The Australian share market has seen a soft start the week, trading flat at noon after Wall Street ended last week lower and European stocks ended higher.
Local earnings reports are in the spotlight as the biggest week of reporting season gets underway. Shares in BlueScope Steel Limited
(ASX:BSL) have sunk after posting an annual loss and uncertain outlook for Australian demand. Shares in Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Limited
(ASX:BEN) have risen after improving its annual profits though cautioning credit growth could remain subdued.
Blue-chips Commonwealth Bank of Australia
(ASX:CBA) and Telstra Corporation Limited
(ASX:TLS) are dragging - the stocks and six others trading ex-dividend.
Figures
The S&P/ASX 200 index is trading 3 points lower at 5,111. On the futures market the SPI is 12 points higher.
Economic news
New motor vehicles sales in Australia fell last month. The Australian Bureau of Statistics reports sales of new cars fell 3.5 per cent to 93,797 in July. Total sales are still 3 per cent higher year-on-year.
Reporting season results
Shares in Challenger Limited
(ASX:CGF) have gained 8.72 per cent after the financial services provider posted a 4 per cent rise in normalised full year net profit and record inflows into its annuities and funds management business.
Coal developer Yancoal Australia Limited
(ASX:YAL) has booked a half year net loss of almost $750 million, mainly due to a net unrealised foreign exchange loss, and appointed a new CEO to take the reins from next Monday.
Shares in Federation Centres Limited
(ASX:FDC) have slipped 0.9 per cent after the shopping centre owner and operator unveiled its first full-year annual result since re-launching from Centro in 2011 – posting a statutory net profit of $212.7 million.
Shares in Growthpoint Properties Australia Limited
(ASX:GOZ) have lost 1.3 per cent after the property investor boosted its annual net profit by 90 per cent on the back of acquisitions and revealed it is on the hunt for more merger and acquisition (M&A) opportunities.
Best and worst performers
The best performing sector is health care gaining 197 points to 13,413. Shares in Ramsay Health Care Limited
(ASX:RHC) have risen 2.99 per cent and trading at $34.44. Shares in Mesoblast Limited
(ASX:MSB) and Cochlear Limited
(ASX:COH) are also stronger.
The worst performing sector is telco services, falling 54 points to 1,706. Shares in Telstra Corporation Limited
(ASX:TLS) have dropped 3.24 per cent to $4.44, with the stock trading ex-dividend. Shares in iiNet Limited
(ASX:IIN) and TPG Telecom Limited
(ASX:TPM) are also lower.
IPOs
Birch and Prestige Investment Group Limited
(ASX:BOP) started trading today. The designer, manufacturer and distributor of kitchen facilities floated with an issue price of $0.40, opened at $0.42 and is currently trading at $0.44.
Gold and the dollar
Gold is trading at $US1,382 an ounce.
The Australian dollar is buying 92.16 US cents.
