At lunch on Friday the S&P/ASX 200 index is on course to end the week on a positive note. The benchmark index is up 0.35% to 7,112.5 points at the time of writing.
Here's what has been happening on the market today:
Bank shares higher.
A key driver of the S&P/ASX 200 index's solid performance today has been the banking sector. All of the big four banks are trading notably higher at lunch. The best performer in the group is the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) share price with a gain of over 0.8%. This may have been driven by reduced expectations of a rate cut by the RBA next month.
IAG downgrades guidance.
The Insurance Australia Group Ltd (ASX: IAG) share price is sinking lower at lunch after the insurance giant downgraded its FY 2020 guidance. Following a review of its full year net natural peril claim costs, IAG now expects its FY 2020 reported insurance margin to be in the range of 14.5% to 16.5%. This compares to its previous guidance of 16% to 18%. It also advised that its half year results will contain a post-tax provision of approximately $80 million for a customer refund program.
Lynas charges higher.
The Lynas Corporation Ltd (ASX: LYC) share price is charging higher on Friday after the release of its quarterly update. During the quarter the rare earths producer reported neodymium and praseodymium production of 1,270 tonnes and rare earth oxide production of 3,592 tonnes. This was in line with its guidance.
Best and worst performers.
The best performer on the ASX 200 on Friday has been the Netwealth Group Ltd (ASX: NWL) share price with a 4.5% gain. This morning Citi retained its buy rating and lifted its price target on the financial services platform provider's shares to $9.65. This follows the release of its Q2 update on Thursday. The worst performer on the index today has been the IAG share price. It is down almost 6% after downgrading its guidance this morning.
