Local shares closed lower again today after a horror night for commodity prices.
Here's a quick recap:
- S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) down 0.6% to 5227 points
- ALL ORDINARIES (Index: ^AXAO) (ASX: XAO) down 0.5% to 5276 points
- AUD/USD at US 73.15 cents
- Iron Ore at US$41.13 a tonne, according to the Metal Bulletin
- Gold at US$1,052.06 an ounce
- Brent oil at US$42.91 a barrel
The ASX fell sharply earlier in the session but managed to pare back some losses as the day went on. Resources shares did the majority of the damage after iron ore, oil and gold prices all fell heavily overnight.
Indeed, BHP Billiton Limited's (ASX: BHP) share price dipped as low as $18.19 and ended the day 3% lower. Iron ore rivals Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) and Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) also fell 2.1% and 2.3%.
Meanwhile, Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) closed 5.2% lower, while Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) and Origin Energy Ltd (ASX: ORG) fell 3.8% and 1.8%.
Slater & Gordon Limited (ASX: SGH) was the worst performing share for the day. The shares fell 6.3%. Bradken Limited (ASX: BKN) and Seven West Media Ltd (ASX: SWM) bucked the trend, rising 9.5% and 8.3%.
Here are Thursday's top stories:
- Why Return on Equity (ROE) is a dud valuation ratio
- Lynas Corporation Limited soars 114% in past month – is there more to come?
- Your frequent flyer points are about to be slashed
- Gold price crashes: Should you sell your gold shares?
- Oil prices set to fall: Santos share price faces bad news
- 3 blue chip dividend payers with cheap share prices