At lunch on Tuesday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has given back its morning gains and is trading lower. The benchmark index is currently down 0.1% to 7,291.5 points.
Here's what is happening on the ASX 200 today:
Westpac's notable items
The Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) share price is trading lower today after revealing a number of notable items that will impact its financial results. Westpac advised that its profit will be hit by a total of $1.3 billion of notable items. These include $965 million write down of assets in Westpac Institutional Bank (WIB) following its annual impairment test, and additional provisions for customer refunds, payments, associated costs and litigation provisions of $172 million.
Ansell shares downgraded
The Ansell Limited (ASX: ANN) share price is under pressure today after being the subject of a bearish broker note. According to a note out of Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG), its analysts have downgraded the health and safety protection solutions company's shares to an underperform rating and cut the price target on them to $32.00. The broker believes that recent trends pose downside risk to the market's earnings expectations.
Mining giants rise
The shares of BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) and Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) are rising today after a strong night for iron ore prices. According to Metal Bulletin, the spot iron ore price has jumped 9.4% to US$135.03 a tonne thanks to supply concerns. BHP and Rio Tinto's shares are both up approximately 1.5% at the time of writing.
Best and worst ASX 200 performers
The best performer on the ASX 200 on Tuesday has been the Alumina Limited (ASX: AWC) share price with a 5% gain. This appears to have been driven by rising alumina prices. The worst performer on the index has been the Ansell share price with a 4% decline following the broker downgrade.
