The Australian share market is expected to slip in early trade after Wall Street closed broadly lower as a Wal-Mart decision to trim orders weighed on stocks and investors grew increasingly nervous about the debt ceiling debate.
US investors are anxious about the nation’s debt limit, after the US Treasury Department said it had until October 17 before exhausting emergency measures to avoid falling behind on obligations.
US economic news
But some better-than-expected economic reports helped stem the losses. Durable-goods orders for August edged up 0.1 per cent from July, beating expectations of a 0.6 per cent drop.
Sales of new homes rose 7.9 per cent in August, also exceeding expectations.
Currencies
The Australian dollar pushed slightly higher against the greenback, which was pressured by those worries over US government budget negotiations At 7:20AM the Aussie was buying $US93.69 cents, 58.27 Pence Sterling, 92.24 Yen and 69.28 Euro cents.
Figures
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 61 points to close at 15,273, the S&P 500 lost 5 points to close at 1,693 and the NASDAQ shed 7 points to close at 3,761.
European markets were subdued after a surprise drop in French business sentiment offset upbeat news on consumer sentiment in Germany: London’s FTSE lost 20 points, Paris was flat and Frankfurt lifted by 1 point.
Asian markets were mostly lower: Tokyo’s Nikkei shed 112 points amid a stronger yen, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng added 31 points, and China’s Shanghai Composite dropped 9 points.
The Australian share market snapped three days of losses to end yesterday’s session 0.8 per cent stronger. The S&P/ASX 200 index closed 42 points up to finish at 5,276. On the futures market the SPI is 11 points lower.
Economic news
The Australian Bureau of Statistics will release its job vacancies data today.
Company news
Qantas Airways Limited
(ASX:QAN) has inked a $4.3 million tourism deal with the Tasmanian government to promote the state internationally and in Australia. The airline says it will target visitors from the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Singapore and Australia. The deal includes advertising special airfares and promoting major events. Shares in Qantas lifted 1.66 per cent yesterday to close at $1.53.
Telstra Corporation Limited
(ASX:TLS) decision to sack over 1000 workers has been criticised by unions who say the telco will use cheaper sub-contractors to work on the copper network rather than its own technicians. Telstra says the cuts to its operations business are necessary to simplify the company and focus on growth. Telstra shares closed flat yesterday at $4.93.
Commodities
Gold is up $19.90 to $US1,336 an ounce for the December contract on Comex. Silver is up $0.30 to $21.89 for December. Copper is up $0.02 at $3.27 a pound. Oil is down $0.47 at US$102.66 a barrel for November light crude in New York.
