Aussie shares drop after big four bank earnings miss
The Australian share market started the week slightly lower after four major banks and a drinks giant missed earnings expectations.
The S&P/ASX200 fell 17.2 points, or 0.2 percent, to 8,712.6 points at noon on Monday, while the All Ordinaries index fell 13.7 points, or 0.15 percent, to 8,941 points.
The decline follows a record-breaking session on Wall Street on Friday as investors pondered mixed news about the Persian Gulf energy crisis.
“News that the Trump administration has ordered the military to escort stranded tankers across the Strait of Hormuz has seen the crude shortfall narrow,” said Kyle Rodda, senior market analyst at Capital.com.
“This move by the US represents a small move in an environment where energy markets are still heading towards the impending supply gap with the Bosphorus blockaded.”
Local energy stocks fell more than two per cent at midday, in line with the drop in oil prices since Friday’s ASX close, dragging Woodside (-3.0 per cent) and Santos (-1.6 per cent) lower.
Refinery operators Ampol and Viva also fell as Viva signaled the Geelong refinery should return to 90 per cent production capacity from June following a major fire in April.
Coal miners were down overall and uranium stocks made a modest recovery from the previous week’s sales.
The heavyweight financial sector was in the red; NAB shares fell 1.7 per cent to $39.16 after its statutory net profit of $2.8 billion in the first half missed expectations, joining ANZ as the second big four banks to disappoint investors this reporting season.
Flatly traded Westpac will release its interim results on Tuesday.
Commonwealth Bank shares fell 0.2 percent to $172.67.
ASX-listed miners were in a mixed bag; basic materials rose a good 0.5 percent from BHP to $55.23.
The gold subsector rose 0.3 per cent, with the precious metal hovering near US$4,606 ($A6,392) an ounce.
Rare earth and battery minerals producers were under pressure; Lynas and Liontown fell 2.4 percent and 5.5 percent, respectively.
Consumer staples fell 1.7 percent after revenue from Dan Murphy’s and BWS owner Endeavor came in lighter than expected.
Shares of a2 Milk fell almost 12 percent to $6.41 after it recalled three batches of infant milk formula in the U.S. due to the presence of cerulide, a toxin that can cause nausea and vomiting.
And fashion group Accent fell more than 10 per cent as it responded to an inquiry by the corporate regulator and flagged a drop in gross margin in a trading update.
Southern Cross Media gained 2.1 per cent to 61 cents after chairman Heith Mackay-Cruise announced his retirement after a major shareholder pressured him and two other executives to be sacked.
The Australian dollar bought 72.09 US cents from 71.96 US cents on Friday, ahead of the Reserve Bank widely expected to raise interest rates on Tuesday.
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