composite closed for a public holiday and are expected to re-open on Monday.
The Australian share market retreated 0.9 per cent yesterday: The S&P/ASX 200 Index sank 44 points to end at 4,914 on Thursday. On the futures market the SPI is 16 points higher.
Currencies
The Australian Dollar at 7:20AM was buying $US1.043 cents, 68.52 Pence Sterling, 100.5 Yen and 80.7 Euro cents.
Company news As Whitehaven Coal Limited’s
(ASX:WHC) stock hit four year lows speculation is rising former billionaire Nathan Tinkler is getting closer to offloading one of his most valuable assets, a 19.4 per cent stake in the coal producing company.
Media reports claim hedge fund Noonday Asset Management is looking for an interested buyer for the stake, just days after Mr Tinkler announced he will put his horse racing empire up for sale to aid his personal financial position. The value of Mr Tinkler’s stake has fallen from about $1.1 billion to $410 million over the past year while he is understood to owe up to $700 million. Shares in Whitehaven Coal dropped 3.05 per cent to close at $1.91 on Thursday.
Sundance Resources Limited’s
(ASX:SDL) investors are holding their breath a deal may emerge despite the iron ore developer advising the market it has still not received $5 million in funding from its suitor.
Sundance says it has issued a demand notice to China's Hanlong Mining under which its suitor must pay the $5 million tranche no later than this Monday 8 April 2013. The news comes one week after Hanlong Mining failed to meet a critical funding deadline to prove it can finance the proposed $1.3 billion takeover. Shares in Sundance Resources last traded at $0.21 before entering into a trading halt on March 20, 2013.
Ex-dividends today
David Jones Limited
(ASX:DJS) with a 10 cent fully franked dividend
GBST Holdings Limited
(ASX:GBT) with a 3 cent fully franked dividend
Ex-dividends next week
CTI Logistics Limited
(ASX:CLX) with a 3.5 cent fully franked dividend
CIC Australia Limited
(ASX:CNB) with a 3 cent fully franked dividend
Fonterra Shareholder's Fund
(ASX:FSF) with a 16 cent unfranked dividend
Gowing Bros. Limited
(ASX:GOW) with a 6 cent fully franked dividend
Harvey Norman Holdings Limited
(ASX:HVN) with a 4.5 cent fully franked dividend
Commodities
Gold is down $1.10 to $US1,552 an ounce for the June contract on Comex.
Silver is down $0.03 to $26.77 for May.
Copper is up $0.02 at $3.35 a pound.
Oil is down $1.19 at $US93.26 a barrel for May light crude in New York.
