Australian shares close down on uncertainty over metal prices - UPDATE |
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Wed, 10 Jan 2007 07:01
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SYDNEY (XFN-ASIA) - Share prices closed lower as investors remained cautious over metal prices, which led to a significant reversal of yesterday's rally in the resources sector, dealers said.They said the negative sentiment spread to defensive stocks such as the banks, while energy stocks fell on lower oil prices overnight.The S&P/ASX 200 dropped 68.8 points or 1.23 pct to close at 5,520.9.The broader All Ordinaries index retreated 62.0 points or 1.11 pct to close at 5,502.1.Dealers said home building products maker James Hardie fell after a broking firm downgraded its recommendation to 'neutral' from 'outperform'.James Hardie shares lost 0.24 aud or 2.44 pct to finish at 9.59 aud while Rinker fell 0.15 to 17.77.However, gas and oil infrastructure group Alinta added to yesterday's gain when the company confirmed it was looking at a management buyout proposal.Alinta shares ended up 0.38 or 3.01 pct at 13.01.Bendigo Mining recovered some of yesterday's sell-off that occurred when the gold miner announced it had closed its single mine for an indefinite period.Bendigo Mining shares added 0.025 or 8.33 pct to close at 0.32.A total of 1.68 bln shares traded, worth 5.66 bln aud, with falls outnumbering rises 727 to 455 while 349 stocks were unchanged.The S&P/ASX200 March futures contract was down 66.0 points at 5,516.0.The 10-year bond yield was up 0.010 at 5.865 pct while 90-day bills gained 0.010 at 6.425 pct.Reynolds & Co private client advisor Michael Heffernan said selling gathered momentum in afternoon trading as Asian markets turned down on profit-taking after rising to record levels at the end of 2006.'We are seeing quite a bit of volatility at the moment but volumes were good today so there was quite a bit of activity,' Heffernan said.He said markets appear to be uncertain about the near-term direction of commodity prices even though indicators suggest continuing strong global economic growth, with Europe picking up, China remaining strong and a question mark hanging over the extent of a slowdown in US growth.'There's no particular reason for the selling other than the concerns you hear about credit risks, with consumer sentiment still strong and perhaps some concerns about the funding of private equity buyouts and to what extent banks have exposure to that,' Heffernan said.He said the market is likely to remain volatile ahead of December half profit reports next month but a lack of profit-warnings suggest another healthy reporting season.BHP Billiton shares lost 0.69 or 2.79 pct to close at 24.01 while Rio Tinto dropped 1.54 or 2.15 pct to 70.10.Zinifex shed 0.94 to 16.18 but Alumina added 0.01 to 6.17 following its joint venture partner Alcoa reporting a better-than-expected first quarter profit overnight.Newcrest fell 0.51 to 24.29, Lihir Gold lost 0.12 to 2.79 and Oxiana retreated 0.11 to 2.76.Woodside was down 0.83 at 25.30, Oil Search slipped 0.04 to 3.21 but Santos rose 0.10 to 9.90.AGL Energy gained 0.15 aud to 16.80 but its takeover target Origin Energy eased 0.01 to 8.97.National Australia Bank shed 0.75 to 39.65, Commonwealth Bank dropped 0.69 to 48.82, ANZ fell 0.07 to 27.62 and Westpac retreated 0.24 to 23.77.Suncorp-Metway lost 0.30 aud to 25.05, Promina eased 0.08 to 6.85, IAG was down 0.19 at 6.35, AMP fell 0.13 to 10.07 but QBE added 0.04 to 28.54.Telstra slipped 0.01 to 4.09, its T3 receipts also eased 0.01 to 2.66 and SingTel fell 0.01 to 2.68.News Corp climbed 0.57 to 29.55 and its non-voting stock rose 0.46 to 28.25.Woolworths fell 0.09 aud to 22.83 while Coles gained 0.03 to 13.98 and Harvey Norman was steady at 3.94.Qantas eased 0.01 aud to 5.29 despite the large volume traded in the stock, but Virgin Blue jumped 0.13 or 5.9 pct to 2.30 while Toll Holdings fell 0.13 to 18.37.Brambles shed 0.18 aud to 12.64 and Amcor slipped 0.01 to 7.19.(1 usd = 1.28 aud)paul.daniel@xfn.com
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Australian shares outlook - Slightly lower on mixed overseas leads 