ASX 200 finishes with a whimper not a bang up 12 points to 7313 (0.2%) Dow futures up 45 points. A soggy close with material stocks and TLS doing the heavy lifting. Some optimism sapped on CV19 case numbers and enthusiasm waned in the PM session with a soggy close. BHP rose 1.1%, FMG up 0.9% and MIN up 4.0% as iron ore rose. Gold miners remain under pressure, ILU rose 11.7% on the RIO force majeure at its Richards Bay Minerals on security issues. Base metal stocks doing ok, IGO up 2.7% and S32 up 1.0%. Banks were mixed with the Big Bank Basket at $180.05. CBA a big loser today down 0.6%. Healthcare eased as CSL fell 1.6% on vaccine issues. Industrials better with TCL up 0.1%, Travel stocks bouncing back as the lockdown could be limited to two weeks. WEB up 3.6% and FLT up 2.1%. Tech stocks a little bit underwhelming with APT down 1.9% and the All-Tech Index down 0.2 %. In corporate news, AGL is down 10.0% as it disappoints on demerger talk and a step-down in earnings. TLS up 4.4% after sell 49% of its Towers business to a consortium of Super Funds for $2.8bn. Talks of a capital return in the works. NXL is off 13%, continuing to attract all the wrong headlines, now embroiled in an insider trading probe. In economic news we now have 20.1m cars registered in Australia, 23,000 EVs registered last year up 62%. Still tiny. 10-year yields steady at 1.54%. Asian markets slightly positive, China up 0.6% as birthday celebrations continue. Japan, not a candle in sight, unchanged.

Today’s Highlights

  • ASX 200 rises 12 to 7313. Ends with a whimper not a bang.
  • High 7370 Low 7307.
  • Dow futures up 45.
  • For the half year the ASX 200 is up around 11%. For the FY it is up 24%
  • Big Bank Basket slips to $180.05.
  • All Tech Index down 0.2%.
  • Australian Gold slips to $2337
  • 10-year yield steady at 1.54%
  • AUD drifts to 75.21c
  • Bitcoin steady at US$34876
  • Asian markets mixed with Japan unchanged. and China up 0.6%.

STOCKS

  • RF1 -10.83% ex div 75c.
  • AGL -9.99% trading update and split update.
  • KGN -9.46% sellers take charge.
  • CKF -4.26% no finger lickin’ here.
  • NXL -12.99% insider trading charges.
  • MMM +6.04% lockdown winner.
  • LTR +9.68% follows CHN higher.
  • TLS +4.44% sells towers to Future Fund.
  • NCK +7.03% sofa so good.
  • LOV +6.27% buys lingerie chain Honey Birdette
  • IOD +22.73% signs material contract.
  • VMS +11.11% CHN JV hits Julimar style results.
  • AMS +11.46% trading update.
  • SYA +17.57% court approval for NAL acquisition.
  • MGT -10.23% reality bites on resource estimate.
  • YOJ -11.90% profit taking.
  • ADN -16.67% completes placement at 15c.
  • CDM +1.42% Deep Sea update.
  • Speculative Stock of the Day: Mandrake Resources (MAN) +21.43% Can see no reasons
    ‘Cause there are no reasons- What reasons do you need? Only one with any volume.
  • Biggest Winners: ILU, LTR, OCL, NCK, 360, LOV, MMM, EQT and IFM .
  • Biggest Losers: NXL, RF1, AGL, KGN, OPH, APX, CKF and ADO.

TODAY

  • Rio Tinto (RIO) +1.31% Declares force majeure on customer contracts at Richards Bay Minerals in South Africa due to an escalation in the security situation at the operations. All mining and smelting operations at RBM have been halted until further notice. The Zulti South project has remained on full suspension since the security and community issues in 2019.
  • IGO Limited (IGO) +2.69% Completes $5m expenditure milestone and earns 70% interest in the Fraser Range JV tenements, up from 51%.
  • Sezzle (SZL) -2.11% Sports & pop culture blog, Barstool Sports launches partnership with Sezzle.
  • Telstra Corp (TLS) +4.44% Sells 49% of its Towers business to a consortium of Super Funds for $2.8bn.The transaction values Telstra InfraCo Towers at $5.9bn, representing an FY21 pro forma EV/EBITDA multiple of 28x. Telstra intends to return approximately 50% of net proceeds to shareholders in FY22. Management comments, “we anticipate providing further details about the manner in which we will return those proceeds, including a potential share buy-back in FY22, at our full-year results in August.” InfraCo Towers will operate under a board, chaired by InfraCo CEO, Brendon Riley.
  • AGL Energy (AGL) –9.99% Expects FY21 underlying EBITDA to be at the lower half of the prior guided $1,585-1,845m range. Underlying profit is expected to be around the middle of the $500-580m range. AGL continues to anticipate a material step-down in earnings as a result of lower wholesale electricity prices, the non-recurrence of insurance proceeds and increases to wholesale gas supply costs. The board believes proceeding with the proposed demerger will be in the best interests of shareholders, protecting value and providing greater strategic focus. AGL Energy Limited to become Accel Energy Limited, a baseload power producer focused on the redevelopment of its sites as low-carbon industrial energy hubs.
  • Nuix (NXL)-12.99%ASIC is conducting an investigation in relation to Nuix’s former CFO, Stephen Doyle, Ross Doyle and Ronald Doyle. Nuix said it is fully committed to cooperating in any such investigation.
  • Vicinity Centres (VCX) -0.64% CFO Nicholas Schiffer to step down. Vicinity’s Director of strategy and corporate finance, Adrian Chye has been appointed Acting CFO while search for a new CFO is undertaken.

ECONOMIC NEWS

  • There were 20.1m vehicles registered in Australia in 2021. 23,000 EVs up 62%. Toyota topped the list of passenger vehicles for the 16th consecutive year with 3.0 million registrations. Mostly HiAce Utes.

BOND MARKETS

CV19 NEWS

  • Vaccine Tracker: 3.01bn doses in 180 countries.43.2m a day.
  • Australia has an average of 111,617 does a day. 9 months to cover 75% of population.
  • Alice Springs outbreak raises fears for indigenous population.

ASIAN NEWS

  • China’s manufacturing output continued to expand in June. The official manufacturing purchasing managers’ index was little changed at 50.9 in June from 51 in May.
  • The non-manufacturing gauge, which measures activity in the construction and services sectors, came in worse than expected at 53.5.
  • Employment remained in contraction, with the sub-index for manufacturing jobs rising slightly to 49.2 in June but worsening to 48 for non-manufacturing.
  • Premium tea chain Nayuki raised US$656m in Hong Kong. Bubble Tea says it all. More than 90% of Nayuki’s outlets in mainland China are in Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities.
  • U.S. and Taiwan will sit down Wednesday for long-stalled trade talks, with computer chips and vaccines likely replacing pork and beef as the main topics of discussion.

US AND EUROPEAN HEADLINES

  • Microsoft and Google end six-year truce on regulators which are scrutinising barriers to competition.
  • England beat Germany 2-0. As if you didn’t know.
  • Didi raised at least US$4bn in NYSE listing.
  • US house prices rise at the fastest in 30 years.
  • Online crypto platform eToro predicts more regulation ahead.

And finally…

Clarence

XXX