As it happened: Low-volume ASX sags with US futures

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As it happened: Low-volume ASX sags with US futures

Summary

  • The ASX 200 ignored a strong Wall Street lead to fall by 0.3% on Monday. The iron ore miners, CBA, and Macquarie Group were weak
  • CSL added 0.8% to $265.50 to help the healthcare sector higher. Telstra rose by 1.8% to $3.49, boosting the communications sector
  • The local market followed US futures lower on Monday. E-mini readings for the Dow, S&P500, and Nasdaq  were down 0.3% and hinting at losses on Wall Street tonight 
  • Bitcoin was back above $US60,000 ($78,832) and edging towards a new record high ahead of the public listing of US crypto exchange Coinbase this week

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Good night all

And with that, we’ll tie the blog off there for the night. Thanks for tuning in to Markets Live.

Alex Druce is back in the morning.

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Kelly O’Dwyer joins Barrenjoey

By Clancy Yeates

Former federal government minister Kelly O’Dwyer is the latest high-profile appointment to the board of investment banking start-up Barrenjoey Capital.

Ms O’Dwyer, who is also a director of ASX-listed Home Consortium and Equity Trustees, quit politics in 2019 after serving in roles including jobs and industrial relations minister. Barrenjoey’s general counsel Annettte Spencer was also announced as a director of the board on Tuesday.

Former Federal MP Kelly O’Dwyer has joined Barrenjoey.

Former Federal MP Kelly O’Dwyer has joined Barrenjoey. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

Barrenjoey’s chief executive Brian Benari said that after the appointment of chairman David Gonski, the company was moving to ensure an appropriate balance on the board of internal and independent directors, also taking into account directors’ backgrounds and gender.

“As a result, we are delighted to welcome Kelly and Annette. They both bring a diverse set of leadership expertise that will be integral to Barrenjoey’s future success,” Mr Benari said.

The company said it would announce more female board appointments in the coming weeks.

Mr Gonski said the company was thrilled to announce the appointment of the two directors, who would be responsible for overseeing effective supervision and governance of the the company.

“Balance in terms of skills, background and perspectives is critical to any board,” Mr Gonski said.

Former UBS boss Matthew Grounds is expected to be announced as co-executive chairman of Barrenjoey this week.

Markets wrap: Low-volume ASX sags 0.3%

By Alex Druce

Losses for the iron ore giants and Commonwealth Bank may have weighed the Australian sharemarket down but analysts said Monday’s low trading volumes could be a sign the index is readying to retest last week’s post-pandemic high.

The ASX200 lost 0.3 per cent to close at 6974.0, a second straight decline that took the market further from Thursday’s 13-month peak.

The ASX200 fell 0.3 per cent on Monday.

The ASX200 fell 0.3 per cent on Monday.Credit: Louise Kennerley

Volumes were well down on the two-week daily average at less than 400 million shares traded.

However, Novus Capital senior client adviser Gary Glover said the subdued activity could be taken as a positive.

He said trading was light as the ASX200 nudged the 7000 mark last week, and even lighter in the two negative sessions that have followed, hinting that the market wants to retest those levels and push ahead.

“When you’re running up to a high, volumes tend to taper off,” Mr Glover said. “The last stages of a bull market bring lighter volumes, and what you’re watching for is a few down days where the volumes start to increase.

“That’s the warning sign - and it isn’t something we’ve seen.”

Mr Glover said the flow of dividend payments had perhaps added to a strong seasonal performance for the local market, which he expects to continue its climb back towards the all-time peak of February 2020.

“I don’t see anything too negative with these smaller days we’re having,” Mr Glover said.

“The all-time high is now within pretty close proximity. From my experience when you get close to these record highs, the market wants to retest it.”

The ASX sagged with US futures on Monday after upbeat comments from US Fed chair Jerome Powell did little to quell inflation fears.

The local mining sector was weak.

Iron ore giant BHP lost 1.1 per cent, Rio Tinto 0.5 per cent, and Fortescue Metals 1.6 per cent, while gold producers weren’t much better.

Commonwealth Bank fell 0.5 per cent to $86.72 and Macquarie Group lost 0.6 per cent to $153.92. However, ANZ, Westpac, and NAB each finished higher.

CSL bounced back from Friday’s vaccine jitters to rise 0.8 per cent to $265.50 and help the healthcare sector higher.

Telstra rose by 1.8 per cent to $3.49, boosting the communications sector.

Bitcoin was back above $US60,000 ($78,832) and edging towards a new record high ahead of the public listing of US crypto exchange Coinbase this week.

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ASX sheds 0.3% as miners weigh

By Alex Druce

The local sharemarket edged further away from 7000 on Monday, drooping under the weight of the iron ore miners, Commonwealth Bank, and Macquarie Group.

The ASX200 lost 0.3 per cent to close at 6974.0, a second straight decline that took the market further from Thursday’s post-pandemic high.

Volumes were well down on the two-week daily average at just 392 million shares traded.

The mining sector was weak. Iron ore giant BHP lost 1.1 per cent, Rio Tinto 0.5 per cent, and Fortescue Metals 1.6 per cent, while gold producers weren’t much better.

Commonwealth Bank fell 0.5 per cent to $86.72 and Macquarie Group lost 0.6 per cent to $153.92. However, ANZ, Westpac, and NAB each finished higher.

The local market followed US futures lower on Monday. E-mini readings for the Dow, S&P500, and Nasdaq were down 0.3 per cent and hinting at losses on Wall Street tonight.

Santos’s six-million-dollar man has played his cards deftly

By Elizabeth Knight

Opinion

Santos boss Kevin Gallagher should be sending a bottle of Penfolds Grange to Woodside chairman Richard Goyder, without whom Gallagher wouldn’t have an extra $6 million of money weighing in his pockets.

Woodside’s apparent designs on nabbing Gallagher from Santos to run the West Australian oil and gas giant has been the worst kept secret in the industry. Goyder has been looking to replace outgoing chief executive Peter Coleman who is set to leave in the latter half of this year.

Santos chief executive Kevin Gallagher has committed to stay at the company to deliver growth projects.

Santos chief executive Kevin Gallagher has committed to stay at the company to deliver growth projects.Credit: Attila Csaszar

Most industry observers believed Gallagher was on the top of the list or at the very least, in contention. Ultimately it was academic. Santos needed only the spectre of losing him to be galvanised into action.

Thus Goyder gifted Gallagher the perfect leverage.

And Gallagher appears to have played his cards deftly. In a media interview with The Australian a week ago he did little to hose down the speculation that he was on Woodside’s wishlist, saying “whether they’ve got me in their sights or not, that’s not for me to comment on”.

The extent of Santos’ desire to keep him has now been quantified at $6 million in share acquisition rights if he remains with the company until 2025 and successfully executes the major growth projects and emissions reduction initiatives he has already put in train.

There are various hurdles that will require jumping before Gallagher’s shares vest but it’s fair to assume he believes he can perform.

Read Elizabeth Knight’s full column here 

Fallen idol: Record $3.6b fine the latest blow dealt to Jack Ma

By Tony Munroe

Once seemingly untouchable, Alibaba founder Jack Ma has endured a tumultuous run that saw his Chinese e-commerce giant hit with a record 18 billion yuan ($3.6 billion) antitrust fine, resolving one key uncertainty even as others persist for himself and his business empire.

The reversal of fortune for the 56-year-old Ma, who has all-but-disappeared from public view since an October speech blasting China’s regulatory system, has been striking for an entrepreneur whose transformation of commerce in China - and his relentless optimism - commanded cult-like reverence.

Jack Ma’s brash persona has long put him at odds with Chinese authorities.

Jack Ma’s brash persona has long put him at odds with Chinese authorities.Credit: AP

Ma, who stepped down from Alibaba in 2019 but looms large in the corporate psyche and in the eyes of investors, had revelled in pushing boundaries with audacious statements, taking a high profile even as most Chinese peers kept their heads down.

Friends in high places, as well as pride in Alibaba’s success, had protected Ma, sources have said.

That was until his Shanghai speech triggered a backlash that led to the scuppering of a blockbuster $US37 billion ($48.5 billion) IPO for Alibaba financial technology affiliate Ant Group, as well as a clampdown by authorities on the e-commerce giant itself and the wider “platform economy”, which continues to reverberate.

Read the full story here

Reuters

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Delorean shares up 81% on ASX debut

By Emma Koehn

Shares in ‘bioenergy’ startup Delorean are up 81 per cent in the last hour of trading after a strong first day on the ASX boards.

The business, which is focused on building renewable energy projects that use organic matter to generate power sources. Delorean’s ASX debut comes after raising $14m for shares at 20c each.

The company hit the 40c mark earlier on Monday before settling at 36.2c just after 3pm.

The company has a pipeline of energy generation projects in the works which all aim to divert materials that would otherwise go into landfill towards the generation of power instead.

It’s aim is to become both a generator of power and an energy retailer in the coming years.

“We look forward to deploying the IPO capital into our infrastructure project pipeline to realise the vision of direct bioenergy asset ownership and operation as a national renewable ‘gentailer’, creating shareholder value through our vertical integrated platform,” managing director Joe Oliver said.

CSL and ResMed pull heath shares higher

By Alex Druce

The healthcare shares had a rosy glow about them this afternoon as biotech CSL and breathing machine manufacturer ResMed dragged the sector higher.

CSL was last 0.6 per cent ahead at $264.87 - easily outpacing a 0.4 per cent decline for the wider ASX200 - as it rebounded from last week’s vaccine wobble.

CSL said it was “committed to meeting its contracted arrangements with the Australian Government and AstraZeneca for locally produced AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines”.

CSL said it was “committed to meeting its contracted arrangements with the Australian Government and AstraZeneca for locally produced AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines”.Credit: Eddie Jim

CSL - which is making the AstraZeneca vaccine in Melbourne - closed 1 per cent lower on Friday after the Federal Government decided to make Pfizer the preferred vaccine for people aged under 50.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said medical experts had expressed concerns about rare blood clots potentially linked to the AstraZeneca vaccine, throwing the country’s vaccination timeline into disarray.

CSL on Friday said it was “committed to meeting its contracted arrangements with the Australian Government and AstraZeneca for locally produced AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines”

Meanwhile, shares in the $38 billion Resmed were 1.5 per cent higher at $26.37.

Private hospital operator Ramsay Health Care gained 0.6 per cent to $68.03, hearing device manufacturer Cochlear gained 2.2 per cent to $221.25, and protective glovemaker Ansell was 0.9 per cent ahead at $39.

Communications was the only other ASX200 sector to move ahead on Monday afternoon.

Gold and iron ore miners weighing on the market

By Alex Druce

The gold miners aren’t looking too flash today, sagging with the price of the yellow metal.

Spot gold was at $US1,738.41 an ounce in afternoon trade AEST, down about $US20 an ounce from last week’s five-week high.

The market’s two largest gold miners - Newcrest Mining and Northern Star - were each 2.6 per cent lower, while Evolution dropped 2 per cent.

The ASX200 materials sector was in the dumps on Monday.

The ASX200 materials sector was in the dumps on Monday. Credit:

Among the smaller players, Regis Resources was down 1.1 per cent, Perseus dropped 2.1 per cent, and Silver Lake Resources fell 3.9 per cent.

The ASX200 wider materials sector was down 1.1 per cent, with the iron ore miners also dragging heavily.

BHP shed 0.9 per cent to $46.25, Rio Tinto slipped 0.8 per cent to $114.60, and Fortescue metals sagged by 1.6 per cent to $20.565.

Mineral Resources lost 1.8 per cent to $40.47.

Bucking the trend was lithium and tantalum producer Pilbara Minerals. Pilbara shares were last 0.9 per cent higher at $1.17.

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Booktopia shares jump on textbook deal

By Alex Druce

Shares in online bookseller Booktopia reached a near two-week high this morning after the firm announced it was now the exclusive supplier and fulfilment partner for Zookal textbooks.

That’s a catalogue of about 185,000 titles, if you’re wondering.

Booktopia said the deal would bring in an extra $22 million in revenue a year - based on last year’s figures - with the full benefit to be felt in 2022.

Booktopia CEO Tony Nash. The company listed on the ASX in early December.

Booktopia CEO Tony Nash. The company listed on the ASX in early December. Credit: Louise Kennerley

Booktopia shares were up 2.7 per cent to $2.435 in afternoon trade. The company had fallen to $2.33 at the end of March, just above the $2.30 issue price at its ASX listing back in December.

It said education remains one of its fastest-growing segments

The $325 million company said it had set a new record for academic sales as universities and schools return to the classroom following the heavily disrupted 2020 year.

Total academic and corporate book sales for the year to date have hit approximately $53 million, up more than 30 per cent over the $40 million achieved in the 2020 financial year.

“The strong academic sales leave the company on track to achieve its previously announced upgraded full-year revenue forecast for the 12 months to 30 June 2021, of $217.6 million,” Booktopia told investors.

The Australian educational book sector was estimated to account for $804 million of sales in the consumer book market in the 2020 financial year.

Combined with the books to business and books to government sector, Booktopia estimates that figure exceeded $1 billion.

In 2020, Booktopia completed the acquisition of assets from the University Co-op Bookshop, increasing its presence and establishing a more extensive connection with leading universities, TAFEs and other academic institutions.

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