Australian investors finished on top today following a relatively topsy-turvy session.
Here's a quick rundown:
- S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) up 0.5% at 5096 points
- ALL ORDINARIES (Index: ^AXAO) (ASX: XAO) up 0.5% at 5120 points
- AUD/USD at US 70.89 cents
- Iron Ore at US$59.01 a tonne, according to the Metal Bulletin
- Gold at US$1,108.53 an ounce; Brent oil at US$47.71 a barrel
The Australian sharemarket rallied 1.2% higher this morning. However, the gains were soon erased as a result of volatility on China's sharemarket, as well as investor anxiety ahead of the US Federal Reserve's policy decision later this week.
The afternoon's headlines have also been dominated by politics with Malcolm Turnbull officially resigning from the cabinet and asking for a leadership ballot.
As quoted by the Sydney Morning Herald, Turnbull said "I have consulted with many, many colleagues, many Australians, many of our supporters in every walk of life. This course of action has been urged on me by many people over a long period of time."
The local bourse fought back by the end of the day, predominantly thanks to a resurgent banking sector. Although Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) fell 0.8% upon its emergence from a trading halt, each of its rivals closed between 0.9 and 1.6% higher. Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) was the best performing bank.
Cardno Limited (ASX: CDD) was the biggest winner for the day, closing 16% higher following a proportional takeover offer, while Ten Network Holdings Limited (ASX: TEN) rose 6.1%. Liquefied Natural Gas Ltd (ASX: LNG) took a belting, losing 17.3% to trade at just $1.655.
Here are Monday's top stories:
- Oil Search Limited (ASX: OSH) formally rejected Woodside Petroleum Limited's (ASX: WPL) takeover offer, describing it as "highly opportunistic".
- Commonwealth Bank of Australia emerged from a trading halt after it successfully completed its $5.1 billion capital raising
- Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) has guided for a 40% increase in profit in the first-half of 2016
- Shares of Liquefied Natural Gas Ltd (ASX: LNG) plummeted following a market update this morning. The shares closed 17.3% lower for the day.
- With the Australian dollar hovering around US70 cents, some analysts say it is destined to fall below US60 cents
- Goldman Sachs says oil will stay 'lower for even longer' with a chance of a fall to US$20 a barrel.
