It has been a mixed day of trade for the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO). At lunch the benchmark index is down 0.2% to 5,577.9 points after heavy declines in the energy sector offset solid gains by the big four banks.
Here's what has been happening on the ASX 200 on Wednesday:
Energy shares sink lower.
Australian energy shares such as Oil Search Limited (ASX: OSH) and Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) have acted as major drags on the ASX 200 on Wednesday after oil prices crashed to 15-month lows overnight. At one stage the WTI crude oil price had fallen almost 8% to US$45.95 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price was down 6% to US$56.04 a barrel.
Australian banks given a lift.
The shares of Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ASX: ANZ), Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA), National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB), and Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) are all up over 1% at lunch. News that APRA is removing restrictions on interest-only investor lending appears to have been the driver of these gains.
Bega Cheese shares smashed.
The Bega Cheese Ltd (ASX: BGA) share price is down over 12% at lunch after the food company provided a disappointing market update. Management advised that the impact of the drought on the Australian dairy industry has led to a significant increase in farming costs and ultimately farm gate milk prices. As a result, it has forecast a normalised profit after tax in the range of $44 million and $48 million. This compares to FY 2018's normalised net profit after tax of $44 million.
Private health premium increases announced.
Medibank Private Ltd (ASX: MPL) and NIB Holdings Limited (ASX: NHF) shares pushed higher this morning after announcing their premium increases for 2019. Medibank Private will increase premiums by an average of 3.3% and NIB Holdings will increase its premiums by 3.38%.
Best and worst performers.
The best performer on the ASX 200 at lunch is the Saracen Mineral Holdings Limited (ASX: SAR) share price which is up 6.5% thanks to a rise in the gold price and demand for risk-off assets. Going the other way is the Bega Cheese share price which is down 12%. The next worst performer is the Syrah Resources Ltd (ASX: SYR) share price which has fallen over 8% despite there being no news out of the graphite miner.
