Local stocks had another volatile day’s trade, but managed to close in positive territory today, thanks to some late buying in mining companies. The All Ordinaries Index (XAO) added 10.2pts or 0.2pct to 4831.1 while the S&P/ASX 200 Index (XJO) firmed by 10.1pts or 0.2pct to 4725.

Companies which have been under selling pressure this week due to worries about the impact of the Queensland floods managed to do quite well. Macarthur Coal (MCC) rose 5pct to $13.28 while among the insurers, Suncorp-Metway (SUN) rose 2.1pct to $8.68 and IAG (IAG) was up 1.8pct to $3.95.

The big miners finished in positive territory after a negative start. BHP Billiton (BHP) firmed by 0.3pct to $45.14 while Rio Tinto (RIO) added 1.1pct to $86.04 and Fortescue Metals Group (FMG) firmed by 3.3pct to $6.61.

Energy stocks also did well, as the price of crude oil rose back above US$90 a barrel. Shares in Woodside Petroleum (WPL) rose 1.4pct to $42.98 while Oilsearch (OSH) firmed by 1pct to $6.95 and Caltex (CTX) increased by 0.6pct to $14.91.

Among financial stocks, the big four banks closed generally higher after being sold off in early trade. Shares in Westpac (WBC) firmed by 0.5pct to $22.18 while the NAB (NAB) added 0.4pct to $23.76. The Commonwealth Bank (CBA) closed up 0.1 at $49.93. The ANZ (ANZ) fell into the red, down 0.4pct to $23.09 while Macquarie Group (MQG) was firmer by 0.6pct to $37.71.

Retail stocks were sold off. Shares in David Jones (DJS) eased by 0.7pct to $4.41 while Myer Limited (MYR) was down 1.8pct to $3.35. Harvey Norman (HVN) closed steady at $2.90.

Coca-Cola Amatil (CCL) added 1.1pct to $10.96 after forecasting 10pct growth in FY10, despite tipping weaker earnings in the second half. CCL reports FY10 earnings in February.

Economic data released today shows the outlook for home builders is gloomy. Approvals to build news homes slumped by 4.2pct in November. The slide in approvals marked the seventh decline in eight months. Over the past eight months approvals have fallen by 23pct.

The all-important new house segement was down by 2pct and apartment approvals fell by 2pct.

The value of building approvals fell by 3.5pct in November to be down 32.5pct in annual terms, largely driven by a weakness in commercial building.

The value of alterations and additions rose to record highs in trend terms as a growing number of people elect to renovate rather than move.

The services sector is still going backwards. The Performance of Services index rose modestly from 46.2 to 46.4 in December. Any reading below 50 suggests that the services sector is contracting. The services sector contacted for ten months in 2010.

The Australian dollar ended the day’s trade weaker against all the major currencies and at 4.30pm AEDT was worth US99.73c, £0.6431 and €75.88c.

On the market overall, a total of 2.54 billion shares were traded, worth $4.23 billion. 577 were up, 540 were down and 381 were unchanged.

At 4.30pm AEDT on the ASX24, the futures contract was at 4715, up one point.

Ahead tonight, weekly jobless claims data is released in the US.

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