Australian Stock Market Report – Afternoon 7/30/13

AFTERNOON REPORT
(5pm AEST)

After initial weakness, the local share market managed to finish flat today after comments from Reserve Bank Governor Glenn Stevens sent buyers back in.

Governor Stevens spoke in Sydney today, giving the strongest indication yet that interest rates will be cut again next week at the August meeting.

Governor Stevens said, "There are clearly signs of policy working in this respect, though not to date, by so much that we see a serious impediment to further easing, were that to be appropriate from an overall macroeconomic point of view."

On the market, financial stocks clawed back earlier losses, with CBA shares closing at a new record high.

Mining stocks regained yesterday's lost ground with BHP Billiton firmer by 0.2 per cent.

Australia's largest supermarket company Woolworths (WOW) released fourth quarter sales numbers today which were largely in line with expectations. Total 4Q sales rose 8.9 per cent to $14.1 billion with strong performance from WOW's food and liquor and home improvement stores. Big W sales disappointed as did WOW's talk of deflation sending WOW shares down 1.6per cent to $33.22

Leighton Holdings (LEI) rose 2.6 per cent to $16.72 after snaring a $2.8 billion contract to build a new luxury casino in Macau.

In economic news today, dwelling approvals fell by 6.9 per cent in June after falling by a revised by 4.3 per cent in May (previously a 1.1 per cent fall). Approvals are down 13 per cent over the year.

On the market overall, a total of 1.5 billion shares changed hands, worth $4.6 billion. 425 were up, 452 were down and 320 were unchanged.

At 4.30pm AEST the SFE 200 Futures Index was at 5004, down 6pts.

Ahead tonight, the S&P CaseShiller home price index is released in the US.

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