The Australian share market is set for a soft start to the trading week, after a mixed session on Wall Street following a weaker-than-expected read on US employment.
US economic news
The US economy added just 74,000 jobs in December, significantly missing the 197,000 jobs analysts had forecast. However, some analysts are saying the December job numbers may just be an anomaly.
Currencies
The Australian dollar pushed above 90 US cents on the back of those disappointing American job numbers. At 7:20AM the Aussie was buying $US90.04 cents, 54.66 Pence Sterling, 93.58 Yen and 65.87 Euro cents.
Figures
Wall Street was relatively subdued at the close of its Friday session: The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 8 points to close at 16,437, the S&P500 added 4 points to close at 1,842 and the Nasdaq lifted by 18 points to close at 4,175.
European equities climbed to 5 and-a-half-year highs on Friday, boosted by strong company updates.London’s FTSE jumped 49 points, Paris added 25 points and Frankfurt lifted by 52 points.
Asian markets were a mixed bag: Tokyo’s Nikkei added 32 points, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 59 points, and China’s Shanghai Composite dropped 14 points.
The Australian share market ended last week in the red following weaker than expected Chinese data. The S&P/ASX 200 index lost 12 points on Friday, widening the weekly fall of 38 points to finish at 5,312. On the futures market the SPI is 4 points down.
Economic news
The Australian Bureau of Statistics will release national housing finance data for November today.
Company news
OM Holdings Limited
(ASX:OMH) Chief Executive Peter Toth has resigned to take up a senior role with a leading multinational resources group. He will remain in the position until April 4, with Mr Low Ngee Tong to assume the role until a permanent arrangement is implemented. Shares in OM Holdings lifted 1.27 per cent on Friday to close at 40 cents.
Telstra Corporation Limited
(ASX:TLS) has been fined $510,000 for failing to provide timely new urban landline customer connections in the 2012-13 financial year. The Australian Communications and Media Authority says Telstra connected 88.6 per cent of new connections within the required two-day period during the year, however that is below ACMA's 90 per cent benchmark. Shares in Telstra closed flat on Friday at $5.26.
Ex-dividends Countplus Limited
(ASX:CUP) will pay 3 cents per share fully franked.
Commodities
Gold is up $17.50 to $US1,247 an ounce for the February contract on Comex. Silver is up $0.54 to $20.22 for March. Copper is up $0.04 at $3.34 a pound. Oil is up $1.06 at US$92.72 a barrel for February light crude in New York.
