Australian shares close higher led by banks; All Ords at new high |
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Published
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Mon, 19 Feb 2007 06:51
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SYDNEY (XFN-ASIA) - Share prices closed higher as investor sentiment bounced back from Friday's profit-taking, sending the All Ordinaries index to a fresh record close, dealers said.Banking stocks led the market higher, including Australia & New Zealand Banking Group after it announced a 4.05 aud a share bid for the remaining 65.8 pct of online share-trading firm E*Trade Australia that it does not already own.The S&P/ASX 200 ended up 36.4 points or 0.61 pct at 5,990.1, edging closer to Thursday's record close of 5,992.8. The index hit an intraday record high of 6,003.2.The broader All Ordinaries index climbed 33.8 points to a record close of 5,969.3, beating Thursday's previous record close of 5,969.1. The index also set a new intraday record of 5,983.0.Dealers said Promina Group, Australia's third largest general insurer and currently the subject of a recommended takeover offer from Brisbane-based Suncorp-Metway, gained after reporting a 7.9 pct increase in 2006 net profit to a record 544.6 mln aud.Childcare provider ABC Learning fell on profit taking despite announcing a 60 pct surge in interim profit to 61.6 mln aud.(1 usd = 1.27 aud)paul.daniel@xfn.com
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Australian shares close lower on profit-taking ahead of Fed meeting 