News: Midday: Aus share sell-off continues

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Weak leads from Wall Street saw the local market extend the week’s losses, down 0.6 per cent at midday. The market has plunged from a weekly high of 5,901 on Tuesday down around 246 points to 5,655 this morning. 

 

The banks headed lower led by ANZ and CBA. The major miners were also lower despite a lift in the iron ore price and a major drag also came from the REIT sector. 

 

The Aussie dollar continues to ignore pressure from lower interest rates, still sitting a touch below $US0.80.

 

The S&P/ASX 200 index is 37 points down at 5,655. On the futures market the SPI is 41 points lower.

 

Looking at economic news: The ABS has shown a rise in unemployment with its April figure rising by 0.1 per cent to 6.2 per cent, seasonally adjusted. 

 

Company news

 

Crowd sourced media company Newzulu Limited (ASX:NWZ) will partner with Tribune Publishing to utilise its syndication and sale networks to distribute New Zulu content. The company says it will utilise Tribune’s broad reach in the US to expand the scope of its live streaming platform. Executive Chairmen Alexander Hartman says the company’s share the view that crowd sourced content offers unique editorial perspectives of breaking news and entertainment. Shares in New Zulu are trading up 8.7 per cent at $0.13 

 

Bank of Queensland Limited (ASX:BOQ) will follow the big four banks in cutting its mortgage rates, its variable home loan rate will drop by 0.2 per cent. The lender says it will match the RBA’s rate cut of 0.25 per cent for its business customers taking out a variable business term loans. The bank’s deposit rates will also come down by 20 basis points while its pension plus rate will remain unchanged. Shares in BOQ are trading down 1.44 per cent at $12.98

  

Best and worst performers

The only major sector making gains today is healthcare, gaining 0.2 per cent to 18,467. Shares in Ansell Limited (ASX:ANN) have risen 2.08 per cent and trading at $26.56. Shares in Ramsay Health Care Limited (ASX:RHC) and Estia Health Limited (ASX:EHE) are also stronger. 

 

The worst performing sector is REITs, falling 1.7 per cent to 1,248. Shares in Abacus Property Group (ASX:ABP) have fallen 3.64 per cent, trading at $2.91. Shares in BWP Trust (ASX:BWP) and Charter Hall Retail (ASX:CQR) are also lower. 

 

Gold and the dollar

Gold is trading at $US1,189 an ounce.

The Australian dollar is buying $US0.7968