share prices

ASX struggles to another record, Sims upgrades guidance, lithium giants to merge The ASX200 (ASX:XJO) struggled to another record close, finishing just three points higher as a sell off in the energy sector, down -1.4%, offset gains in the mining sector, +0.8%. The news of the day was the planned merger between Australia’s pureplay lithium miners, Orocobre (ASX:ORE) and Galaxy (ASX:GXY),…

Market volatility up as ASX finishes flat, Zip Co jumps 17%, Cleanaway’s new deal The ASX200 (ASX:XJO) finished flat for the day with gains in the IT sector, which was 2.2% higher, insufficient to offset weakness across cyclical businesses including energy, -0.7%, and utilities, -1.1%. The standout by far was Buy Now Pay Later firm Zip Co (ASX:Z1P) which…

Long-short strategies, which involve giving a fund manager the flexibility to profit when share prices rise or fall, were gaining traction before the pandemic. The trend has continued to accelerate since, but they remain an under-represented part of most investor portfolios. Whether due to a lack of understanding or perceived higher risk, heightened equity market…

2020 will go down as a wild ride in the markets for a multitude of reasons. Heightened volatility and drawdown events have put capital preservation, absolute return, and downside management back in focus. Global infrastructure & utility stocks have been front and centre of that volatility – and a new product to launch next month…

Optimism abound, ASX up 4.4% for the week, Macquarie (ASX:MQG) profit falls 32% The week finished where it began, the ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) adding 0.8% taking the gain to 4.4% with every sector finishing the week higher.  The key driver was real estate (+8.3%) and consumer discretionary (+6.8%) businesses the key drivers as a combination of loosening border restrictions…

ASX broadly flat, retail sales decline again, TPW smashed, flat lead The ASX battled to a flat finish on Wednesday, adding 0.1%, with gains in energy and financials offsetting weakness in the consumer sectors.  Retail sales results were released with every state apart from the NT falling in September, national sales were down 1.5%.  This was the second…

ASX lower as mining and financials hit, Afterpay Ltd (ASX:APT) hits $100, RBA Minutes released The ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) fell 0.7% on Tuesday, giving back yesterday’s gains on a weaker global lead. Mining, down 1.1% and financials, -1.2%, were the biggest detractors as valuations continue to bite. BHP Group Ltd (ASX:BHP) offered a quarterly production update…

ASX 200 hits seven month high, CSL (ASX:CSL) bounces, Cimic (ASX:CIM) sells Thiess, weaker open ahead The ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) rallied 0.9% to start the week, buoyed by the hope of Victorian economic restrictions being lifted at the end of the month.  The index has reached a seven month high as a confluence of domestic…

Another positive week for global markets, property sinks, reality setting in for Atlas Arteria (ASX:ALX) It was another positive week for global markets, the ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) finishing 1.2% higher despite falling 0.5% on Friday. Similarly, US markets have overcome the ‘will they or wont they’ stimulus discussions, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq up 0.2%…

RBA planning more QE, ASX rallies, Virgin CEO out, US markets pare falls The ASX 200 (ASX:XJO) rallied 0.5% on a mixed day.  The key result today was a slightly better than expected unemployment result, the rate increasing to 6.9% despite Victoria shedding another 1.1% of jobs.  Queensland stands out with the highest level of unemployment at 7.7%…