The Australian share market started the trading week higher, with most of the sectors up at noon. Locally, earnings season kicked off with Credit Corp
(ASX:CCP) reporting results, with net profit up 9 per cent and its loan book up 16 per cent, but today it’s shares are seeing selling. Year-to-date Credit Corp
(ASX:CCP) shares are up 32 per cent. Rio Tinto
(ASX:RIO) results are out later this week locally.
The Aussie dollar lost about 1.8 per cent last week on a strengthening US dollar.
The S&P/ASX 200 index is 0.2 per cent or 11 points up at 6,804 points at noon. On the futures market the SPI is 0.2 per cent up or 16 points higher.
US equities ended on record high on Friday thanks to an earnings boost. Alphabet shares rose 10 per cent on $9.18 billion earnings, and McDonalds shares hit an all-time high on higher sales. The US fed meets on Wednesday with markets fully pricing a rate cut.
Company newsAir New Zealand
(ASX:AIZ) announced a 4.5 per cent uptick in passenger growth year-to-date in the June. The largest growth came in long-haul flights. Air New Zealand is giving its Bali seasonal service a boost in 2020, increasing capacity on the route by 80 per cent, (30,000 extra seats). Shares in Air New Zealand
(ASX:AIZ) are trading 0.8 per cent higher at $2.66 at noon. Year to date its shares are down by 12.6 per cent.
Afterpay Touch Group
(ASX:APT) announced AUSTRAC has appointed Neil Jeans of Melbourne based specialist AML/CTF firm, Initialism as the external auditor to undertake the audit. He is one of three specialist auditors nominated by Afterpay. An interim audit report is due by 24 September 2019 and the final audit report is due by 23 November 2019 into APT’s AML/CTF matters. Shares in Afterpay Touch Group
(ASX:APT) are trading 3.3 per cent higher at $26.99 at noon. Year to date its shares are up 117 per cent.
Best and worst performersThe best-performing sector is S&P/ASX Info Tech, adding 1.5 per cent, while the worst performing sector is S&P/ASX A-REIT, shedding 0.8 per cent.
The best performing stock in the S&P/ASX 200 is Vocus Group Limited
(ASX:VOC), rising 4.1 per cent to $3.27, followed by shares in Speedcast International Limited
(ASX:SDA) and Nearmap Ltd
(ASX:NEA).
The worst performing stock in the S&P/ASX 200 is Credit Corp Group Limited
(ASX:CCP),dropping 5.5 per cent to $24.97, followed by shares in G.U.D. Holdings Limited
(ASX:GUD) and Bingo Industries Limited
(ASX:BIN).
Asian marketsJapan’s Nikkei has shed 0.4 per cent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng has lost 0.6 per cent and the Shanghai Composite has gained 0.1 per cent.
Commodities and the dollar Gold is trading at US$1,423 an ounce.
Iron ore price rose 1.1 per cent to US$118.31
Iron ore futures are pointing to a rise of 0.7 per cent.
One Australian dollar is buying 69.12 US cents.
