Australia Market edges down ahead of US jobs data

The Australian share market closed edged down on Friday, 03 May 2019, as risk sentiments subdued on tracking soft lead from Wall Street overnight. Meanwhile, investors awaited the U.S. jobs data for April, with nonfarm payrolls set to be released later on Friday stateside amid holidays at China and Japan. At closing bell, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index declined 2.61 points, or 0.04%, at 6,335.80 points, while the broader All Ordinaries dropped 2.82 points, or 0.04%, at 6,427.

Shares of financials were largely mixed as ANZ and NAB reported their half-year results. While ANZ managed to maintain its dividend, NAB said it would cut its payment to shareholders. ANZ gained 0.5%, Westpac gained 0.1%, and Commonwealth was up 0.2%, while NAB fell 0.12%. Macquarie Group fell 5.4% to A$128.81 after the financial services company warned it expected a more subdued performance over the next 12 months.

Materials shares declined as a stronger US dollar pushed the price of base metals lower. Disappointing manufacturing data from the US also weighed sentiment. Mining giant BHP dropped 0.2% to A$36.94, South32 dropped 0.9% to A$3.31, but Fortescue Metals gained 1.5% to A$7.30.

ResMed shares soared 9.9% to A$16.26 after the sleep apnea products company reported its first-quarter profit was up 15% to A$224m.

ECONOMIC NEWS: Australia's new housing pipeline shrank more than expected in March, with a sharp decline in high-rise dwelling approvals pulling the total to a near five-year low. The fall to 14,429 seasonally adjusted approvals from 17,083 in February and brought the rolling yearly total to 199,428, below the 200,000-mark for the first time since May 2014, official figures on Friday showed.

CURRENCY: The Australian dollar was down against the U.S. dollar on Friday, ahead of Tuesday's Reserve Bank meeting. The Australian dollar was quoted at 69.95 US cents, from 70.19 US cents on Thursday.

Powered by Capital Market - Live News