Pies or Lions…who will it be?
The Grand Final Weekend is upon us and the festive mood is setting in here in Melbourne.
We’re ready for few days of cracking weather, footy and beers.
On another note
If you’ve been watching the Uranium spot price go gangbusters….
Check out our very own Niv Dagan’s views on the outlook here.
See you Monday!
Across Markets…
The Australian sharemarket finished lower on Thursday, weighed down by consumer stocks after an unexpected fall in monthly retail sales figures.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index fell 0.1 per cent, or 5.5 points to 7024.8 at the closing bell, with eight out of the 11 industry sectors recording losses.
Consumer stocks reacted negatively to Australian retail sales for August and were among the worst-performing on the gauge. The data showed that retail activity last month slowed to 0.2 per cent from July’s increase of 0.5 per cent, reinforcing the case for the Reserve Bank to hold the cash rate when it meets next week.
ANZ economists Adelaide Timbrell and Madeline Dunk said in a note to clients that the data supported the likelihood that the Reserve Bank would leave the cash rate unchanged next Tuesday, with the “RBA appearing comfortable to continue its extended pause”.
The consumer discretionary sector recorded the sharpest loss, down 1.2 per cent. IDP Education dropped 3.5 per cent, Aristocrat Leisure slid 1.9 per cent and Wesfarmers fell 0.8 per cent.
WTI crude hit fresh one-year highs above $US94 a barrel as stockpiles in the largest US storage hub dropped to the lowest since July last year. Energy stocks tracked the oil price and were among the best performing on the ASX 200, jumping 3 per cent.
Woodside Energy rallied 2.9 per cent, Santos jumped 3.8 per cent and Karoon surged 4.7 per cent.