The Australian stock market is tipped for a stable open, after volatile trading wiped nearly $60 billion off the market last week.
Figures
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 9 points to close at 15,303, the S&P500 lost 1 point to close at 1,650 and the Nasdaq dipped by 0.3 of a point to close at 3,459.
European markets were in negative territory: London’s FTSE lost 42 points, Paris shed 10 points and Frankfurt was 47 points lower.
Asian markets were mixed: Hong Kong’s Hang Seng lost 51 points, Tokyo’s Nikkei gained 128 and China’s Shanghai Composite added 13 points.
The ASX ended the week at a five-week low after hitting five and a half year highs a little over a week ago. The S&P/ASX 200 index plunged 79 points on Friday, extending the weekly loss of 197 to finish the week at 4,984.
On the futures market the SPI is 6 points lower.
Currencies
The Australian Dollar at 7:20AM plunged to $US96.5 cents, 63.79 Pence Sterling, 97.6 Yen and 74.6 Euro cents.
Company news
Australia and New Zealand Banking Group
(ASX:ANZ) will replace 70 call-centre jobs with positions in New Zealand as part of its cost-cutting drive. The bank told staff it would shift the jobs from its Melbourne office to New Zealand, where it is increasing its 175 staff who respond to Australian customers' calls. Shares in ANZ dropped 1.6 per cent on Friday to close at $27.68.
News Corp’s
(ASX:NWS) board has given the green light to the break-up the media empire into two independent companies. The split, which is scheduled for June 28, will separate the highly profitable entertainment assets from the struggling newspaper operations. It must also be approved next month by shareholders but the Murdoch family holds a majority of the voting shares. Shares in News Corp fell 1.19 per cent on Friday to close at $34.04.
Ex-dividend
AngloGold Ashanti Limited
(ASX:AGG) will pay 0.91 cents per share unfranked
Infratil Limited
(ASX:IFZ) will pay 5 cents per share unfranked
Commodities
Gold is down $5.20 to $US1,386.60 an ounce for the June contract on Comex. Silver is down $0.01 to $22.50 for July. Copper is down $0.02 at $3.30 a pound. Oil is down $0.10 at US$94.15 a barrel for July light crude in New York.
