Thursday 5th October – Australian Market Rap! | Beeks Downunder-Because not all financial news is boring!

On the tapes…

ASX 200 drifts to close down 0.3 points to 5652.
High 5674 Low 5651. Light volumes again.
QAN takes off for an all-time high.
Banks weigh on broker sector downgrade.
Big miners find buyers on metal prices and PMI numbers.
Energy dips with staples rebounding.
Healthcare survives.
Retail sales numbers disappoint.
Trade data positive.
AUD falls to 78.30c on ABS data.
US Futures up 4.
Asian markets flatlining with Japan down 0.02% though HK up 0.73% China still closed.

STOCK STUFF

Ex Dividend

Movers and Shakers

QBE +1.68% bounces on broker support.
MFG +1.68% rally continues.
MQG +0.17% going getting tougher.
FLT -1.37% retail sales numbers hurt.
MYR -1.30% demand fading.
RWC -5.64% Challenger sells down stake.
SUL -0.87% retail sales numbers.
TNE +3.96% after broker upgrade after falls yesterday
PPH +7.39% broker upgrade.
MSB +6.33% breaks above 200-day MA.
A2M +4.75% back in favour. SM1 +6.43% follows.
QAN +3.20% broker upgrade. All time high.
XRO +4.07% continues higher on good news from UK.
EML +5.88% positive announcement.
PHK +2.63% insider’s insight announces a significant project.
AU8 +193.7%% Reverse take-over. First day trading after 8c raising.
APT -2.13% directors interest
Speculative stocks of the day: TAR +66.04% after announcing it was going into the lithium business with a project in the Congo.
Biggest risers – PPT, MSB, EML, PLS, A2M and WGX
Biggest fallers – RWC, AHY, WSA, IGO, YAL and BLA.

TODAY

Woodside Petroleum(WPL) -0.45% has joined US major Chevron in three new exploration blocks off the north-west coast. The three permits, WA-528-P, WA-529-P and WA-530-P, are located about 250 kilometres north-west of the LNG plants of Pluto, the North- West Shelf venture, Gorgon and Wheatstone.
Animoca Brands (AB1) -+21.43% secures licence for Masterchef. Agreement is with Endemol Shine North America.
Topbetta (TBH) -1.37% Quarterly active users 10,904 – up 20% on the pcp. Wagering and tournament revenue up 46% to $3.34m
EML Limited (EML) +5.88% Announces its US subsidiary has entered into an agreement with InfoSync for B2B virtual payments. InfoSync provides outsourced accounting, payroll services to more than 7,500 restaurants in the US, and plans to utilise EML to integrate a payment system into its accounting platform. Up 0.98% on the announcement.
Reliance Worldwide (RWC) -5.64% Challenger sells down substantial holding to 7.94% from 9.19%.

ECONOMIC NEWS

Australia’s trade surplus widened 22% to $989m in August, from an upwardly revised $810m in July while market estimated $850m.

Retail trade has fallen 0.6% in August, well short of forecasts of +0.3%. Biggest fall in 4 1/2 years.

The housing market is now making front page of Bloomberg globally. Not a positive for the banks. Prices up 70% in the last five years in Sydney.

BOND MARKET

ASIAN MARKETS

Chinese investors are believed to have paused all investments overseas until this year’s Chinese National Party Congress in November is over.
Not just Sydney and Melbourne overvalued.

For a look at how the world’s economy is travelling tracking big Tonka toys like Bulldozers is now a leading indicator analysts’ watch. The 470,000 machines sold by Komatsu almost continuously transmit their position and other key information back to the company in Japan. The company collects data from about 140,000 machines in operation in Japan, 110,000 in China, 50,000 in Europe and 70,000 in North America. Results can be accessed on their web site.

Asahi Group climbed to a record intraday high in Tokyo on Thursday after the Japanese beverage maker announced it would raise the prices it charged for bottles and kegs of beer for the first time in a decade.

EUROPE AND US MORNING HEADLINES

Google unveils new hardware products in bid to catch up with Apple, Amazon.
Few Fed heads out and about tonight. Jerome Powell, John Williams, Patrick Harker, Esther George.
Amazon and Apple have been hit in an EU tax crackdown.
Ireland has sold its first ever bond with a coupon of zero percent, with the country effectively being paid to borrow Eur4bn over five years.
Theresa May had a shocker overnight with a coughing fit and the sign falling apart behind her. Could have been worse, at least the sign only lost the ‘c’ from country.