Australian Stock Market Report – Midday 11/27/13

MID-SESSION REPORT
(12.30pm AEDT)

Over the first 2.5 hours of trade, the All Ordinaries Index (XAO) has improved, lost ground and traded flat. At lunch, the index is 0.2 per cent weaker, losing ground for the first time in four trading days.

The big four banks are the standouts, with the financial sector up 0.25 per cent, while the mining companies are preventing the broader equities market from improving.

The DOW index closed above 16,000 points for the fourth straight day, the tech specific NASDAQ finished above 4,000 points for the first time since September 2000 and the S&P500 remained above 1800 points for the third straight day. Volumes are likely to subdued in the US due to the Thanksgiving holiday tomorrow.

Gold producer Newcrest Mining (NCM) is the biggest loser, down 4.5 per cent and taking the losses since January to 65 per cent. A 25 per cent slump in the gold price this year has been squeezing its margins and pushed its shares down to fresh 10-year lows. NCM was worth around $30 billion back in 2010, although now has a market cap of just $6 billion.

The Bank of Queensland (BOQ) holds its Annual General Meeting today. Chairman Roger Davis said that a broad-based recovery is still a good 12 months away however; believes the 'cup is half full' in relation to the business's prospects. BOQ is up 0.08 per cent at lunch and has surged by 68 per cent YTD (Year-To-Date). BOQ has a 4.6 per cent dividend yield.

On the economic front, the September quarter's Construction Work report was issued at 11.30am (AEDT) and was four times better than expected (reading of +2.7 per cent). This will plug straight into the GDP calculations which will be released to the market next Wednesday. A change in the rate setting next month is quite unlikely.

Building products company, James Hardie (JHX) is up 2.7 per cent; a standout despite no news out by the company.

The Australian dollar lost some ground following disappointing consumer sentiment numbers out of the US last night.

1.1 billion shares have changed hands at lunch, worth $1.89 billion. 356 stocks are higher, 447 are in the red and 294 are unchanged.

[Kick off your trading day with our newsletter]