Pre-Open Data
Key Data for the Week
- Monday – UK – Nationwide House Prices
- Tuesday – AUS – Federal Budget
- Tuesday – AUS – Retail Sales
- Wednesday – EUR – Consumer Confidence
- Thursday – AUS – Building Approvals
- Thursday – UK – Gross Domestic Product
- Thursday – EUR – Unemployment Rate
- Friday – US – Unemployment Rate
- Friday – EUR – Consumer Price Index
Australian Market
The Australian sharemarket lifted 0.3%, to close at its highest level in over two months. The market was boosted by solid gains in the Materials sector, which added 1.3%. Over the week, the local ASX 200 gained 1.5%.
The Financials sector weakened on Friday, weighed down by losses amongst all the major banks; Commonwealth Bank led the losses, down 1.3%, and Westpac slid 0.6%, while NAB and ANZ both fell 0.4%. However, Macquarie Group bucked the trend to add 0.7%. Fund managers were mixed; Magellan Financial Group gave up 1.4% and Australian Ethical Investment slipped 1.3%, while Challenger lifted 0.5%.
Mining heavyweights advanced; Fortescue Metals gained 1.7% and BHP rose 1.0%, while Rio Tinto closed up 0.7%. Gold miners closed higher as the price of gold rose; Newcrest Mining lifted 3.5% and Evolution Mining added 2.7%, while Northern Star Resources closed 2.1% higher.
The Energy sector was stronger, up 0.9%, despite weaker oil prices. Santos added 0.6%, while Woodside Petroleum and Beach Energy both rose 1.2%.
The Australian futures market points to a 0.45% rise today.
Overseas Markets
European sharemarkets advanced on Friday, boosted by gains in the Energy sector; BP added 0.1%, while Royal Dutch Shell rose 1.4%. Banking stocks were mixed; Lloyds Bank and Barclays Bank shed 1.2% and 0.1% respectively, while HSBC rose 0.2% and Deutsche Bank added 1.0%. Renewable energy stocks retreated; Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy gave up 6.9%, while Vestas Wind Systems slid 0.7%.
By the close of trade, the STOXX Europe 600 eked out a 0.1% gain, while the UK FTSE 100 and German DAX both lifted 0.2%.
US sharemarkets were mixed on Friday. Information Technology was the weakest sector, down 0.1%. Microsoft slipped 0.1% and Netflix eased 0.5%, while Fortinet and NVIDIA lost 0.9% and 1.6% respectively. However, Alphabet and Apple bucked the trend to add 0.2% and 0.4% respectively. Oil stocks advanced; Chevron added 1.8% and ExxonMobil gained 2.2%, while ConocoPhillips lifted 2.8%. By the close of trade, the NASDAQ eased 0.2%, while the Dow Jones and S&P 500 closed up 0.4% and 0.5% respectively.
CNIS Perspective
Royal Dutch Shell was forced to issue an unusual apology this month after it came to light that the company took advantage of a huge discount in the price of Russian flagship crude to buy 725,000 barrels of oil.
This was a highly profitable deal and it did not break the law, but the company severely misunderstood the social consequences of the action.
The apology followed:
“We are acutely aware that our decision last week to purchase a cargo of Russian crude oil… was not the right one and we are sorry”.
Interestingly, the company didn’t buy it directly from Russia – it came from an intermediary trading company headquartered in Singapore, registered in Amsterdam and with roots in Geneva – known as Trafigura, one of the largest commodity trading firms in the world.
In a positive light, this highlights the increasing pressures and prompt social consequences that publicly listed companies now face at an operational level within the global community.
On the other hand, the transparency highlights how the market adapts and how the flow of money continues, albeit with worldwide economic sanctions against Russia.
Trafigura is a private company, owned by 1,000 of its employees. It does not have a stock price or a credit rating, and given its private status, does not need to disclose its trading operations publicly.
Should you wish to discuss this or any other investment related matter, please contact your Wealth Management Team on (02) 4928 8500.
Disclaimer
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