The COB from ausbiz

A third consecutive day of gains for the ASX 200, with the major index closing up 0.8%. All sectors finished the day in the green except for the energy and utilities sectors. The tech sector surged more than 5% thanks to bond yields holding firm. Industrials and miners also had a strong day. The RBA kept the official cash rate on hold at 0.10%, with a reiteration of the message that it is unlikely...

After a strong lead in this morning thanks to Joe Biden's announcement of a US$2 trillion infrastructure package, it was a choppy day on the local market which saw a late afternoon rally in the financials get us up by 0.6%. Tech and miners led the gainers thanks to bond yields holding and rising steel and gold prices respectively. Real estate was the only sector to finish in the red (just). O...

A real green and gold day here on Aussie markets. Quarter end flows helped push the local index to a five-week high - closing up 0.78%. The local bourse outperformed regional markets with all sectors finishing in the green. Gold names alone missed out, thanks to spot prices dropping as bond yields rose once again and the US dollar strengthened. Out of session US futures are flat, signalling anothe...

The local bourse closed down 0.9% as investors watched the horizon for a contagion effect of the Archegos Capital liquidation and US$20 billion losses for Credit Suisse and Nomura. Metals and mining, utilities, healthcare and energy led the losers (despite iron ore prices up) while communications was the only sector to finish in the green. Out of session US futures are sitting slightly higher. Our...

After a strong lead in from Wall St, the major index started the day in the green before a slide began mid-morning, that ultimately saw it close down 0.36%. Industrials and materials were the only sectors to finish in positive territory with tech, communications leading the losers. Consumer discretionary was also down heavily after Morgan Stanley said it had become more wary about the sector. In l...

The local market drifted higher ending a solid week for the local market - up around 1.8%. Most sectors finished in the green, led by strong performances in materials, communications and tech. Window dressing may be a factor in some of the market moves due to the proximity to quarter-end. Energy even managed to rally despite a decline in crude prices of more than 4% overnight. US futures are...

Like cheap cologne this was a trading day full of false promise, where even the ex-dividend stocks were performing well in the first hour or so. Then came the hits - like Westpac running the ruler over its New Zealand operations, and Resolute Mining losing the lease to its Bibiani gold mine. Westpac lost a half-a-percentage point, Resolute lost 27 of them. The BNPL space also had a negat...

After some underperforming for much of the past week, the local market managed a solid rebound today - bucking the trend around the region. The local index closed up 0.57%. A lower Aussie dollar and lower bond yields, as well as quarter end flows all contributed to the gains. All sectors finished in the green except for energy (crude prices took a hit overnight), industrials and resources. Our top...

Like many Sydneysiders struggling with the dour weather today, the local bourse looked like it should have stayed in bed, sliding to a 0.11% drop. A lack of fresh catalysts and unease about the inflation story that's driven the cyclical recovery, as well as pessimistic remarks from Angela Merkel midway through the session, all contributed to the drop. The debut of Airtasker (ART) was one of the br...

Consumer discretionary and healthcare led the gains on a day of trade that continued the reflation theme but in a less rational, more abstract manner. If the trading day were a price of art it'd have been a wet, relatively cheap Jackson Pollock. The ASX 200 closed up 0.7%. The iron ore miners were under pressure after a steep fall in Dalian futures - Fortescue in particular making a right meal of...

Aussie stocks remained range bound today in a scenario that's been familiar through out the course of this year. The ASX 200 finished down 0.6%. A late slide on Wall St set the tone, sparked again by a jump in long dated bond yields. Heavy losses in energy, materials, industrials were partly offset by strength in REITs and utilities. Tech stocks recovered most of their early losses to close d...

After pushing higher in early trade the ASX when into reverse mid-morning, after a better-then-expected February unemployment rate (5.8%) with the prospect of higher interest rates, ending the day down 0.7%. Our guest today, Sven Henrich, the NorthmanTrader, says the Fed has backed itself into a corner with its commitment to low rates for longer. Has the RBA done the same? Our top three VODs today...

A red St Patrick's day on the local market as risk-off sentiment took hold ahead of tomorrow morning's FOMC meeting. Never mind expectations that it'll be more of the same from the Fed which will be working to keep a lid on bond yields. The CXA 200 index closed down 0.63%. Consumer discretionary, tech and utilities were the gainers while materials and energy led the losers. Out of session futures...

The ASX 200 came back to life today, with a 0.8% jump to a three-week high of 6827.1. Tech, REITs and healthcare sectors were all helped by a decline in long bond rates. The market hit its high before the release of the RBA minutes, which were more dovish that the market had anticipated. Westpac believes the RBA will extend yield curve control by another six months, which helped drive further gain...

A flat finish for the local bourse with a gain of just 0.09%. Healthcare and real estate led the gains - curiously the latter, as a bond proxy, would typically dip when bond yields rise. Meanwhile while materials and tech were the biggest losers with the buy-now-pay-later names in particular hit hard - Afterpay down 4.5%, Sezzle down 6.1% and Zip down 1.2%. Our top three VODs today are: Morningsta...

Australian stocks ended a disappointing week on a positive note, helped by some dip buying in beaten-down tech stocks and record closes on Wall St for the Dow and S&P 500. Materials, energy and IT all finished strongly. Materials were helped by a gain in base commodities overnight as well as a rebound in the crude price. Financial and staples were the underperformers. Our top three V...

A disappointing session today in what has been a disappointing week. Despite other markets in the region rallying hard, the ASX 200 managed to closed flat. Local tech stocks were hit hard once again despite gains in regional tech indices and declining global bond yields, which would typically support the sector. Afterpay was the biggest BNPL loser (down 5.28%) with Sezzle and Zip also down. Health...

After starting the day in the green, the ASX 200 slid into the red mid-morning as jitters took hold and Chinese inflation data was better than expected. The materials sector came under pressure from lower iron ore prices with Fortescue and Rio Tinto down 8.34% and 5.54% respectively. Meanwhile, gold miners benefited from the pullback in real yields, with Ramelius Resources up 9.79%, West Afri...

The major index finished the day up 0.5% despite yet another afternoon dip, this time dragged down by the tech names, which have responded negatively to rising bond yields. Intervention from Chinese state-backed investment funds helped to stabilise markets after early losses across Asia. A slight reduction in US real yields also mitigated losses in the tech sector heading into the close....

The local bourse surged at the open after a strong Friday night lead in from Wall St but trailed off this afternoon to close up 0.43%. Declines across Asian markets contributed to the afternoon decline, as did out-of-session US futures. The lack of follow through in the US suggests that the stimulus package was largely dismissed by investors. Also that concerns around rising bond yields have yet t...

It was another forgettable performance from the local market, wallowing in negative territory throughout Friday’s session. It was a disappointing end to a week that started with so much promise, undermined yet again by a sharp spike in long bond yields overnight. Most sectors finished in the red with healthcare, consumer discretionary, information technology and materials nursing losses of more th...

Early on there was cause for joy, oh yes, there were even brief bouts of optimism following a decent lead overnight for materials, but by the end of the session we were down to the tune of 1.1%. Local data revealing a record trade surplus did little to boost sentiment. CSL, BHP, Rio Tinto and Woolworths were ex-dividend, weighing down the broader market. But misery loves company and it's some...

Local equities rebounded on Wednesday, helped by an improvement in risk appetite across the region and a stronger-than-expected Australian GDP report. After lagging yesterday, materials were the standout performer for the session, jumping over 3% on the back of large gains in bulk and base commodity futures. Financials were also in demand, helped by confirmation Australia’s economy has recovered s...

It was a case of what could have been for the local market today with a strong opening bounce fizzling into the close, a disappointing result following strong gains on Monday. All sectors except financials and consumer staples finished lower, led by materials and energy which shed more than 1.5%. Information technology was also pressured, sliding 0.7%, giving up substantial early gains. Remar...

Australian shares surged to start the trading week, recouping some of the steep losses seen on Friday. Large caps drove the move, outpacing more modest gains across the smaller end of the market. All sectors finished higher, helped by the Reserve Bank of Australia’s surprise decision to drastically increase the size of bond purchases further out the curve, helping to send yields on benchmark 10-ye...