Australian Sharemarket Closes Firmer with BHP and Several Major Stocks Driving the Market Higher

Strategic Insights -

The Australian sharemarket closed firmer on strong trade, with diversified miner BHP and several major stocks fueling the market. The benchmark all ordinaries index rose 9.3 points to 2749.3, with major stocks like News Corp and National Australia Bank also contributing to the gains. The strong performance was driven by the telcos and overseas markets, which were also strong. The Dow Jones Industrial Average index in New York climbed 84.97 points to 8875.57 overnight, while the Nikkei in Japan climbed 134 points to 14261 and the Hong Kong's Hang Seng was 182.9 points higher at 10266.2 in afternoon trade.

Key Takeaways:

  • The Australian sharemarket closed firmer on strong trade, with the benchmark all ordinaries index rising 9.3 points to 2749.3.
  • Diversified miner BHP was a major driver of the market, with the stock rising 33 cents to $12.00, a 2.83% gain.
  • Major stocks like News Corp and National Australia Bank also contributed to the gains, with the two stocks rising 2.98% and 2.78%, respectively.
  • The strong performance was driven by the telcos and overseas markets, which were also strong, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average index in New York climbing 84.97 points to 8875.57 overnight.
  • BHP announced that it would wind up the controversial Beswick Pty Ltd, pending shareholder approval, at a cost of A$75 million (US$46.5 million).
  • The bank index stacked on 35.6 points to 6306.6, largely on the strength of National Australia Bank which rocketed 67 cents higher to $24.80.
  • Among the leading players, Suncorp Metway dropped 15.4 to $7.856 and Macquarie Bank slid 15 to $15.55.
  • US investment bank Salomon Smith Barney recommended to its investors yesterday to take some profits on AMP, which tumbled a further 30 to $20.21.
  • Reinsurance Aust surged 16.4 to $3.48, QBE gained 11.8 to $6.958, Colonial firmed 11 to $5.50, and National Mutual rallied eight to $2.97.

Statistics:

  • Preliminary national turnover was 434.47 million shares traded for A$1.8 billion (US$1.1 billion), with falling stocks outnumbering rising stocks 579 to 538 and 360 stocks remaining steady.
  • The December share price index contract added 10 to 2772 points - a 22.7 point premium to the physical market - with 11526 lots traded.
  • BHP closed 33 cents stronger at $12.00, a 2.83% gain.
  • Rio Tinto helped boost the all resource index 3.8 points to 965.6, despite generally weaker commodity prices overnight.
  • The gold index tumbled 15.5 to 1119.2 points, with Newcrest shedding eight to $2.22, Normandy sliding four to $1.54 and Lihir remaining steady at $1.87.
  • The spot price of gold bullion in Sydney this afternoon was $US292.00 an ounce, down from yesterday's close of $US294.80.

Sources:

  • Asia Pulse
  • COMTEX (http://www.comtexnews.com)