Australian shares flat as miners gain, banks drag
The local share market was basically flat at midday, with losses for the big banks and CSL balanced by gains by the mining giants and uranium developers.
The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index had been down as many as 40 points, or 0.4 per cent, in early trading on Monday.
But by lunchtime it had recovered to 3.3 points higher at 8,288.5, while the broader All Ordinaries was up 6.4 points at 8,545.3.
IG analyst Tony Sycamore said that two prominent themes were weighting on the local index: the Trump trade, characterised by tariffs and a stronger US dollar, and the repercussions of China’s recent disappointing stimulus announcement
“These trends are unlikely to dissipate anytime soon, and both are headwinds for commodities and resource stocks,” he said.
At midday six of the ASX’s 11 sectors were higher and three were lower, with property and industrials flat.
Utilities was the biggest mover, gaining 1.7 per cent as Origin Energy added 1.9 per cent.
The heavyweight mining sector was up 1.4 per cent, with BHP up 1.2 per cent, Rio Tinto advancing 2.2 per cent and Fortescue climbing 0.6 per cent.
Goldminers were also doing well as the precious metal traded just under $US2,600 an ounce.
Northern Star had grown 2.7 per cent, Evolution had climbed 3.9 per cent and Regis Resources was 3.6 per cent higher.
All of the big four banks were lower, with ANZ and NAB both down 0.9 per cent, CBA dropping 1.5 per cent and Westpac dipping 0.1 per cent.
Uranium developers Deep Yellow, Boss Energy and Paladin were the top three gainers in the ASX200, all up between 8.6 and 6.6 per cent, possibly responding to optimism that US President-elect Donald Trump would boost the industry.
On the flip side, Life360 was the biggest loser, down 7.0 per cent after the family location sharing tech company announced that chief executive Chris Hulls had sold down a portion of his shareholding.
In currency, the Australian dollar was buying 64.72 US cents, from 64.61 US cents at Friday’s ASX close.
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