Shares on Wall St dip on Grexit concerns
Before the Bell | Shares on Wall Street have ended mostly lower, paring earlier gains in the final hour of trading, on concerns about the potential of Greece exiting the euro ■ Dow dips 0.01pc ■ S&P 500 up 0.05pc ■ SPI futures down 17 pts ■ $A at 98.14US cents.
Wall St ends flat after late bout of volatility
US stocks closed mostly flat on Tuesday after volatility late in the session, with weakness in materials and energy shares offsetting strength in financials.
Retail stocks face mundane times
As consumers continue to favour buying over the internet and desert bricks-and-mortar stores, the possibility of retail shares rebounding looks bleak.
ASIC to take on liquidators
The corporate regulator has launched 10 investigations into liquidators this year, as it pledges to step up its scrutiny of the industry in its annual review.
Rate cut tips get ‘too extreme’
Market predictions of further monetary easing measures from the Reserve Bank of Australia have become too extreme, strategists say, leaving some room for recovery for the Australian dollar.
Bonds, shares buck trend and rise together
There’s a growing disconnect between shares and government bonds. Usually when bond prices rise, share prices fall. This time around however, both bond prices and share prices are rising in concert.
Oil falls as IAEA sees deal with Iran
Oil fell on Tuesday in choppy trading as indications a deal may be near on Iran’s nuclear program eased worries about oil supply disruptions, countering supportive US home resale data.
Sustainability risk in high-yield stocks
Investors focused on yields against a backdrop of low credit growth should be alert to the risk of unsustainably high payouts.
Dragon economy on the rise
A leading index for China rose at the same pace in April as the prior month, offering some comfort that the world’s second-biggest economy may avoid a deeper slowdown.
Greece will have to abandon the euro
Boris Johnson | It is unbelievable that we should be urging fiscal union. It is like seeing a driver heading for a brick wall, and then telling them to hit the accelerator rather than the brake.
World Indices
| S&P/ASX 200 | 4,121.0 | + 47.4 | + 1.16% |
| ALL ORDINARIES | 4,173.5 | + 49.1 | + 1.19% |
| S&P/ASX 100 | 3,370.0 | + 37.8 | + 1.13% |
| SMALL ORDS | 2,220.8 | + 35.9 | + 1.64% |
| Dow Jones | 12,502.81 | - 1.67 | - 0.01% |
| S&P 500 INDEX | 1,316.63 | + 0.64 | + 0.05% |
| NASDAQ COMPOSITE | 2,839.08 | - 8.13 | - 0.29% |
| Wilshire 5000 | 13,846.42 | + 194.44 | + 1.42% |
| FTSE 100 | 5,403.28 | + 98.80 | + 1.86% |
| CAC 40 INDEX | 3,084.09 | + 56.94 | + 1.88% |
| SMI PR | 5,910.20 | + 95.61 | + 1.64% |
| XETRA DAX PF | 6,435.60 | + 104.56 | + 1.65% |
| HANG SENG INDEX | 19,039.15 | + 116.83 | + 0.62% |
| STRAITS TIMES | 2,823.75 | + 33.59 | + 1.20% |
| NIKKEI 225 INDEX | 8,729.29 | + 95.40 | + 1.10% |
| SSE COMPOSITE/d | 2,373.31 | + 25.01 | + 1.06% |
Currencies
| AUD | USD | EUR | JPY | GBP | |
| AUD |  |
0.9808 | 0.773 | 78.44 | 0.6222 |
| USD | 1.0193 |  |
0.7881 | 79.99 | 0.6344 |
| EUR | 1.2926 | 1.2684 |  |
101.46 | 0.8047 |
| JPY | 0.0127 | 0.0125 | 0.0098 |  |
0.0079 |
| GBP | 1.6059 | 1.5759 | 1.2419 | 126.04 |  |
Is the US Fed softening us up for something?
It was just the strangest of comments. Atlanta Fed president Dennis Lockhart had just finished explaining why markets shouldn’t expect a further round of large scale asset purchases unless we saw a severe drop-off in economic performance.
We’re not the safe haven we think we are
With respect to former federal Treasury secretary Ken Henry, the possibility that the Australian dollar could act as a “safe haven” during the European financial crisis is likely a pipe dream.
Jobless need help and motivation
With the welfare lobby still complaining that Newstart Allowance recipients are on the poverty line, the issue is far from closed.
Charge into fixed income
Global fixed-income fund manager PIMCO is amassing up to $5 million a day in client inflows from Australian retail investors as sharemarket uncertainty pummels investor confidence.
Europe holds sway over monetary policy
With the Reserve Bank board due to meet in just over two weeks, concerns about the European crisis are increasingly dominating Australia’s monetary policy considerations.
Strategists warn against $A optimism
The Australian dollar managed to snap a six-day losing streak on Monday following the weekend’s Group of Eight summit, but strategists say the bump may be short-lived.
Letting go of the euro might be better for everyone
Two decades ago, when Europe’s leaders worked out the details of their grand vision for a single currency, most economists figured out that the euro would be fatally flawed.
Taking stock
Beach Energy (BPT)
Mid-cap oil and gas play Beach Energy is trading near a seven-month low amid uncertainty about the prospects for a partnership for its shale gas interests in the Cooper Basin.
Thorn Group (TGA)
Thorn Group’s share price jumped more than 5 per cent after it announced a 26.4 per cent rise in net profit to $27.8 million for the year to March.
Equity Markets
Facebook shares slide as prospects questioned
Facebook’s shares fell again on Tuesday, leaving them down more than a quarter from Friday’s highs as questions mounted over the company’s financial prospects.
Wall St gains on housing but rally ebbs
Financial and housing shares nudged Wall Street higher on Tuesday after US existing home sales rose in April to their highest rate in nearly two years.
Debt Markets
Fitch downgrades Japan rating to A-plus
The ratings agency Fitch on Tuesday lowered its assessment of Japan’s sovereign credit to A-plus, an investment grade just above the likes of Spain and Italy.
Hollande on collision course with Merkel over bonds
Germany has dismissed a French-led call for EU governments to issue common bonds, a day before a summit which investors are looking to for new measures to counter the bloc’s debt crisis.
Currency Markets
Hollande on collision course with Merkel over bonds
Germany has dismissed a French-led call for EU governments to issue common bonds, a day before a summit which investors are looking to for new measures to counter the bloc’s debt crisis.
Rate cut tips get ‘too extreme’
Market predictions of further monetary easing measures from the Reserve Bank of Australia have become too extreme, strategists say, leaving some room for recovery for the Australian dollar.
