Consumer trust isn’t something to be taken for granted, but reports from the UK, US and here at home are all pointing towards an uplift in trust levels around financial advice, which can only be a welcome development.
There are significant tailwinds behind the financial advice industry at the moment, but some major obstacles are still preventing advice practices from taking advantage of surging demand according to a new study from CFS.
Will the RBA hammer the market?
The Australian share market eased on Monday ahead of today’s Reserve Bank of Australia meeting, with many in the market convinced that the central bank will hit borrowers with an interest rate hike of 0.4 per cent, although the most likely outcome of the meeting is still seen as a standard 0.25 per cent rise.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index snapped its three-day winning streak, retreating 19.1 points, or 0.2 per cent, to 7,539, with the broader All Ordinaries gauge sliding 25.9 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 7,745.9.
US gold heavyweight Newmont Corporation, the world’s largest gold miner, lobbed a $24.5 billion takeover offer for Australian miner Newcrest over the weekend, with the all-scrip non-binding offer amounting to a premium of roughly 21 per cent, an offer Newcrest’s board is considering after rejecting a lower bid. In the local market’s first reaction, Newcrest surged $2.08, or 9.3 per cent, to $24.53.
Among the big miners, BHP rose 29 cents, or 0.6 per cent, to $48.20, Rio Tinto gained $1.07, or 0.9 per cent, to $124.01 and Fortescue Metals advanced one solitary cent, to $21.96.
In lithium, Pilbara Minerals surrendered 12 cents, or 2.4 per cent, to $4.77, while fellow producer Allkem was down 13 cents, or 1 per cent, to $13.00. IGO, which mines nickel as well as lithium, eased 20 cents, or 1.4 per cent, to $14.44, while Mineral Resources, which produces iron ore and lithium, gave up 19 cents, or 0.2 per cent, to $88.60.
Among the lithium project developers, Core Lithium dropped 6.5 cents, or 5.8 per cent, to $1.06 and Lake Resources lost 5 cents, or 6.2 per cent, to 71 cents. Rare earths producer Lynas retreated 12 cents, or 1.3 per cent, to $9.28.
In coal, Whitehaven Coal gained 24 cents, or 2.9 per cent, New Hope Corporation was up 15 cents, or 2.6 per cent, to $5.94, Coronado Global Resources advanced 5 cents, or 2.4 per cent, to $2.12, Stanmore Coal closed 7 cents, or 2 per cent, higher at $3.53, and Bowen Coking Coal added 1 cent, or 3.7 per cent, to 28 cents.
In energy, Woodside Petroleum was up 42 cents, or 1.2 per cent, to $36.05; Santos added 2 cents to $7.01; and Beach Petroleum moved 5.5 cents, or 3.7 per cent, higher to $1.54.
On the industrial screens, biotech heavyweight CSL dropped $1.89, or 0.6 per cent, to $311.92.
Furniture star Nick Scali plunged $1.62, or 13 per cent, to $10.80 even as the furniture retailer reported a 70 per cent rise in profit for the 12 months to December 31, to $60.6 million.
Sales in January had surpassed expectations, the company said. However, a cut in the company’s dividend payout ratio, from about 84 per cent to 50 per cent, and lack of guidance for full-year earnings, clearly disappointed the market.
On the banking front, Westpac lost 7 cents, or 0.3 per cent, to $23.85; Commonwealth Bank eased 40 cents, or 0.4 per cent, to $110.75; ANZ Bank shed 17 cents, or 0.7 per cent, to $25.58; National Australia Bank eased 2 cents to $31.88; and investment bank Macquarie gave up $1.46, or 0.8 per cent, to $188.97.
Rate fears reign on Wall Street
US stocks closed lower in the Monday session, led downward by the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index, as investors grew increasingly cautious of rising bond yields. The tech gauge fell 119.5 points, or 1 per cent, to end at 11,887.4. The 30-stock Dow Jones Industrial Average eased 35 points, or 0.1 per cent, to 33,891, regaining some ground after being down more than 240 points at one stage. The broad S&P 500 index retreated 25.4 points, or 0.6 per cent, to close at 4,111.1 points.
Concerns that rates may still have further to rise were strengthened after Raphael Bostic, president of the Federal Reserve’s Atlanta branch, said the January jobs report could lead to a higher peak in interest rates. Bostic’s comments appeared to stir the bond market, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury rising 0.12 percentage points to 3.65 per cent and the more rate-sensitive two-year Treasury yield lifting 0.19 percentage points to 4.49 per cent.
In commodities, gold rose US$3.30, or 0.2 per cent, to US$1,867.60 an ounce, the global benchmark Brent crude oil grade increased US$1.28, or 1.6 per cent, to US$81.22 a barrel, and West Texas Intermediate crude added 91 cents, or 1.2 per cent, to US$74.30 a barrel. The Australian dollar is buying 68.82 US cents, down from 69.36 from the Australian close on Monday.
