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.
Federal Reserve meeting weighs on stocks
The local share market started the week lower, ahead of the US Federal Reserve’s two-day policy meeting, which begins on Tuesday. The betting is that the Fed will not move on rates this week, but there is less consensus about what the Fed will do in November. The Open Market Committee hands down its rates call on Wednesday.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 closed 48.6 points, or 0.7 per cent, lower at 7230.40, while the broader All Ordinaries fell 54.5 points, also 0.7 per cent, to 7428.1. All sectors closed weaker.
The major banks were mixed, with Westpac gaining 2 cents to $21.79 and ANZ putting on 5 cents to $25.75; while NAB slipped 10 cents, or 0.3 per cent, to $29.58, and Commonwealth Bank lost 53 cents, or 0.5 per cent, to $102.63.
There was some joy for the big miners, with the Iron ore price reaching US$121 a tonne, up 20 per cent in a month. Rio Tinto advanced 40 cents, or 0.3 per cent, to $119.31; and BHP gained 8 cents, or 0.2 per cent, to $45.76; but Fortescue Metals eased 2 cents, to $21.20.
Tech leads market lower
On the industrial side, Tech was the biggest underperformer, with the sector index down 2.6 per cent, following a decline on the Nasdaq on Friday. Logistics software group WiseTech Global dropped $1.71, or 2.5 per cent, to $67.46; battery technology company Novonix plunged 9 cents, or 9.5 per cent, to 86 cents; buy-now, pay-later provider Zip Co fell 2 cents, or 6.2 per cent, to 30 cents, and semi-conductor company Weebit Nano tumbled 40 cents, or 9.5 per cent, to $3.83.
Whitehaven Coal slid 6 cents, or 0.9 per cent to $6.10, after confirming that it is in the running to acquire BHP’s major Daunia and Blackwater coal mines in Queensland. New Hope Corporation retreated 5 cents, or 0.8 per cent, to $6.17; Yancoal Australia lost 5 cents, or 1 per cent, to $$5.01; but Stanmore Resources rose 5 cents, or 1.5 per cent, to $3.32; and Coronado Global Resources lifted 1.5 cents, or 0.8 per cent, to $1.80.
In energy, Woodside Energy sank 55 cents, or 1.4 per cent, to $37.84; Santos lost 13 cents, or 1.6 per cent, to $7.78; Beach Energy retreated 2.5 cents, or 1.5 per cent, to $1.66; and Brazilian-based producer Karoon Energy gave back 3 cents, or 1.2 per cent, to $2.53. Uranium producer Paladin Energy moved 4 cents, or 4.2 per cent, higher to $1.00. Gold miner Silver Lake Resources lost 8 cents, or 8.3 per cent, to 88 cents after it confirmed it was the buyer behind an 11 per cent stake in West Australian gold producer Red 5. Red 5 rocketed 4.5 cents, or 20.5 per cent, to 26 cents.
Positive moves on the US indices, but barely
In the US, the major indices barely moved in the Monday session, becalmed ahead of the Federal Reserve meeting, but showing green. The 30-stock Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 6.06 points, to 34,624.30; the broader S&P 500 eked out a 3.2-point gain, to 4,453.53; and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index added 1.9 points, to 13,710.24.
In the bond market the US 10-year yield eased 2.3 basis points, to 4.309 per cent, while the 2-year yield was flat, at 5.041 per cent.
Gold rose US$10.31, or 0.5 per cent, to US$1,933.49 an ounce, the global benchmark Brent crude oil grade gained 50 cents, or 0.5 per cent, to US$94.43 a barrel, and US West Texas Intermediate crude advanced 74 cents, or 0.8 per cent, to US$92.22 a barrel.
The Australian dollar is buying 64.37 US cents this morning, down from 64.41 at the ASX close on Monday.
